Maintaining Enrollment: How Common People Helped Santa Clara University School of Law Avoid a $4.2 Million Revenue Drop

A projected $4.2 million revenue drop, offset, while higher-ranked law schools lost enrolment.

Santa Clara University School of Law is an accredited law school in the U.S. facing nationwide trends predicting a drop in admissions for the 2015-2016 incoming class. This anticipated decrease represented a potential revenue loss of $4.2 million.

• Education
• Law

SCU Law anticipated a significant decrease in admissions for the upcoming academic year, posing challenges including:

1. Navigational Issues: The website’s navigation and user experience were incoherent, especially for new users.
2. Information Overload: The existing content organization met U.S. accreditation requirements but presented information poorly, making it hard for prospective students to find needed details.
3. International Prospects: Many potential students, especially international ones, would not visit the campus before applying, increasing the website’s importance in their decision-making process.

Common People was engaged to revise SCU Law’s website content strategy and improve the user journey:

1. Stakeholder and User Research:

   • Interviewed internal stakeholders, analyzed student survey data, and reviewed analytics to understand the friction points where users got stuck.
   • Identified the most critical details potential students wanted to know before applying.

2. Website Audit and Content Strategy:

   • Conducted a thorough audit of the site content to determine the best emotionally driven messaging points resonating with the audience.
   • Redesigned the user flow to create a distinct admissions funnel separate from the current student journey.

3. Improved User Navigation and Design:

   • Collaborated with the design and development teams to create a clear, tailored navigation experience for prospective students.
   • Added a prominent “Apply Now” button and refined navigation links to directly address prospective students’ questions.
   • Utilized compelling imagery showcasing the campus beauty, as identified as a key point in user research.

4. Admissions Landing Page:

   • Developed an admissions landing page guiding potential students through the next steps and what to expect during the application process.
   • Ensured users knew they would be taken to a third-party site to continue their application, with clarity on the review process by the admissions team.

• Offset Revenue Loss: Successfully mitigated the anticipated $4.2 million revenue drop while higher-ranked law schools faced significant enrollment challenges.
• Steady Enrollment: SCU Law maintained its enrollment levels, preventing significant budget cuts and ensuring financial stability.

Result Data:

• Offset anticipated $4.2 million revenue loss
• Maintained enrollment levels despite nationwide trends affecting higher-ranked law schools