Moments that Matter: Understanding the Student Lifecycle
Picture a Clearing hotline on results morning: a bank of phones ringing without pause, each one with a completely different story: the first is a student a couple of grades short of an offer they’d been picturing since October, trying to hold it together; the next has spent the morning realising a different course, somewhere else entirely, might actually suit them better; a few calls later, someone rings almost on a whim – they hadn’t planned on university this year at all, and are only now, in the space of an afternoon, deciding that they might.
Universities put a huge amount of effort into creating the best possible experience for those young people and clearing teams are experienced at reading a caller quickly and adjusting to them – the tone, pace, what to lead with. That part works.
But what happens once the call ends is a different story. From that point on, the student moves through the same welcome messages, the same induction timeline, the same countdown to arrival as everyone else, regardless of how they got there or how long they’ve actually had to prepare. For a student who got their offer in January, that sequence works. For someone who made the decision a fortnight ago, it doesn’t – and is just one more sign they’re playing catch-up in a process never designed with them in mind. That’s often where the seed of disengagement begins.
The frustrating part is that the information needed to catch this is usually already sitting in the data a university holds. Whether a student came through the main scheme or through Clearing is known from the moment they accept. Which kind of Clearing journey they’ve taken is often knowable too, if the systems are tagged to ask the question. What tends to be missing isn’t the data – it’s the process and tracking needed to support these students effectively and keep them engaged and excited. Are offer holders attending virtual tours? Are they attending online meetings with academics and pastoral staff? Are they securing their Halls accommodation? In short: has the university continued the sales process?
For the CIO, the opportunity isn’t only about keeping the phone lines open and the systems fast, important as that is; it’s about continuing to track the ‘sales’ journey and make sure the care shown in that first phone call survives the weeks that come after it: a welcome journey that reflects how long a student has actually had to prepare, and closer attention for the ones most likely to drift away unnoticed.
Handled well, Clearing isn’t just about answering the phone with care. It’s about making sure the student who felt valued on that first call still feels that way, weeks later, when it matters just as much.
Pre Sales Architect
Kevin Mortimer is a Solution Architect with 25 years in technical leadership roles across varied cyber and infrastructure domains. Evangelising technology is a passion especially around sustainability outcomes and community engagement. Kevin is an avid volunteer focussing on supporting young people including; Cub leader, Chair of School Governors and a youth rugby coach.
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