Recruiting Prospective Students WithStories: How Personal Stories Influence the Process of Choosing aUniversity

Abstract

The current study examined the use of narratives as persuasive recruitment tools for universities. This study analyzed students’ perceptions of four universities’ recruitment materials and used Fisher's (1984) narrative paradigm and the concept of regulatory fitas a lens. Student participants perceived narratives as persuasive after they had narrowed down their list of colleges. The results also revealed that stories that represented both the academic and social sides of college helped students visualize themselves at the university and made the idea of higher education more tangible. Five themes are explained and the study concludes with theoretical and practical implications.

Keywords::

• Narrative Paradigm
• Personal Stories
• Persuasion
• Regulatory Fit
• University Recruitment

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Michael E. Burns

Michael E. Burns (Ph.D., North Dakota State University, 2012) is the Basic Course Director in the Department of Communication Studies at Texas State University.