Public trust in higher education has dropped sharply in recent years. A Gallup survey found that only 36% of U.S. adults now express confidence in higher ed, down from 57% a decade ago (Gallup). Against this backdrop, a strong PR strategy for higher education isn’t about self-congratulation—it’s about survival.
PR in higher ed today means more than announcing rankings or cutting ribbons. It means building transparency, addressing skepticism head-on, and telling stories that connect directly to what prospective students and families care about: affordability, degree pathways, student outcomes, and return on investment.
What you’ll find in this article:
- Why PR has become enrollment-critical in 2025.
- Practical elements of a modern PR strategy.
- Examples of PR done right in higher education.
- Benchmarks and challenges institutions face.
- How to build a future-proof PR strategy.
Why PR Is Enrollment Strategy in Disguise
For decades, public relations in higher ed meant issuing press releases about faculty achievements or construction projects. But in today’s competitive and skeptical market, that no longer moves the needle.
A PR strategy for higher education must now serve enrollment directly: it’s not about being seen, but about being trusted. Inside Higher Ed reporting shows that families increasingly demand clarity on cost, speed to degree, and career readiness. The schools that tell those stories credibly, and consistently, gain an edge in recruiting.
In other words, PR is no longer separate from enrollment. It is enrollment, expressed as reputation.
Elements of a Modern PR Strategy
What makes a PR strategy in 2025 effective? Institutions succeeding in this area consistently build around five pillars:
- Message Architecture
Without clear message priorities, communications become reactive. The most effective institutions define 3–5 core narratives (e.g., affordability, transfer pathways, workforce alignment) and weave them across every channel. - Multi-Channel Storytelling
The Chronicle of Higher Education has highlighted how media consumption in higher ed has fragmented, audiences no longer rely on a single channel for information. Instead, students may learn about you from TikTok, parents from the local newspaper, and employers from LinkedIn. A successful PR strategy ensures your story is adapted for each audience and channel, without losing consistency. - Evidence Over Rhetoric
Generic claims like “we put students first” no longer carry weight. In today’s environment, proof comes from outside voices and independent validation. What persuades students and families isn’t what institutions say about themselves, but what others say about them.
That means showcasing student and alumni testimonials, employer endorsements, community partnerships, or third-party recognition. For example, highlighting alumni career success stories in regional media or sharing employer feedback about the preparedness of your graduates carries far more weight than an internal metric.
Effective PR turns outcomes into narratives: a first-generation student who transferred in, graduated on time, and landed a career-launching job; an alumni network praised by local employers; or national recognition for affordability or innovation. These stories demonstrate impact in ways data points alone cannot.
PR proof, in other words, is not about telling the world you’re student-centered, it’s about letting students, alumni, and partners prove it for you.
- Thought Leadership
Institutions that position their leaders as commentators on broader trends gain visibility and credibility. When a VP for Enrollment or a provost contributes insights on how AI is reshaping behavior modeling and predictive analytics, they not only elevate their institution’s profile but also signal relevance in a rapidly changing landscape.
For example, sharing perspectives on how predictive analytics can help identify at-risk students earlier, or how AI-driven tools are personalizing the recruitment journey, will resonate with both higher ed professionals and the broader public. Publishing these ideas in outlets like Inside Higher Ed, presenting at conferences, or even guesting on podcasts transforms leaders into trusted voices, not just institutional spokespeople.
Thought leadership isn’t about self-promotion. It’s about adding value to the larger conversation and ensuring your institution is associated with innovation, credibility, and foresight.
- Crisis Preparedness
Reputation can collapse in days. EAB recommends having designated spokespeople, pre-approved messaging templates, and clear escalation processes. A PR strategy without a crisis plan is incomplete.
Benchmarks and Challenges in 2025
Public Trust Decline: Gallup reports that only 36% of U.S. adults now express confidence in higher education, down from 57% a decade ago. This is not just a reputational challenge, it directly impacts enrollment marketing. If the public narrative is skeptical, every PR effort must double down on transparency and proof.
Media Consumption Shifts: Pew Research shows that over 50% of U.S. adults under 30 now get their news from social media platforms rather than traditional outlets. For institutions, this means PR must expand beyond newspapers and magazines into short-form, video-first storytelling. A press release that doesn’t translate to Instagram Reels or TikTok may never reach the intended audience.
Crisis Response Speed: According to RNL and NACAC studies, institutions that respond to inquiries or crises within 24 hours maintain significantly higher engagement than those that delay. But here’s the PR angle: delayed responses are no longer just operational issues—they’re reputational risks that spread quickly in online communities.
Brand Differentiation Gap: EAB research shows that when asked to describe colleges they were considering, 62% of students used nearly identical language across multiple institutions. If your PR messages sound like every other college (“student-centered,” “transformative learning”), you disappear into the noise. PR strategies must focus on what truly differentiates your story.
The challenge is clear: PR cannot be superficial. It must be measurable, responsive, and aligned to enrollment outcomes.
Building a Future-Proof PR Strategy
Designing a PR strategy for higher education isn’t about writing a press release calendar—it’s about building an integrated system that ties reputation directly to enrollment outcomes. Here’s how to plan, build, and apply it effectively.
1. Start With a Diagnostic: What Do People Really Think?
Before you craft a message, you need clarity on how your institution is perceived, and where skepticism lives. Conduct media audits, analyze social sentiment, survey prospective students and parents, and talk with admissions staff about recurring questions and objections. A recent Gallup–Lumina survey found that 42% of U.S. adults now express “a great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in higher education, up from 36% in prior years.
This uptick is a modest recovery, but it underscores that public opinion remains fragile. Your PR strategy must not just promote strengths, it must confront doubt, build credibility, and connect with what your audiences really care about.
Action step: Benchmark your institution’s visibility. Which outlets cover you, and in what tone? Which student concerns show up repeatedly in inquiry calls? This is your baseline.
2. Build a Message Architecture That Aligns With Enrollment
A strong PR strategy starts with message discipline. That means identifying 3–5 core narratives—each tied directly to enrollment priorities. For example:
- Affordability and financial aid transparency
- Transfer pathways and credit recognition
- Career readiness and ROI for graduates
- Student experience and support services
Action step: Workshop these themes with stakeholders from marketing, admissions, and the registrar. The goal is one institutional voice, not a patchwork of disconnected talking points.
3. Map Channels to Audiences
Different audiences consume information differently. Students discover institutions through YouTube, TikTok, and Reddit. Parents rely on local newspapers, trusted rankings, and Facebook. Alumni and donors read newsletters or LinkedIn.
Action step: For each audience, list your primary PR channels and adapt your core messages into formats that work for them. A statistic on career outcomes might become a TikTok video for students, a press release for parents, and an alumni spotlight article for donors.
4. Tell Stories Through Evidence, Not Slogans
Students no longer trust generic claims like “we put students first.” They trust outcomes and lived experiences. That means highlighting student case studies, data points, and testimonials.
Action step: Build a bank of student and alumni stories. Pair each with measurable outcomes (jobs, transfers completed, affordability metrics). These will become the foundation of your campaigns.
5. Integrate PR With Operations
PR only works if operations can deliver. If your campaign promises “quick turnaround on application decisions” but students wait six weeks for a response, your credibility erodes. The same applies if you promote “personalized communication” but every inquiry gets the same generic email, or if you highlight “affordability” but your financial aid office takes months to issue award letters.
Admissions is more than just one process, it’s the student’s entire first impression of your institution. Every interaction, from the moment they fill out an inquiry form to the day they receive an acceptance letter, either reinforces or undermines your PR messaging. Thoughtful institutions know that PR and operations must move in lockstep. Messaging sets the expectation; operations prove it.
Action step: Before launching campaigns, pressure-test your operations. Can admissions, financial aid, and the registrar support the promises you’re making publicly? Align messaging with actual capacity.
6. Build a Crisis Playbook
Reputation can unravel in hours—an incident on campus, a negative news cycle, or a data breach. A crisis PR plan should include:
- Pre-approved holding statements
- Clear chain of command for responses
- Media training for key spokespeople
- Monitoring tools to track online conversation in real time
Action step: Run a simulation once a year. Test how fast your institution can respond, and refine the plan accordingly.
7. Measure, Report, Adjust
The difference between old PR and modern PR is measurement. Instead of counting clippings, institutions must track impact:
- Share of voice in media coverage
- Student engagement with PR-driven content (views, shares, inquiries)
- Conversion metrics (inquiry-to-application, application-to-enrollment) tied to PR campaigns
Action step: Build a dashboard that combines media analytics with enrollment KPIs. Report monthly. If a message or channel isn’t resonating, adjust quickly.
8. Treat PR as an Ongoing Cycle, Not a Campaign
The biggest mindset shift is this: PR isn’t a project with a start and end date. It’s an ongoing cycle of listening, shaping narratives, and adjusting. Institutions that revisit their PR quarterly and tie it into enrollment planning stay ahead of both media cycles and market changes.
Final Takeaway
A future-proof PR strategy for higher education is structured, evidence-based, and tightly aligned to enrollment. It starts with diagnostics, builds disciplined messages, adapts them across channels, and backs every claim with proof. It includes a crisis plan, integrates with operations, and measures outcomes relentlessly.
When done well, PR stops being “nice press” and becomes an institutional growth engine—building trust that leads directly to inquiries, applications, and enrollments.
If your institution’s PR feels reactive instead of strategic, it’s time for a reset. Our enrollment consulting services help higher ed leaders align messaging, operations, and outcomes—so your story builds trust and drives enrollment.