Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Paskill Stapleton & Lord Releases Survey Showing 60 Percent of Students Swayed by Campus Tour Experience

  • 03/02/15

GLENSIDE, PA — Paskill Stapleton & Lord (PS&L, www.psandl.com), experts in higher education enrollment marketing, recently released results from its national campus tour assessment survey. The company recently conducted a survey of more than 8,000 college students from small, large, private and public colleges and universities across the U.S. The objective of the research was to study campus tour experiences and to see how it affects the decision-making process for students preparing for college. PS&L also wanted to learn more about why some tours are effective and why others are not, and what makes a campus tour engaging and memorable.

According to the survey, the campus tour is a key factor in students’ college selection process, and 60 percent of the 8,000 students who were interviewed said that the campus tour was a positive factor in their decision to attend a specific college or university. Moreover, 53 percent of prospective students tour as many as three campuses before they make a final decision on which college they want to attend.

“The value of a successful campus visit program is critical to our recruiting objectives. With the expertise provided by the PS&L team, we now have a solid campus visit program that allows us to differentiate for our visitors why our college can meet their educational objectives,” states Lisa Perez Miller, vice president of Students and Enrollment Management of Pratt Community College in Pratt, KS.

PS&L consultants specialize in college and university assessment and consulting services. They have visited hundreds of campuses and understand the best practices that can make a tour experience memorable and effective. The firm’s campus tour assessment services include secret shopping to provide objectivity and a comparison of the tour experience to best practices. The insight that PS&L offers a college and university has proven to be highly effective in improving the tour experience. PS&L’s recommendations focus on the campus tour program as one element that has a positive impact on enrollment outcomes.

PS&L encourages colleges and universities to take the time to analyze their tour program in the spring since it enables them to make changes before the busy fall season when prospective students and their families flock to campuses to determine where they would like to apply. To find out more about PS&L’s campus tour assessment services, please visit www.psandl.com/marketing/campustours/.

About Paskill Stapleton & Lord
Paskill Stapleton & Lord is a higher education marketing firm that specializes in working with colleges and universities to help them improve and maintain their enrollment heath. Drawing from decades of experience, the PS&L team builds research-based communications plans to help clients meet their enrollment objectives. The PS&L consults with senior enrollment staff on strategy and tactics to improve enrollment and develops effective websites, collateral material and advertising campaigns.

Featured

  • TCU Marks Campus Expansion Milestone

    Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas, recently held a topping-out ceremony to mark progress on a major campus expansion effort including four new residential facilities and a five-story parking garage, according to a news release.

  • Rethinking K-12 Schools as a Continuous Learning Experience

    Most students move through three or more separate facilities during their K-12 journey, yet the built environments they encounter at each stage have traditionally been designed in isolation, with little continuity in spatial language, learning philosophy, or physical resources. Each new school is a reset with different layouts, learning models, expectations, and ways of moving through a building. The next generation of school design is making the case that the first day of kindergarten and the last day of high school can and should feel connected through common support systems and infrastructure in the physical environment.

  • Q&A: How to Prevent Kitchen Grease Fires in Commercial Kitchens

    School cafeterias and university dining halls serve thousands of meals daily, relying on high-heat equipment like fryers, grills, and ovens. While these operations keep students fed, they also generate significant grease-laden vapors. Without proper controls, this grease becomes a silent fire threat. As a certified exhaust cleaning specialist and business coach who has helped hundreds of institutional facilities achieve NFPA 96 compliance, I emphasize that proactive grease management isn’t optional; it’s a core fire/life safety practice.

  • Designing Third Spaces That Do What AI Can't

    In 2026, education is evolving faster than ever. With AI reshaping everything from lesson planning to personalized instruction, schools and universities are turning their attention to what AI can’t replicate: spaces that foster collaboration, community, and creativity.