Needs Analysis & Action Plan 2025
Brendan Dalley - Future VP of Enrollment and Marketing
Through my research into Utah Tech’s current state of affairs and my own professional experience in enrollment, marketing, and student success, I have identified ten critical issues that directly impact the university’s ability to attract, enroll, and retain students. These areas were chosen because they represent both the immediate challenges families and students face and the long-term opportunities for Utah Tech to distinguish itself as a polytechnic leader in higher education. This document not only presents targeted action plans but also demonstrates my understanding of where Utah Tech stands today and how innovative, data-driven strategies can strengthen its mission and values moving forward.
Need
Search engines are rapidly shifting to AI driven summaries. Prospective students are less likely to click through to university websites, weakening traditional SEO strategies. This creates an urgent need for first party data capture, structured content, and AI aware messaging to maintain digital visibility.
Action
Create a Search Under AI playbook that helps Utah Tech stay visible in a world where students are getting answers directly from artificial intelligence instead of clicking on websites. Rework program pages so they are easy for AI to read and reference by adding structured data and simple FAQs. Grow the university’s own contact lists by encouraging students to sign up for texts and emails at every event and webpage, since relying only on Google searches will no longer be enough. Shift more advertising dollars into areas that remain strong under AI, such as branded search terms, targeted social media, and trusted news outlets where students and parents still click. Every quarter, publish a visibility report that shows how often Utah Tech appears in AI generated answers for priority programs and where improvements are needed. Finally, train admissions and marketing staff so they can answer student questions in AI aware ways, meaning they know how to phrase responses and provide links that are likely to appear correctly in AI driven search tools.
Source
Pew Research reported in May 2025 that AI generated search overviews significantly reduce click through rates to websites. This changes how prospective students discover information and requires new strategies for digital marketing.
Aligned Responsibility
University Marketing and Communication
Need
Rising tuition costs, even when modest, can be perceived by families as a significant financial burden. The approved 2.23 percent increase across Utah’s higher education system for 2025–26 risks discouraging cost-sensitive students from enrolling or may cause admitted students to withdraw before classes begin once they see their bills.
Action
Create a simple cost calculator that works on a phone and shows families what each program at Utah Tech really costs after financial aid. Instead of only listing yearly tuition, break it into a monthly payment estimate, similar to how people think about a car or house payment. Place this tool inside the admitted student portal so families can quickly see and compare what they are actually likely to pay, not just the sticker price.
Source
The Utah Board of Higher Education approved tuition increases across the system for 2025 to 2026, averaging 2.23 percent. Even small increases become magnified in family conversations and can negatively shape enrollment decisions.
Aligned Responsibility
Admissions Recruitment and Financial Aid Communication
Need
New federal rules for FAFSA in 2025 added stricter fraud prevention and identity verification. While well intentioned, these measures create delays and confusion for students and families, often leading to incomplete financial aid files, late awards, and admitted students choosing not to finalize enrollment.
Action
Create a FAFSA concierge service that makes the financial aid process easy to understand and navigate. Link each student’s FAFSA status to the university’s CRM so staff can see who is stuck and why. When a student needs to take the next step, send a plain language text or email, for example: “We noticed your FAFSA is flagged for income verification. Please upload one document here so we can finish your award.” Host weekly FAFSA help labs both on campus and online with bilingual support so families can get real-time help. Build a visual map that shows FAFSA completion rates by high school so recruiters know where to focus outreach.
Source
Federal Student Aid tightened verification and fraud screening after widely reported fraudulent FAFSA activity in 2025. These changes can create delays, confusion, and prevent students from receiving timely aid packages.
Aligned Responsibility
Financial Aid and Scholarships Oversight
Need
Utah Tech’s Trailblazer Promise is a powerful recruitment tool, covering tuition gaps for many students. However, awareness is low, and families often do not understand how last dollar scholarships work. Without intentional communication, students who qualify may assume college is unaffordable and never apply or enroll.
Action
Send personalized gap letters showing final out of pocket cost. Train counselors with a Promise in a Box kit. Track Promise uptake by high school and publish results weekly.
Source
The Trailblazer Promise program is Utah Tech’s last dollar scholarship that covers tuition for eligible students after other aid, but many families remain unaware of their eligibility. Underutilization limits both access and enrollment.
Aligned Responsibility
Financial Aid and Scholarships, Admissions, and Community Outreach
Need
Housing affordability and safety strongly influence whether a student commits to a university. Rate increases for on-campus housing in 2025 to 2026 may push families to consider off-campus alternatives, while safety concerns highlighted in media can undermine parent confidence, leading to admitted students deciding not to attend or leaving after their first semester.
Action
Add housing affordability tools in admit portals with monthly comparisons, roommate finder, and safety messaging. Track housing choice and enrollment follow through in CRM.
Source
On-campus housing rates for 2025 to 2026 at Utah Tech increased, and safety concerns have been highlighted by recent media attention. Housing affordability and perceived safety are strong influencers on student choice and retention.
Aligned Responsibility
Admissions recruitment, Student Onboarding Coordination, Marketing Communication
Need
Local employer growth at Tech Ridge represents one of Utah Tech’s strongest differentiators as a polytechnic university: hands on learning tied directly to workforce outcomes. Without an intentional strategy, the university risks missing an opportunity to connect this momentum with prospective students in a compelling way.
Action
Create a branded “Ridge Route Experience” that positions Tech Ridge as an extension of the Utah Tech classroom. Prospective students and families would take guided tours that include visits to partner companies, conversations with employers, and demonstrations of student projects tied to those firms. For example, a cybersecurity prospect could see current student interns at a tech company, while a health sciences prospect could meet alumni working in the region’s medical technology sector. These tours would be filmed and repurposed into day in the life videos for program pages and social media. Admissions staff would track how participation in these tours influences applications and enrollment decisions, reporting results to leadership each semester.
Source
ITech Ridge expansion in St. George was approved in July 2025, signaling strong growth of the local employer cluster. This is a valuable story for Utah Tech’s polytechnic mission, emphasizing hands-on learning tied to real jobs.
Aligned Responsibility
University Marketing and Communication, Career Aligned Enrollment Strategy
Need
Utah’s higher education system is undergoing Strategic Reinvestment, requiring institutions to demonstrate alignment with workforce needs and reallocate resources accordingly. Without a clear strategy, Utah Tech risks underfunding high demand programs and overinvesting in low return areas.
Action
Create a Program Priority Index that gives Utah Tech a clear view of which academic programs align best with student demand and state workforce needs. This index would combine four key data sources: state workforce and labor projections, enrollment inquiry trends from admissions, program-level costs to recruit and support each student, and Utah System of Higher Education signals about high demand and strategically important fields. Use this index to identify the strongest programs, then adjust marketing dollars and content toward the top tier programs each month. Publish a simple internal report that shows how resources were shifted so the cabinet and academic leadership understand where investments are being made. To accomplish this, Utah Tech should work closely with the USHE Office of Commissioner of Higher Education, specifically their Research and Data team and Workforce Alignment group. These offices already produce labor market outlooks and program demand studies, and partnering with them ensures Utah Tech’s Program Priority Index lines up with the state’s Strategic Reinvestment framework.
Source
The Utah System of Higher Education’s Strategic Reinvestment initiative continues to push institutions to focus on workforce aligned programs. Utah Tech must market and recruit in ways that highlight programs aligned with state priorities.
Aligned Responsibility
Strategic Enrollment Management and Marketing
Need
Open enrollment at Utah Tech creates access but also increases risk of underprepared students entering without sufficient onboarding. Without strong early engagement and tracking, admitted students may never complete enrollment or may leave after their first semester.
Action
Create a Start Strong onboarding sequence with three required steps: FAFSA confirmation, housing choice, and orientation registration. Send weekly non completer lists to recruiters for outreach.
Source
Utah Tech Admissions maintains open enrollment for undergraduate programs. While this increases access, it requires strong onboarding and retention structures to ensure student success.
Aligned Responsibility
Strategic Enrollment Management and Marketing
Need
Utah Tech needs a unifying framework that ties together recruitment, financial aid, retention, and marketing into one long-term vision. Without a multi-year plan, efforts may remain fragmented, with departments solving immediate problems but missing opportunities for sustained growth.
Action
Lead the creation and implementation of a multi-year Strategic Enrollment Management Plan that includes clear enrollment, retention, and graduation targets. Establish cross-departmental working groups with admissions, financial aid, student success, and marketing to align goals and track progress. Review data each semester and adjust strategies based on results so the plan is a living document rather than a static binder. Publish an annual update that shows improvements and next steps, demonstrating accountability and continuous improvement.
Source
The Utah Tech job description for Vice President of Enrollment and Marketing emphasizes leadership in building and continuously improving a Strategic Enrollment Management Plan to guide the university’s long-term enrollment strategy.
Aligned Responsibility
Lead the Implementation and Continuous Improvement of a Comprehensive, Multi Year Strategic Enrollment Management Plan
Need
Retention is as critical as recruitment, yet many universities wait until midterms or later to intervene with struggling students. By then, it is often too late to keep them enrolled. Utah Tech can lead the state by using predictive analytics and artificial intelligence to identify students who are at risk within the first three weeks of a term, then connecting them with support before they disengage.
Action
Develop a Student Success Early Alert System that uses existing student data such as course attendance, logins to learning platforms, and financial aid completion to flag students who may be at risk of dropping out. Integrate these alerts into the CRM so advisors and faculty receive a notification when action is needed. Create a rapid response team that reaches out personally to each flagged student within 48 hours, offering tutoring, financial aid guidance, or counseling. Report retention improvements each semester and use the data to adjust recruitment messaging by highlighting Utah Tech’s commitment to hands-on student support.
Source
National studies from the National Student Clearinghouse show that early engagement and intervention can significantly improve retention and graduation rates. Universities using predictive data systems report higher first-to-second-year retention, a critical measure for enrollment health.
Aligned Responsibility
Enrollment Analytics, Student Success Coordination, and Strategic Retention Planning
Utah Tech’s mission to provide open, affordable, and workforce-connected education resonates deeply with my own values and experience. The strategies in this plan were chosen to directly address the challenges I see in the current environment while building on the unique strengths that set Utah Tech apart. My goal is to lead with collaboration and clarity, ensuring that every initiative reflects the needs of students and families while advancing the university’s vision. By applying research, data, and practical experience, I am confident we can move from responding to enrollment pressures to creating a sustainable model of growth and student success that will carry Utah Tech forward for years to come.
~ Brendan Dalley