Perceptions and Positionings of Colleges in New York City: A Longitudinal Study of Brand Images
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Perceptions and Positionings of Colleges in New York City: A Longitudinal Study of Brand Images Received (in revised form): October 21, 2004
Sylvia D. Clark Dr. Sylvia D. Clark is an associate professor of marketing at St. John’s University in Staten Island, New York. She has taught undergraduate classes in consumer behavior, marketing research, and retailing, as well as graduate courses in international marketing and an MBA marketing seminar. Her research interests include brand management and measures of market orientation.
Abstract A study of high school seniors’ perceptions of colleges, conducted in 1979, was replicated 23 years later. The study affords an opportunity to examine perceptual changes over time and provides an additional perspective on the positioning of colleges, apart from other well-known surveys. This information may be useful for those involved in marketing and developing images for the schools included in the study. Keywords: brand names, brand image, brand differentiation, corporate image, education policy, universities and colleges
Introduction Meet ‘‘Nessie.’’ NSSE, or the National Survey of Student Engagement, is the latest resource available for comparing Author’s Contact Address: Sylvia D. Clark Associate Professor of Marketing Peter J. Tobin College of Business St. John’s University 300 Howard Avenue Staten Island, NY 10301, USA Phone: + 1 718 390 4552 Fax: + 1 718 816 8602 Email: [email protected]
colleges and universities. Launched by Indiana University in 1999, NSSE is viewed as a means of countering the US News rankings. The survey questions more than 155,000 students at 470 colleges, covering areas not touched upon by the traditional rankings. Included are such measures as time spent in preparing for class, typical amount read, and frequency of collaboration on faculty research. NSSE joins a growing arsenal of information employable by colleges in their quest for students. In a crowded marketplace, colleges compete for new students on a number of different dimensions, ranging from cost to extracurricular activities. While wellpublicized rankings provide a convenient benchmark, they are merely a starting point, covering a selection of measures for a subgroup of top schools. The present research offers an alternate perspective, by assessing high school seniors’ perceptions of colleges. It also affords an opportunity to examine perceptual changes over time. The initial study, conducted in 1979, was replicated 23 years later. Such information may be very useful for those involved in marketing and developing images for their schools.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL ADVANCEMENT. VOL.5 NO.2 107–118 ª HENRY STEWART PUBLICATIONS 2005. ISSN 1744-6511.
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Sylvia D. Clark
The paper begins with some background information on college ranking measures, then describe our alternative methodology, the results of the 1979 and 2002 studies, and conclude with some recommendations for education marketers.
Background Colleges have become increasingly competitive, particularly over the pa
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