How to Promote a Study Abroad Program | International Business Seminars (2024)

Now that you’ve created the perfect study abroad program, it’s time to promote your program and recruit students to embark on this opportunity!

Below are a few ways to promote your custom program or our open enrollment programs on your campus.

Getting Started:

• Contact your study abroad office to have your program posted on the website, program search directory, social media, brochures, and to hang posters in the study abroad office.
• Set up a table at your institution’s study abroad fair and talk to students face-to-face about why they should study abroad with your program.
• Announce the program to your classes and explain how your program relates to what they will learn this semester and all the benefits you can gain from studying abroad.
• Write/request an article about your program for the school newspaper.

Network and Build Relationships:

• Utilize help from faculty, advisors, and other staff members who have direct contact with students and can spread the word to match students with your program.
• Reach out to other departments related to your curriculum to explain why your program would be beneficial for their students.
• Ask colleagues within and outside of your department to help promote your program and set up a time to speak with their classes.
• Get involved with student clubs and organizations on campus that are related to your program’s curriculum to make a presentation about your program and why it would benefit them to join.
• Network with fraternities and sororities to make announcements within their chapters regarding your study abroad program and why it would benefit them to participate.

Create a Digital Footprint:

• Post your program information on department blogs, listservs, websites, Facebook pages, newsletters, etc.
• Ask your current and former students, program advocates, and program alumni to share your program information on social media.
• Send out emails to students in your business school about program details, benefits, and deadlines.

Postcards:

• IBS will create customized postcards, with your contact information on them, to help promote your study abroad program. All you have to do is request how many you’d like and we will ship them to you from our office!
• Distribute postcards at on-campus events, club meetings, classroom visits, and place them in lobby areas of your department’s building.
• Contact the appropriate person at your institution to see where you can leave your program’s postcards throughout the campus, such as residence halls, common areas, bulletin boards, the library, technology centers, etc.

Information Sessions:

• Holding an information session will be beneficial as it will give you a chance to engage students to learn about your program, give you time to answer questions, provide more details, and give an overview of the cultural and social environments you will travel through during the program.
• Set up an information table at a high-traffic area on campus to talk to students about the benefits of your program.
• Promote the date, time, and location of your information session through announcements, emails, newsletters, listservs, and utilizing your colleagues.
• Ordering pizza or having snacks and beverages at your information sessions always helps!

Classroom Visits:

• Collaborate with your colleagues to do short presentations to their classes about your program.
• Bring program promotional material to hand out to the class.
• Encourage the students to ask questions and engage with your presentation.
• Create a “sign-up for more information” sheet and take it with you in case students want additional information. Grabbing contact information gives you a chance to follow up with interested students to answer additional questions and to provide more information.

At the end of the day, the most successful recruiting strategies are consistent, direct, creative, and personal. It always helps if you have program alumni to share their experiences, refer friends, and recommend your program to others.

IBS will assist in any way we can to help you recruit students for your custom program – all you have to do is say so!

Have any questions or want more information? Call us at (480) 874-0100 or Contact us >