Author: andrewcareaga

Former higher ed PR and marketing guy at Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) now focused on freelance writing and editing and creative writing, fiction and non-fiction.

The state of print and electronic media

A couple of months ago, higher ed blogger Karine Joly asked higher ed marketing types to complete a survey about the state of print and electronic publications in higher education, and was overwhelmed by the results. “[M]y goal,” she writes, “was to gain insights from about 50 people.” Instead, “a total of 218 professionals working in institutions representing more than 3 million students completed it.” Wow. Great response. And although the survey was opt-in and therefore not scientifically valid, “it does provide good insights on current trends.”

And what are the trends? Visit Karine’s post summarizing the survey results to find out. No spoilers here. Karine worked too hard on gathering and compiling this data for some blogslack like me to dive in and cut-and-paste a snippet. So, go there. Read it and reap. And if you’re a member of HigherEdExperts.com, you should also have access to the five-page executive summary.

Living on ‘higher ed time’

D.W. at The Old College Try got the week going with a rantette about the glacial pace with which projects move and decisions are made in the higher ed marketing and communications business. I think we can all relate. She calls it “higher ed time” — “the concept that some people at colleges/universities take forever to get back to you. And when they do, it’s at the last minute and they want some major revisions.”

Quoth TOCT:

I’ve tried to pad the clock and calendar in favor of my co-workers and me by getting professors, deans, etc. design proofs and marketing plans way ahead of time. I’ve given them clear guidelines (you must get back to me by 3 pm tomorrow or else it’s a no-go), but still, they push it.

It’s nothing for me to hear back at the 10:59th hour. And usually, they want something important changed. And when it comes time for them to sign off on the changes within a 24-hour time frame, it’s like pulling teeth.

She seeks answers to the conundrum. Alas, I have none. Wish I did. How about you? Anyone out there got an answer? Bueller?