Improve Your College Catalog

By Author: Kaitlyn Miller
Total Articles: 90
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Colleges and universities put out catalogs each year in order to entice incoming freshmen to enroll in their school. If you are in charge of the catalog printing in your school, you should know that each year, the fresh batch of students that graduate from high school have different tastes because they are growing up in a constantly changing social environment.

If you will not cope with the changing times in what appeals to the interest of these youngsters, then your catalog might be left unread and the target population of new students will not be met. And you know that would mean less enrollees, less profit for the school, and that might mean endangering jobs in the school including yours.

Don’t let it reach that point. Improve on the appearance of your catalog. It should not only contain the correct and complete information that potential students might want to know about your program, but it should also be presented in a way that speaks the language of your target audience. You may want to change the layout, the colors used or even the material printed on.

The texts should also speak the language ...
... of students. Your school may be a very old institution but having a booklet that is understandable and interesting for modern students only shows that your programs are still relevant to the present society. This is very important because no matter how good and advanced your programs are but if they are not marketed well in your catalog, people will not appreciate them. You need to present all the good sides and benefits of your school programs in your catalog.

Have a central theme. You may want to work on a theme for your booklet and it should be consistent in all the pages. It could just be a color or a layout, but it would work well if the format is uniform in all pages. It helps to present a coherent message and it will make your catalog very presentable. People will also think that you put a good value on quality, including the standards of your school’s teaching.

Complete your information. Do not just write about the different courses you are offering in the school. Highlight your professors, your new buildings, your modern equipment and gadgets, the internship programs as well as the scholarship programs. The latter is very important because not too many students can afford to fully pay the tuition fees and are looking for ways to augment their budget.

You may also consider a specialized envelope for your catalog. It can be sent out in protective plastic packaging with the open end sealed to protect the catalog, but it would have different effect if you will have specialized envelopes made. This should reflect what’s inside, like the cover or the theme and should indicate the school year that the catalog is applicable. Display the school’s seal prominently as part of the design.

Although you may already be doing this, it is still worth mentioning that you should always make your booklets come out on time. Incoming freshmen read college guidebooks in order to help them decide what course to take, what options to consider, and finally, where to enroll.

Catalog printing can be a tricky endeavor. But know what works well and your catalogs will surely encourage more students to go to your school.

For more information, you can visit this page on catalog printing