Innovating Enrollment: UVM’s Bold Approach to Affordability & Retention

Innovating enrollment is no longer optional—it’s essential for institutions facing rising costs, shifting demographics, and increasingly selective students.

Higher education marketing and enrollment teams face no shortage of challenges in today’s landscape.

That’s why it was a breath of fresh air to talk with Dr. Jay Jacobs, Vice Provost for Enrollment Management at the University of Vermont (UVM), on The Higher Ed Marketer podcast.

Jay’s leadership story is not just about reacting to change—it’s about setting the pace for what modern enrollment strategy should look like.

In this episode, Jay walks us through how UVM has consistently broken enrollment records by leading with purpose, data, and bold innovation.

From pioneering affordability programs like the UVM Promise to investing in staff development and retention strategies, Jay shows how marrying mission and metrics can produce incredible results.

Innovating Enrollment Through Affordability: The UVM Promise

Affordability has become one of the most pressing barriers to higher education.

Jay and his team tackled this head-on with the UVM Promise, a bold initiative that guarantees free tuition for all Vermonters with a household income under $100,000.

It was really important for us to say: ‘We’re a flagship, we’re public, and we’re accessible. We want to make that very real for our Vermonters.’ And the UVM Promise did just that.

This promise wasn’t just a statement—it was a strategic move aligned with UVM’s public mission.

By directly addressing financial concerns, the university built stronger local pipelines and improved yield among mission-fit students.

The results of innovating enrollment through financial accessibility have been overwhelmingly positive.

From Communications to Conversion: The Power of Personalization

Jay attributes much of UVM’s success to intentional communication strategies—particularly during key conversion moments.

In previous years, the summer melt rate hovered around 11%.

But by streamlining admitted student communications and targeting them with timely, relevant messaging, UVM was able to cut that rate to 7%.

Behind the scenes, this included deep collaboration across departments to make messaging feel unified and clear.

“We moved from this disjointed experience to one where a student is hearing from us in a way that makes sense and builds trust. That’s what really helped close the gap from deposit to enrollment.” — Jay Jacobs

By innovating enrollment communications, UVM nurtures deeper student engagement and strengthens the enrollment pipeline.

Investing in People: Emerging Leaders Academy

While affordability and outreach are vital, Jay believes deeply that successful enrollment management starts with the people behind it.

That’s why he launched the Emerging Leaders Academy, a 12-month internal development program designed for current staff across his division.

I wanted to grow people from within. To help them see themselves as leaders, and to equip them with the tools they need to make change—not just do their job, but improve how we serve students.

This initiative not only fosters professional growth but also strengthens retention and organizational loyalty.

Innovating enrollment isn’t just about student-facing strategies—it also means developing the internal teams that drive the institution forward.

Data-Driven, Student-Focused

Under Jay’s leadership, UVM’s enrollment strategies are deeply rooted in data analytics—but never at the cost of student empathy.

From predicting melt risk and mapping yield behavior to evaluating financial aid ROI and refining geographic strategies, every data point helps shape a more personalized, mission-aligned approach.

Jay’s team doesn’t just look at the numbers—they use them to build a student-centric enrollment process that is equitable and sustainable.

We’ve used data not only to identify who’s at risk of melting but also to understand where our message isn’t resonating. For example, we saw strong applications from the West Coast but yield was soft. So we revamped our comm flow and partnered with alumni in those markets. The next cycle, yield in those areas improved significantly.

This balanced approach to innovating enrollment helped UVM achieve major milestones:

• Record-breaking classes in volume, academic quality, and diversity.
• Over 50% of students now coming from outside New England—an institutional first.
• A discount rate decrease from 47% to 43%, achieved without sacrificing access or student support.

Jay’s strategic use of data allowed his team to ask better questions, craft more targeted messaging, and ultimately deliver a more consistent and compelling enrollment experience.

Making Orientation Work Smarter

Orientation is another area where UVM has seen meaningful gains.

Rather than viewing it as a logistical checkbox, Jay and his team reconceived orientation as a strategic moment to drive student engagement, build belonging, and reinforce institutional commitment.

By embedding retention-focused messaging and programming throughout, orientation evolved into an essential phase in the student lifecycle.

This holistic rethinking helped boost first-year retention from 86% to a record high of 89%.

We completely overhauled orientation—not just to reduce melt, but to make it the first real step in our retention strategy. We focused on frontloading connection points: academic advising, community belonging, and early exposure to support services. That was the game changer.

Rather than a single event, orientation became a launchpad for sustained student success.

Jay emphasized the importance of aligning orientation with institutional priorities—ensuring the experience resonates across both student services and academic support.

By innovating enrollment practices at every touchpoint, UVM ensures students are engaged and supported from day one.

Leading the Way in Higher Ed Enrollment Strategy

Jay Jacobs’ work at the University of Vermont exemplifies what it means to innovate enrollment.

By addressing affordability through real policy (like the UVM Promise), empowering his team with leadership development, and refining every phase of the student journey, Jay has built a roadmap other institutions can follow.

At a time when many schools are struggling to stabilize numbers, UVM is not just surviving—they’re thriving.

Their example shows that mission and metrics can go hand in hand, and that students respond to institutions that lead with clarity, purpose, and care.

🎧 For even more insights from Dr. Jay Jacobs, listen to the full episode – “Stop the Melt: Enrollment Innovation” – on The Higher Ed Marketer podcast.

Ready to Start Innovating Your Own Enrollment Strategy?

Just like the University of Vermont elevated its outcomes through bold affordability initiatives, streamlined communications, and strategic retention programs, your institution can uncover powerful ways to boost enrollment and student success.

Caylor Solutions’ Enrollment Assessment digs deep into your current processes—analyzing admissions workflows, communication tactics, engagement strategies, and retention initiatives.

We don’t just diagnose the issues—we deliver a clear, actionable roadmap to help you identify inefficiencies, close gaps, and align your strategy with your mission.

Whether you’re aiming for stronger yield, higher retention, or smarter engagement, our Enrollment Assessment gives you the insights to start innovating enrollment in a way that’s both measurable and meaningful.

Let’s find the opportunities hiding in your funnel. Reach out. 

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Featured image via umv.edu
Meeting image via Midjourney