Blog — Hippocampus

More participants than ever at the taster and workshop days

From stumbling block to high point. Easy.

All prospective students coming to Graafschap College embark on a personal journey of discovery. It often begins by attending an open day, but the confirmation of whether a course suits them (or sometimes doesn't) follows from participating in a taster or workshop day. For Graafschap College, with around 10,000 students, the objective is clear: placing the student in the right environment through a considered study choice.

You'd think: let those prospective students come. But they need to know how. Sign-up for a taster or workshop day proved unnecessarily complicated for future students. What is intended as an accessible step felt more like an obstacle course.

The problem: an outdated external system that didn't integrate seamlessly with the college's own website.

The friction in the process: prospective students had to create accounts, log in, and search for the right course through complicated filters. Signing up for a specific date was often impossible; instead, they had to make contact via email. Planning a date then proceeded manually, and data was not centrally recorded in a single system.

The consequence: many prospective students dropped out or hit a wall.

The goal: to establish a simple registration process via the college's own website, where data is centrally recorded and communication is automated.

The solution: register via the specific course page on the website, directly access the filtered taster and workshop days, and select a date with one click.

Prospective students first

Saskia Gibson, a Marketing Communications Adviser at Graafschap College, decided to reverse the process. The technology was no longer the driving force; instead, it was the prospective student. Hence, the registration process for taster and workshop days was fully integrated into Hippocampus. Prospective students can now register directly via the website with one click, without any accounts or detours.

Administrators within the academic teams now have direct insight into their own registrations, while the Marketing & Communications department remains in control of the process and communication. All from one system and one database.

The outcome: many more registrations and higher attendance

Immediate visible effect

Removing the barriers in the student journey had a direct impact. Even during the pilot phase, Graafschap College saw a significant increase in interest. The final result was a 300% rise in registrations compared to the old system. And it wasn't just about signing up: attendance was exceptionally high.

User-friendly

Thanks to the centrally available data in Hippocampus, the Marketing & Communications department has full visibility of the student journey around taster and workshop days. This insight already existed for other events, like open days, but with this expansion, this crucial touchpoint in the student journey has also become measurable. Based on these insights, adjustments and optimisations can be made directly where necessary.

Moreover, everyone can work with Hippocampus: both the Marketing & Communications staff and administrators within the academic teams find the system user-friendly and effective.

“By cleverly utilising Hippocampus, we could redesign the registration process truly from the prospective student's perspective. The result: fewer barriers, more insight, and a measurable effect on participation and attendance.”
— Saskia Gibson, Marketing Communications Adviser Graafschap College