Truman launches marketing plan
Amanda Boyle
Issue date: 11/2/06 Section: News
University President Barbara Dixon said she does not think the marketing strategy can be considered deceptive. She said Rufus chose Truman without even waiting to see if she would be accepted to Harvard. She said all of the quotes on the brochures are direct quotes from Rufus and are not false.
"What we're making more of is why she is so happy with [Truman]," Dixon said. "It's marketing. Why shouldn't we say we have a student who had the potential to go to Harvard and chose to come here?"
Fraire said he is the only person on this campus who both attended Harvard and worked on its admissions board. He said when a student on the waiting list chooses to attend a different university, Harvard looks upon it as declining Harvard enrollment for another option.
He said that although most people who are accepted to Harvard choose to attend, those who do not tend to choose universities that are well-recognized and have high academic standards.
Sophomore Katie Jennings was accepted to Harvard, Duke University, Vanderbilt University and the University of Missouri-Columbia. She also opted for Truman. Jennings said she wants to be an elementary school teacher and said paying about $40,000 a year for her education would over-qualify her for the kind of job she wants. Like Rufus, she is a Pershing Scholar and has a full scholarship to Truman. Jennings said the location of the University affected her decision as well and that she is happy with her decision to attend Truman.
"Truman is a good school," she said. "They don't just let anybody in, so I didn't feel like I was completely compromising anything to come here. It was just a better fit for me to come here."
Jennings said she understands why the University has chosen to use the Time article in their marketing approach.
"You can't expect a university not to take something like that and run with it," Jennings said. "If you have the option to go to Harvard, it does make you a fairly impressive student. For you to choose Truman, I think it makes sense for Truman to brag on the capabilities of the student body."
"What we're making more of is why she is so happy with [Truman]," Dixon said. "It's marketing. Why shouldn't we say we have a student who had the potential to go to Harvard and chose to come here?"
Fraire said he is the only person on this campus who both attended Harvard and worked on its admissions board. He said when a student on the waiting list chooses to attend a different university, Harvard looks upon it as declining Harvard enrollment for another option.
He said that although most people who are accepted to Harvard choose to attend, those who do not tend to choose universities that are well-recognized and have high academic standards.
Sophomore Katie Jennings was accepted to Harvard, Duke University, Vanderbilt University and the University of Missouri-Columbia. She also opted for Truman. Jennings said she wants to be an elementary school teacher and said paying about $40,000 a year for her education would over-qualify her for the kind of job she wants. Like Rufus, she is a Pershing Scholar and has a full scholarship to Truman. Jennings said the location of the University affected her decision as well and that she is happy with her decision to attend Truman.
"Truman is a good school," she said. "They don't just let anybody in, so I didn't feel like I was completely compromising anything to come here. It was just a better fit for me to come here."
Jennings said she understands why the University has chosen to use the Time article in their marketing approach.
"You can't expect a university not to take something like that and run with it," Jennings said. "If you have the option to go to Harvard, it does make you a fairly impressive student. For you to choose Truman, I think it makes sense for Truman to brag on the capabilities of the student body."
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