The most successful recruitment strategies are those that reach out to students in personal but relaxed or informal ways. 

Word of mouth was not polled for by our survey, but was specifically written in more than any other specific strategy. Having students reach out to their peers and freely promote what they see as useful and enjoyable courses is invaluable to programs. 

Faculty-led programming was also not polled here (we included it as a retention strategy). It was, however, written in as being particularly effective for generating interest. Students that visit Russian-speaking countries tend to return more interested in the language and cultures of the country they visited. In this case, they are led by a faculty member on a group program that is usually short-term and often qualifies for college credit. 

Study abroad was similarly not polled for here and instead included as a retention strategy. However, respondents commented that this is also effective for generating interest. Students often don’t know that there are still many interesting regions to study abroad in that have large Russian-speaking populations and are open and safe for travel. Dispelling the concern that there are no options of study abroad for those studying Russian is a major obstacle to convincing many students to pursue Russian language study. 

Cultural events were, of the categories we polled for, ranked most effective. These include offering free seminars, entertainment, and/or food in an effort to make contact with new students.

Reaching influencers such as advisors and heads of other departments is the second most effective. These individuals can encourage students to gain language and culture skills, arguing that it will help further the students’ educational and/or professional goals. These influencers can be seen as trusted and reliable sources of such information, speaking from a position of authority. Reaching out to study abroad offices, ROTC offices, and community groups was also mentioned as helpful. 

Direct outreach to incoming students by holding promotional events to distribute literature during registration or in the early days of the semester is effective. Respondents stressed that making students aware that language classes can fulfill requirements is particularly helpful if that is the case at one’s institution. Some use departmental partnerships to make presentations in other classes. This can be particularly useful as it places the Russian teacher in a position to make personal contact while also leaning on the authority of an influencer – the professor of the class they are presenting in. Attending university welcome events and advertising in summer publications for incoming freshmen and their families were also listed as being useful. 

Russian club activities are also listed as generally effective. Russian clubs can be particularly useful for reaching heritage speakers and others with an interest in Russian culture and who are interested in connecting with others that share their heritage or interest. They also allow students to act as ambassadors, giving positive opinions to their peers on studying Russian. 

We then see a sharp drop in the reported effectiveness of the last four. 

Attending “major” fairs is of limited use. In this rather formal setting, you are often behind a table and it is up to the student to approach you to initiate contact. Unless the student was already interested in enrolling, it is fairly unlikely the student will choose to expend time and effort in making the connection. 

Social media campaigns and postering around campus, which are impersonal and, again, place the responsibility on the student for making formal contact, are judged to be even less effective. These two strategy types were also rarely called out with additional commentary by respondents with the exception of email campaigns, performed via lists from other departments or the university, to targeted audiences. 

Outreach to high schools was reported as the least used. Organizations such as ACTR and AATSEEL have long attempted (and continue to attempt) to encourage the development of this “pipeline” of students. However, many in higher education and secondary education operate with little or no knowledge of each other’s programs. Scheduling and bureaucratic concerns also likely impede their cooperation. Several respondents pointed out, however, ways to make use of this pipeline. For instance, getting involved with the Olympiada of Spoken Russian, which has participants from local elementary and high schools, or offering summer camps in language and culture, or participating in an AATSEEL Open House, which introduces high school students to a range of university programs, were all mentioned as good tools. Outreach is otherwise often envisioned as reaching out to teachers to encourage students to continue their studies at the college level. It can also involve presentations by the professor to the class or even language and/or cultural presentations or events led by the professor or even the university students or Russian club.