This same ad that you are hearing is the same ad that thousands of people are listening to on their way to work in the morning. In the span of forty-five seconds, men and women already part of the work force and looking to get ahead in their chosen professions, learn about all of the opportunities that the WPI part-time graduate program offers.
Lisa M Jernberg, the Director of Graduate Management Programs and Part-Time Graduate Program Marketing, worked with various media-marketing strategists in order to get the attention of those people within the WPI part-time graduate program's population of interest.
"In order to keep the same number in the program, we have to work twice as hard [at marketing]," Mz. Jernberg said. To keep up with other schools, such as Bentley, Babson, and Clark, we have to use the same media methods.
In addition to the radio ad described above, there were also direct mailings and newspaper articles. Media-marketing not only builds community awareness but also unity. Along with the commercials run during the morning, there were "Seasons Greetings" spots featured on WXLO over semester break. You may have heard a holiday message from Interim President, John Lott Brown, or many of the other forty-nine administrators and WPI graduate students that were asked to participate.
Unfortunately, because media-marketing is so visible, it is often open to criticism. But when the marketing for the part-time graduate program resulted in the filling of approximately ninety empty spots, and a fifty percent increase in the attendance in the information session offered about part-time graduate studies, who can really criticize?