Nudging Essentials
A nudge campaign is a communication strategy that an institution designs for a targeted group of students to achieve a specific, measurable outcome. The Nudge Hub guides you to creating Campaigns that can be run at the end of a term, over the summer, and before the start of a new term.
Read through the nudge campaigns and decide whether a mattering or mindset message is most likely to have a positive impact on persistence for each student group.
What is “Mindset”?
A student’s perspective about themselves, their school, and their ability to achieve their goals impacts their likelihood to succeed. For example, students who believe that intelligence is not fixed, and that they can improve with practice are more likely to rebound from failure and ultimately persist. This is referred to as having a growth mindset.
What is “Mattering”?
A student’s beliefs about their relationship with their school and their learning community affects their motivation to work through challenges. For example, if a student is challenged academically or socially, they may feel like they do not belong in college. Alternatively, when students believe they are a part of a community of learners experiencing college in a similar way, and that faculty and staff care about their success, they feel like they belong in college and their participation in the community matters.
Nudging Best Practices
Nudges are simple actions you can take now to help current students improve their outcomes as your institution evaluates and implements longer-term strategies in response to these insights.
Think of a nudge as outreach to alter behavior. They are small pushes in the right direction that do not require specific actions but encourage helpful behaviors. When students receive a nudge from a person they trust, they are free to make their own choices with the information shared.
The best nudges have these traits:
- Data-Inspired: Nudging students identified via your institution-specific data has the best chance of increasing student success. You can target groups or individuals who show significantly lower likelihood to persist at your institution.
- Grounded in Mindset: Students’ mindsets — how they see their abilities and their relationship with school — play a key role in motivation and achievement. Research has found that students who believe intelligence can be developed outperform those who believe it is fixed. Focusing on the process (like hard work or trying new strategies) helps build a growth mindset. Saying “I know you can do this” works well. Students who feel like they belong in college and in this community are more likely to act in ways that lead to success.
- Short: Keep it really short. Most students scan and read email selectively, if at all. Don’t tell them everything they need to know: keep it to one main idea.
- Personal and Authentic: If an email seems like a template, it won’t be read. The subject line is key, determining whether the student even opens it. Be personal and authentic, conversational and natural. Use “I” and “you” and include your voice (personality) in the email. If at all possible, have the email come from a student’s own professor or advisor.
- Positive and Encouraging: Positive nudges combine urgency, empathy, hope, and encouragement to promote behaviors in students that are likely to lead to success. Avoid language that sounds punitive or might make students feel ashamed. Acknowledge students’ effort with words of encouragement to lift how they feel about school and themselves.
- Timely and Relevant: Great nudges have the right information at the right time for the right students. Too early, and it will be forgotten; too late, and there won’t be time to act. Think about the result you want and how to align timing with action. Avoid times when students are unlikely to check their email, such as during spring break or just after finals.
- Action-Oriented: Include one call to action in each email. Asking a student to do something specific makes it significantly more likely that they will do it and that it will have an impact. If possible, provide an opportunity or make a request for the student to respond.
Webinars
These webinars show how partners are driving student success with nudging and outreach initiatives.
▶ Outreach Features in Analytics