Published by Marketplace
Here's how their new system works: Students fill out a brief application, send two samples of their work from high school and submit a short video introducing themselves. Production value doesn't matter, Bowen says.
"You can use your phone, you can tell us who you are, and be admitted to college," he says. "That's a simple, straightforward message that I hope will resonate with lots of 18-year-olds."
Colleges are in fierce competition for those 18-year-olds. After a big boom, the number of high school seniors is shrinking in the Midwest and Northeast.
"The demographics are getting more challenging," says David Strauss, a higher education consultant with Art & Science Group. Students and families are worried about costs, and many are questioning the value of a liberal arts degree. "All of this adds up to a need for institutions to compete ever more effectively against each other for the students they need," he says.