Iowa State works and its recruitment materials work, too.

The Admission Marketing Report, a national publication for admissions marketing, has recently recognized Iowa State for its student recruitment materials.

Iowa State placed third among schools with an enrollment of 10,000 or more for its introductory brochure. This brochure is often distributed to prospective students who visit campus and the Iowa State exhibit at the Iowa State Fair, said Carole Custer, associate director of university marketing.

Iowa State also placed fourth among schools with an enrollment of 10,000 or more for its total package of student recruitment materials. The package includes the introductory brochure, the view book, the general catalog and a brochure from the College of Business.

Although this is the twelfth annual competition, Iowa State submitted materials for the first time last fall.

“These materials are just a part of the whole recruitment process,” Custer said.

“The materials help students decide whether to visit Iowa State or talk to the faculty and staff or current students,” she said.

The introductory brochure was written by Gail Tyson, a member of Communicorp: The Education Group, Custer said.

Communicorp is a firm that helps universities all over the United States develop marketing materials for prospective students.

Iowa State introduced new recruitment materials for the first time in four or five years last spring. Changes in the materials were made in response to feedback from prospective students, current students, parents and guidance counselors.

For example, today’s students want more information about the colleges at Iowa State, while students five years ago wanted broad information about the university in general.

“We listened very closely to what prospective students and current students wanted,” Custer said.

Iowa State also submits a variety of materials in the National University Advancement Competition. The Council for the Advancement and Support of Education also gave Iowa State district awards for the introductory brochure and its total recruitment package in January.

“This is a way to see how we measure up with other universities, but our goal is not an award,” Custer said. “Our goal is to inform prospective students about the strengths of the university so they can make an informed decision about what university to attend.”