Queen’s University Belfast: A Partnership with Acumen Driving US Recruitment Success

Queen’s University Belfast has seen significant advancements in its US in-market recruitment strategy, thanks to its impactful partnership with Acumen. This collaboration has substantially increased the university’s visibility and engagement, particularly within institutional and sector networks, resulting in 14% growth in enrolments across undergraduate and postgraduate courses since partnering in the US with Acumen.

Acumen’s deep cultural insights and local expertise have been instrumental in creating new and expanded opportunities, creating meaningful connections for Queen’s University Belfast in the US market.

A standout aspect of this partnership has been the exceptional personal support and responsiveness of Acumen’s staff, who are consistently approachable, proactive, and genuinely invested in the university’s success.

Susan McCleary, North America Senior International Officer at Queen’s University Belfast, reflecting on the partnership, had the following to say:

What truly sets Acumen apart is the personal support and responsiveness of their staff – always approachable, proactive, and genuinely invested in our success. Their training and support of in-country staff has enabled our colleagues to excel in their roles and ensure consistent messaging, high performance, and alignment with our institutional goals. Having an additional external in-market sounding board has also been extremely invaluable as we navigate these unprecedented times in International Student Recruitment providing opportunities to review and scope new recruitment channels and partnerships.

Maddie Reeves, the In-Country Representative for Queen’s University Belfast shared her direct experience of working with our team in North America:

‘’Working with Acumen has provided a wealth of support in my role as an ICR in the US for Queen’s University Belfast. Acumen has been able to provide unique, market-specific insights that are tailored to specific asks from our institution in order to help guide our recruitment approaches in an ever evolving market. Working with Acumen has provided an additional layer of structure to our strategy, with a US-specific lens. Having the support of both organisations in recruitment practices has opened up new perspectives and allowed me to also collaborate and share with other US ICRs, maximizing my recruitment efforts and approaches. We had specifically asked for support with data on things like in market activity based on UG, PG, and SA approaches, broken down by location, visit frequency, and perceived return of other similar institutions, which really supported us in developing recruitment strategy.

With the current climate in the US around Education and student loan funding, there has been a lot of uncertainty with what US students will be able to use abroad in the future re: FAFSA. Acumen is working diligently in real time to gather data and advise on alternative options for students that we can share out with them during recruitment going forward. This is incredibly helpful to have a bigger picture of the funding landscape, challenges of similar institutions, and proposed solutions in such a dynamic time that poses new challenges to increasing US student enrollment.’’

This partnership provides crucial opportunities to review and scope new recruitment channels and partnerships, enabling Queen’s University Belfast to navigate challenges effectively.