WHATWORKS ® BRIEF || FEBRUARY 2015

Developing an Effective
Campus Recruiting Program
CAMPUS RECRUITING PROGRAMS HELP ORGANIZATIONS GAIN COMPETITIVE
ADVANTAGE >> Campus recruiting has traditionally served to fill seasonal internships,
cooperative positions, and entry-level roles. However, with recruiters now being
challenged to develop more robust candidate pipelines, campus programs have
taken on heightened significance for many talent acquisition (TA) functions. Yet
organizations often struggle to drive innovation and impact in their campus
programming. Our recent report, Developing an Effective Campus Recruiting
Program, explores the value of campus recruiting programs and explains how
organizations can drive programmatic efficiency.

The Value of Campus Recruiting • Increased dissemination of employment

Campus hires can provide organizations with
a consistent talent pool. In fact, whether large
or small, campus programs can yield a host of
important benefits to organizations, including
infusing talent pipelines with educated, up-
and-coming professionals. Other potential
benefits include:
• Prospective full-time hiring. For many
organizations, investments in college
recruiting for internship positions have
resulted in positive hiring trends. In fact,
according to a recent Internships.com survey,
73 percent of large companies hire interns to
fill full-time positions.1 Further, in 2014, the
conversion rate for interns who went on to
become full-time hires rose to 51.2 percent.2
• Managing talent gaps. As HR, talent
management, talent acquisition, and
workforce planning become more
integrated3, many organizations are aligning
their campus recruiting strategies to address
critical talent gaps. Campus recruitment also
helps establish bench resources for future
deployment in critical skill areas.
brand. As frequent consumers of social
media, college hires are likely to broadcast
frequently about their impressions of and
experiences with their new organization’s
culture.
• Disruptive idea generation. Incoming
college hires (Millennials) offer diverse
perspectives on a variety of topics ranging
from technology, engagement, work / life
balance, and contemporary workplace policies.
Developing an Effective Campus Recruiting
Program provides insights and actions for
organizations to consider as they prepare
to develop or reinvent a campus recruiting
program, focusing on the following elements:
• The components of a strategic campus
recruiting program
• Differentiating your campus recruiting program
• The supporting structures needed to deliver
an engaging campus recruiting experience
• The role of the campus recruiter
• Measuring the effectiveness of campus
recruiting programs

1
Source: “Infographic: Internships Survey and 2014 Internship Trends,” Internships.com, January 23, 2014, www.internships.com/
eyeoftheintern/news/idc-news/internships-survey-2014-internship-trends/.
2
Source: “2014 Internship & Co-op Survey,” National Association of Colleges and Employers, April 2014, www.naceweb.org/
uploadedFiles/Content/static-assets/downloads/executive-summary/2014-internship-co-op-survey-executive-summary.pdf.
3
For more information, High-Impact Talent Acquisition: Key Findings and Maturity Model, Bersin by Deloitte / Robin Erickson,
Ph.D., Kim Lamoureux, and Denise Moulton, September 2014. Available to research members at www.bersin.com/library.

Copyright © 2015 Deloitte Development LLC. All rights reserved. 1

 WHATWORKS ® BRIEF Getting Started with Campus
Recruiting
Getting a campus recruiting program off the
ground can present major challenges even for
large talent organizations. Developing an Effective
Campus Recruiting Program provides a roadmap
for organizations to assess their current state and
identify opportunities to improve their programming,
examining the six critical steps required to develop
strategic campus recruiting (see Figure 1):
Figure 1: Six Steps for Developing a
Campus Recruiting Program
1 2
Business Case
Stakeholders &
Decision-Makers
6
Sustainability
Campus Recruiting Program Strategies &
Tactics
5 4
Resources Budget
Source: Bersin by Deloitte, 2015.
• Create a compelling business case.
Having a clear and articulated vision for your
campus recruiting efforts is critical to creating
an effective program. Distinguishing the
overarching mission and vision of your program
will help set the foundation for your strategy
and implementation plan moving forward.
• Identify stakeholders and decision-
makers. This aspect of launching a campus
recruiting program can be complex, as there
can be many individuals who will need to
champion, support, and ultimately manage
program development and implementation.
• Develop strategy and tactics. An
organization’s campus recruiting program
may satisfy a variety of needs, from traditional
internships and cooperative programs to
entry-level positions or even experienced hiring.
When defining an approach, be mindful of the
needs of these diverse candidate audiences and
Bersin by Deloitte design a strategy that drives both program and
business results.
180 Grand Avenue
Suite 320 • Determine a budget. Some campus
Oakland, CA 94612 recruiting programs fail to launch due to
+510-251-4400 lack of financial support from leadership.
Info@bersin.com Maintaining campus programs can be
www.bersin.com
expensive and there are both fixed and
variable costs to consider.
• Align resources. As the need to hire
more skilled entry-level staff and interns
in competitive fields continues to grow,
many organizations are turning to their
employees to participate in campus recruiting.
Organizations should leverage a variety of
resources to help align campus strategies and
program execution.
• Ensure sustainability. With campus hiring
now typically on the rise year over year,
organizations are placing a greater emphasis
on the importance of this rich source of
talent, making it essential to create programs
that are repeatable.
Long gone are the days when campus recruits did
little more than make coffee and copies. Campus
recruiting programs can unlock tremendous
3 sourcing potential and provide significant
opportunities to identify, engage, and hire the
leaders of tomorrow. Our report, Developing an
Effective Campus Recruiting Program, explores
how organizations can gain competitive advantage
through a differentiated and modern approach to
campus recruiting.
Our Research
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About Bersin by Deloitte
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Copyright © 2015 Deloitte Development LLC. All rights reserved. 2