Student enrollment in an academy: from first enquiry to first class

Every academy loses people between the first enquiry and the first class. Some of that is normal, because some families are only comparing prices. Much of it can be avoided. Often the reply came two days late, or nobody called after the trial class. This article follows one enquiry from first contact to the first class and shows where each loss tends to happen.

The example is Brookvale Coding Academy, a fictional academy that teaches coding and robotics to children aged 8 to 16. It has one branch and starts a new beginner batch every two months. For example, in a typical month it might get 60 enquiries, book 28 trial classes, see 22 of them attend and enroll 14 learners. Your numbers will differ, and it helps to know what they are.

The first reply

Families often contact more than one academy in the same week. The one that answers first with a clear next step has an advantage, so aim to reply the same working day. Give enquiries to one named person at each branch, so nobody assumes someone else has called back.

On the first call or message, collect enough to place the learner and to reach the family again:

• the learner's name and age, and the parent's name and phone number;
• the course they asked about and any experience they already have;
• the branch and days that suit them;
• how they heard about you.

Then offer a specific trial class, with a date and time, before the conversation ends. "We will get back to you" leaves the next step with the family. "Can Aisha come on Saturday at 10?" gives them one thing to say yes to.

Trial classes that lead to a decision

Put trial learners into a real batch at the level you expect. They see what lessons are really like, and the instructor sees how they cope next to other learners. Tell the instructor the trial learner's name and age the day before, so they can plan a moment to welcome them.

Send the family a reminder the evening before. At Brookvale, for example, six of 28 booked trials were no-shows in one month. A one-line reminder costs almost nothing and usually brings that number down.

After the class, ask the instructor two things: which level the learner should join, and whether anything needs attention, such as a learner who was very shy or found the screen hard to read. Then call the family within a day with a specific offer: the batch name, its start date, the fee and what happens next. The longer the gap after a trial, the less likely the family is to join.

Placement at the right level

In a skills academy, age is a poor guide to level. A 12-year-old who has built games for two years will be bored among 12-year-olds who have never written code. Use a short placement task that matches the course. Brookvale asks new learners to fix a small broken program and explain what they changed. Language academies often use a short test and a conversation, and music academies a short audition.

Write the result down with the date, the level suggested and who assessed it. When a parent asks three weeks later why their child is in the beginners' batch, you have an answer. Check every new learner again after their third class. Moving a learner up early is easier than losing them because the batch felt too slow.

From yes to the first class

Once the family says yes, work through the same steps every time:

1. Confirm the batch, start date, time and branch in writing.
2. Collect the full details: the learner, parents or sponsor, an emergency contact, any medical notes and any documents you need. There is more on what belongs in each learner's record in a separate guide.
3. Raise the first invoice, for example the registration fee and the first month, and give the family the voucher.
4. Send a welcome message with where to go, what to bring and the instructor's name.
5. Tell the instructor the new learner's name before their first class.
6. Check attendance after two weeks. A new learner who misses two of their first four classes needs a call.

The batch name matters here too. A family told "Robotics beginners Sat 10am Mar" knows exactly where to be, and the front desk can find the group without asking. The guide to naming and sizing batches sets out a naming pattern you can copy.

Count every step

A monthly table of five numbers shows where enquiries are lost. Here is Brookvale's month from the example:

Step	Number	Share of the step before
Enquiries	60	Starting point
Trial classes booked	28	47%
Trial classes attended	22	79%
Enrolled	14	64%
Still attending after six weeks	12	86%

For Brookvale the weakest step is the first one. Fewer than half of enquiries book a trial, so its first fix is a faster reply with a firm trial offer. More advertising would only add to the enquiries it already loses at that step. Record why each closed enquiry closed as well, for example price, timing, distance or no reply. After a few months the reasons tell you what to change.

Enquiries and enrollment in SkoolBro

SkoolBro handles this in its Admissions section, which keeps applicants apart from enrolled learners. Each enquiry is an inquiry record with a stage: new, contacted, follow up, converted or closed. Once a family decides to apply, you turn the inquiry into an application, which holds the learner's details and how to reach the parents.

Applications move through submitted, in review, test, interview, waitlisted, offered and enrolled, and you only use the stages you need. An academy can use the test stage for a trial class or placement task and the interview stage for an audition. When the batch a family wants is full, waitlisted keeps the application in view until a place opens.

Accepting a place takes one action. The application becomes a learner record (the app calls it a student), with the parents attached and the next admission number assigned. Brookvale teaches several sets of brothers and sisters, and a second child is linked to the parents already on file, so both children appear under one family. You then place the learner in their batch, which SkoolBro calls a section, and raise the first invoice and its printable voucher from Fees. Documents stay with the learner's record, and medical notes are restricted to the staff allowed to see them.

To see how full each level is, open the enrollment by grade report. For the funnel itself, ask the AI assistant something like "How many inquiries are still at follow up?" The post on admissions or students explains why SkoolBro keeps applicants and learners in separate lists.

Some steps stay with your staff for now. Messages reach parents by email and inside the app, with text messages and WhatsApp still on the way. Online payment of the first invoice is not available in SkoolBro yet, so the voucher and your usual payment methods do that job.

Questions

How fast should an academy reply to an enquiry?

The same working day if you can. Families often ask several academies in the same week, and a clear reply with a trial date gives them one easy next step.

Should trial classes be free?

Either can work. A free trial brings more families through the door, and a small fee taken off the first month if they join tends to bring families who are more likely to stay. Pick one and apply it to everyone.

What if the batch a family wants is full?

Offer the nearest batch at the same level and put them on the waiting list for their first choice. In SkoolBro the application can be marked waitlisted, so it stays in view until a place opens.