The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which enrollment management exists within the 15 community colleges in Mississippi. This study also obtained specific information on enrollment management implementation, as well as the benefits and barriers to that implementation. Analysis of the data collected in this study indicated the five major findings. First, enrollment management concepts and practices have been implemented to some extent within the 13 community colleges surveyed. This was evident by the use of the word “enrollment” within several of the titles of participants that were surveyed. Another enrollment practice revealed was the enrollment management structure used by the majority of the community colleges that participated in the study. The majority of the colleges reported either using the coordinator model, in which a midlevel manager oversees enrollment management, or the division model, in which a vice-president is responsible for overseeing enrollment management. The study also revealed that the majority of the community colleges reporting did not have a long-term enrollment plan in place. Only a small percentage of the reporting institutions reported using any type of formal plan, and an even smaller percentage reported having a long-term enrollment management plan in place. Second, all reporting institutions reported that improved graduation rates and student retention had been the received benefits of their current enrollment management structure. Third, all reporting institutions reported understaffing and limited financial resources as a barrier to effectively implementing enrollment management within their institution. The fourth major finding was that of the strategies listed within the survey, 100% reported using an increased collaboration with high schools as a strategy to increase enrollment. This strategy was followed in frequency by the expansion of online courses and the presidents placing an emphasis on the importance of enrollment management. The fifth major finding was that the majority of the reporting institutions felt that their current enrollment management structure had met or exceeded their enrollment management expectations.

Graduate enrollment management (GEM) is an area of enrollment management that focuses on graduate and professional education. GEM's responsibilities can include various functions such as strategic planning, marketing, recruitment and admissions, academic advising, financial aid, student services, retention, and alumni relations. The comprehensive structure of GEM puts a significant amount of pressure on enrollment managers as its unique interdependence model creates an environment where professionals must be cross-trained in several areas, manage through grey areas, cultivate relationships with personnel across the campus, accomplish department goals, support their student population, and all while staying in alignment with the institutional mission. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore GEM from an enrollment managers perspective. The theoretical framework that guided this study was interdependence theory, and examined the following research questions: (1) How do graduate enrollment managers explain their roles in their respective departments and at their institution? (2) How do graduate enrollment managers explain the factors influencing their work? (3) What key stakeholders do graduate enrollment managers identify as influencing their roles and their work? (4) How do graduate enrollment managers balance demands from these stakeholders? Seventeen graduate enrollment managers working at a large research university were interviewed in-depth. The findings revealed how enrollment goals were established, described job duties, detected constraints, and presented the enjoyment GEM managers felt in their roles. The findings also highlighted the interactions encountered in their roles, and the importance of relationships when working with stakeholders.