Resources for Recruitment in Higher Education

Along with education majors more generally, there have been noted declines in enrollments within many health and physical education teacher education programs in recent years. This has led to program consolidation and, in some cases, the elimination of some health and physical education teacher education programs across institutions of higher education. At the same time, however, there is a noted teacher shortage across many U.S. states with insufficient applicants to fill advertised positions.

This mismatch between the supply and demand of certified teachers highlights the need to more actively and intentionally recruit future teachers into health and physical education teacher education programs. Nevertheless, few doctoral programs have historically included a focus on such recruitment and many faculty members may feel underprepared for such responsibilities. Similarly, few inservice health and physical education teachers likely received preparation for the roles they play in teacher recruitment.

The purpose of this webpage is to provide a collection of resources to aid faculty members and inservice teachers who are interested in learning more about and becoming involved in recruitment initiatives. We encourage you to use the resources below and make them your own to help with your own college and university recruitment activities. Below you will find some general resources and publications about recruitment and retention, as well as a sample flyer and recruitment powerpoints.