Student Prospect List (SPL) for Independent School Enrollment

Student Prospect List (SPL) for Independent School Enrollment
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Admissions Ecosystem
Reimagining enrollment marketing for K–12 independent schools, each channel in EMA's Admissions Ecosystem works together to attract and engage candidates throughout the recruitment funnel.
ADMISSION.ORG
INTERNATIONAL
RECRUITMENT
Student
Prospect
List
open seat
list
standard
application
online
Admission.org Search
Expanding the top of the recruitment funnel, Admission.org Search connects your school with families worldwide actively exploring independent day and boarding options. Built-in efficiencies from the Standard Application Online and prospect list nurturing keep families moving from research to application.
International Recruitment
Expand your school's global enrollment reach with EMA's best-in-class student recruitment fairs and agent events. Build a network of skilled agents advocating on your behalf and establish trust with motivated families by meeting face-to-face. The result is long-lasting impact through the most powerful form of school marketing: authentic word of mouth.
Student Prospect List
86% of applying parents are part of Generation X—the email generation. Utilize advanced segmentation to send nurture and retargeting emails to over 35,000 prospective families already engaged in EMA's system. Direct them to your school's Admission.org Search profile for a quick-start gateway into the application process.
Open Seat List
Activated after the traditional April enrollment decision period, the Open Seat List connects schools with over 4,000 outstanding students who are new to the application process or are navigating the uncertainty of waitlists.
Standard Application Online (SAO)
Families in EMA's Admissions Ecosystem are motivated and application-ready. Whether navigating the Admission.org Search or receiving a Student Prospect List email, they're a click away from beginning an application to your school via the Standard Application Online (SAO), the most widely used K–12 common independent school application.
Access 35,000+ students looking for independent schools.
Active Candidates
SPL candidates are currently in the process of researching and applying to independent schools. Best of all, they have consented to hear from new schools via SPL.
Subscription Segmentation
Maximize your recruitment budget by only paying for the candidates that fit your school type through Local, Regional, National, International, and All-Access subscription options. Single-gender school pricing is also available.
Personalized Messaging
With hundreds of filtering options, SPL makes it easy to segment and personalize messaging based on geographic location, academic interests, religious preferences, arts and athletics, and so much more!
Open Seat List
Ideal for schools with rolling admissions, the
Open Seat List
curates candidates who are still looking for fall enrollment after the traditional decision period in the spring. The Open Seat List is included with SPL subscriptions or available as a standalone purchase.
Access
The Ride to Independent Schools
The Ride
Reports…
The results from surveying over 3,000 families about their experience applying to independent schools provide a golden blueprint for student recruitment and speak to the ability of SPL to elevate your school's admissions funnel.
54%
Enrolled in their first-choice school. Of the SPL candidates already focused on a specific school, nearly half will enroll elsewhere.
Will it be your school?
64%
Found open houses and on-campus events the most helpful. Invite SPL candidates to campus to create a sense of connection.
86%
Of applying parents are part of Generation X. They prefer email communication, reflected in the SPL's 66% average open rate.
Members: Get Started
Non-Member Inquiry
See what admission professionals say about Student Prospect List.
"After nearly two decades working in Admissions and Marketing in independent schools, I can say with confidence that the Student Prospect List (SPL) has been one of the most reliable tools in my toolkit.
The SPL helps us reach high-intent families who are already exploring independent school options—even if we weren’t originally on their radar. Because these families opt in, we know they’re open to hearing from us and genuinely interested in learning more.
My approach is multi-channel: we pair targeted introductory email campaigns with supportive direct mail to drive stronger engagement. It's also easy to run quick, highly effective outreach—like promoting a virtual information session—where the immediate boost in registrations is a clear indicator of its impact. Every time we use it, the results are fast and visible."
Deborah Schultz
Director of Marketing and Communications
Bancroft School
“The Prospect List gives you lots of bang for your buck, focused on a market that is already looking at independent schools, so that part of the work is already done for you! It's an opportunity to widen the top of your funnel, with dynamic lists that are super easy to filter."
Elizabeth Connelly
Senior Associate Director of Admission
Dana Hall School (MA)
Continuously feed your enrollment funnel.
How does Student Prospect List work?
Candidates actively seeking independent school admission create an account with EMA—either through SSAT, Character Skills Snapshot, or Standard Application Online registration, or via direct Admission.org sign-up.
During account creation, parents consent to hear from SPL subscribers, providing details such as the type of school they are interested in, religious affiliation, and their student’s academic, art, athletic, and activity interests.
School admission teams sign into their EMA account to access SPL and curate lists of students who best meet the school type and admission criteria using advanced filters.
New candidates are added daily in real-time, and the date added filter makes it easy to track new students.
Want to learn more?
Schedule a Demo
Schools Benefiting From Student Prospect List
Student Prospect List Resources
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RESOURCE
Frequently Asked SPL Questions
Explore the Student Prospect List FAQs from schools in the EMA Help Center.
RESOURCE
EMA Gender and Ethnicity Data Updates
Learn how EMA has updated our data collection practices to offer expanded options for non-binary gender, race, and ethnicity.
RESOURCE
Get Started With Student Prospect List
What if you could target the most qualified students for your school? This quick demo video shows how it’s possible with SPL.
RESOURCE
Explore the Still Looking Filter in SPL
See how the Still Looking filter helps schools identify students still in the enrollment pipeline after the traditional decision-date cycle.
Interested in Student Prospect List?
Fill out this form to get started!