How Notre Dame’s Online Data Science Program Grew Enrollment 84 Percent

Download the Full Case Study

When Notre Dame’s Online Master’s in Data Science team texted prospective students during the college football playoff game, several of them applied. Samantha Adamczewski, the program’s Associate Director, says that kind of timing only works when you know what your audience cares about.

“Several people applied during the college football playoff game. You can’t buy that kind of relevance unless you’re tuned into what people care about.”

Samantha Adamczewski, Associate Director of the Online Master’s in Data Science program, The University of Notre Dame

The program is housed in the College of Science’s Applied and Computational Mathematics and Statistics (ACMS) department and is the university’s only fully online program. It’s also self-funded, so its operating budget depends on online program enrollment. Since moving its outreach to Mongoose Text, enrollment has grown 84 percent in two years.

Why Email Wasn’t Reaching Prospective Students

As a fully online program inside a traditional university structure, the ACMS team faced a specific set of problems:

• Email overload and low response rates among prospective students.
• A niche audience that traditional marketing struggled to reach.
• The need to build relationships in a digital-first environment.
• Two staff members managing the entire funnel, from inquiry through alumni engagement.

“We were having trouble reaching our target audience. Long marketing emails weren’t working. People didn’t want another email; they wanted short, helpful texts.”

Samantha Adamczewski

How the Team Built Online Program Enrollment on Personal Texts

The team adopted Mongoose Text to reach students earlier in their journey, reduce friction, and support one-on-one conversations with prospective, current, and former students. Cortney Mayfield, Admissions Coordinator, writes the messages and monitors the inbox, so every reply is timely, personal, and written by a person.

Staff segmented prospective students by activity level and wrote personalized texts around key moments like application open dates, info sessions, fee waivers, and events. They also used moments like Notre Dame sports games and national holidays to spark engagement.

“Mongoose allowed us to make every message feel personal. Prospective students were surprised to receive a response from a human rather than an auto-generated message. I had students tell me at Orientation that this was impactful to their admissions experience.”

Samantha Adamczewski

Results: Record-Breaking Enrollment

84 Percent Enrollment Growth

Enrollment grew from 25 students in 2023 to 36 in 2024 and 46 in 2025, the program’s highest number to date. For a self-funded program, that growth translates directly to revenue.

“The increase in numbers is incredible, and Mongoose played a key role in achieving it.”

Samantha Adamczewski

Short Texts Over Long Emails

When outreach moved from long-form email to short texts, prospective students were more likely to attend info sessions, complete applications, and ask specific questions. The team also reports higher applicant-to-enrollee conversion rates and more positive interactions in Mongoose’s dashboards.

“It’s not just about pushing info; it’s about building trust in a way email simply can’t.”

Samantha Adamczewski

Beyond Admissions

The program now texts current students with event updates, reminders, check-ins, and quick logistical help, and texts alumni with event invitations, program updates, and requests for referrals. Texting has also cut unnecessary emails, which helps a two-person team prioritize engagement.

“Now that we’ve mastered texting for admissions, we’re scaling it for student success and alumni. Our alumni are some of our best recruiters; if we can engage them meaningfully, that impacts admissions too.”

Samantha Adamczewski

What Samantha Says About the Partnership

“The Mongoose team is fantastic. They understand higher ed, they help us brainstorm, and they don’t wait for our questions; they come with ideas. It’s a real partnership.”

Samantha Adamczewski

“You can see the return in the numbers. But even more than that, you can feel it in the way students respond.”

Samantha Adamczewski

What Other Online and Graduate Programs Can Take From Notre Dame

Keep texts short, time them to moments your audience already cares about, and make sure a person answers every reply. For a small team, that’s the balance this post on balancing automation and human interaction covers. To see how your reply rates compare, start with these admissions texting benchmarks and FAQs, and for keeping prospects from going quiet, see how to prevent student ghosting.

Other programs have seen similar results. Jacksonville State University gets a 21 percent response rate on graduate inquiry texts with a five-person team, and Carnegie Mellon boosted alumni responses 170 percent by asking alumni a question instead of for a gift.

Looking Ahead

The team plans to expand texting across every stage of the student lifecycle, including orientation and immersion logistics, grow alumni engagement by text for involvement and recruitment, and add Smart Messages and segmentation.

“We want to take everything we’ve learned in admissions and apply it across the student experience.”

Samantha Adamczewski

“If you’re wondering whether it’s worth the investment, the answer is yes. Mongoose was the catalyst for growth, enabling us to create impactful, personalized communication that directly led to a successful expansion of our program.”

Samantha Adamczewski

Download the Full Case Study

For a two-page summary of Notre Dame’s results to share with your enrollment team, download the Notre Dame Online Master’s in Data Science case study (PDF).

Want to see what personal texting could do for your program’s enrollment? Book a demo.

Frequently Asked Questions

How did Notre Dame’s online data science program grow enrollment?

The team moved outreach from long marketing emails to short, personal texts answered by staff, timed to moments like application open dates, info sessions, fee waivers, and Notre Dame sports games. Enrollment grew from 25 students in 2023 to 46 in 2025, an 84 percent increase.

How many staff run the program’s outreach?

Two staff members manage the entire funnel, from inquiry through alumni engagement. Admissions Coordinator Cortney Mayfield writes the messages and monitors the inbox.

Does texting work better than email for online program enrollment?

For Notre Dame’s program, yes. When outreach moved to text, prospective students were more likely to attend info sessions, complete applications, and ask specific questions.

Who answers the texts prospective students send?

A person answers every reply. Samantha Adamczewski says prospective students were surprised to hear from a human rather than an auto-generated message, and some mentioned it at Orientation.

Does Notre Dame use texting beyond admissions?

Yes. The program texts current students with reminders, event updates, and check-ins, and texts alumni with event invitations, program updates, and referral requests.