Higher Ed Strategist · Speaker · Winston-Salem, NC
Higher ed marketing is student experience.
I'm Devin Purgason. I help colleges build the systems, language, and strategy that keep students moving forward after they show up.
The Core Belief
Enrollment can't be the finish line. It has to be the trailhead.
Most colleges are designed to get students in the door. Far fewer are designed for what happens next. My work lives in that gap.
The Work in Numbers
What I Do
Marketing that stops at awareness is leaving students behind. I build integrated models that connect recruitment, onboarding, care, and retention into one human experience.
Not the vendor pitch version. The real version. I've led AI adoption at scale and write about what actually works versus what sounds good in a deck.
The most underestimated institutions in American higher education. I've spent my career making the case and building the marketing infrastructure to match it.
Featured Essay
Higher Ed Marketing · Student Experience · AI in Higher Ed
Writing on the systems, strategy, and people behind higher education.
Essays on community college marketing, student experience design, AI adoption, and what it actually takes to build institutions worthy of the students who show up.
Recognition & Reach
Award
Selected from three national finalists. Presented at the AMA Symposium, Las Vegas.
Award
Recognized as one of higher ed's most impactful voices in enrollment marketing.
Publishing
Regular contributor on higher ed marketing, student experience, and AI strategy.
Stages
National conference stages that shape higher education strategy and enrollment.
Podcasts
Enrollify, Higher Ed Geek, Modern Campus, EdUp, AACRAO, and more.
Consulting
Strategic consulting for colleges and universities on enrollment marketing, student experience design, and AI adoption.
Photography
Photography Is Part Of How I Recharge.
The same instinct that drives my work in higher ed shows up behind the camera. Portraits, events, travel, and the quiet moments in between.
View the Work
Let's work together.
Whether you need a keynote, a strategic partner, or a thought leader for your publication.