☐ Download the conference app
☐ Review the conference schedule and note your top sessions
☐ Update your LinkedIn profile or bring business cards
☐ Attend the Newcomer (and More) Welcome
☐ Introduce yourself to someone new over breakfast, lunch, or at the reception
☐ Participate in at least one networking event
☐ Attend a session outside your primary area of expertise
☐ Connect with your new colleagues on LinkedIn
☐ Stay involved through the MESS Network
Welcome! Whether you're attending your first UPCEA Marketing, Enrollment Management, and Student Success (MEMS) Conference or you're returning after a few years away, we're excited you'll be joining us.
For more than 30 years, MEMS has brought together higher education professionals responsible for marketing, enrollment management, and student success for adult, online, professional, and continuing education. The conference is known for practical ideas, generous colleagues, and meaningful conversations that continue long after the event ends.
If this is your first MEMS, you may be wondering what to expect. The good news? You're in the right place. This guide will help you prepare, navigate the conference, and make the most of your experience.
MEMS is designed differently than many conferences.
Rather than following a single learning path, you'll build an experience that fits your own goals and interests. Sessions are practical and peer-led, with presenters sharing real strategies, lessons learned, and ideas you can adapt for your own institution.
Just as importantly, learning at MEMS doesn't stop when a session ends. Conversations in hallways, over meals, during networking events, and with exhibitors often become some of the most valuable parts of the conference.
Don't worry about trying to do everything—you can't! Instead, focus on the sessions, people, and conversations that are most relevant to your work.
💡 MEMS Pro Tip
The best conference experiences happen when you leave room for the unexpected. Don't feel like you need to attend every session. Some of the most valuable learning happens during conversations between sessions.
You'll probably hear both names throughout the conference.
MEMS is UPCEA's annual conference dedicated to marketing, enrollment management, and student success professionals.
The Marketing, Enrollment, and Student Success (MESS) Network is UPCEA's year-round professional community supporting professionals working in these areas. The Network provides ongoing learning, leadership opportunities, networking, awards, and professional development throughout the year—including the annual MEMS Conference. You can join the MESS Network through your UPCEA Member Portal.
A little preparation goes a long way.
Before you travel, we recommend that you:
Download the conference app as soon as it becomes available. (Usually two weeks prior to the start of the conference.)
Review the conference schedule before you arrive.
Choose one or two sessions for each concurrent session block and add then to your schedule in the conference app
Update your LinkedIn profile and consider posting that you'll be attending MEMS.
Bring business cards (paper and/or digital).
Practice your elevator pitch! (brief introduction about yourself and your institution)
Pack comfortable shoes and a light sweater or jacket.
📱 MEMS Pro Tip
Download the conference app before you travel—not after you arrive. You'll be able to build your schedule, explore session descriptions, familiarize yourself with the venue, and receive conference updates from day one.
One of the best parts of MEMS is the variety of sessions and perspectives available.
As you build your schedule:
Choose sessions that address your current priorities.
Attend one or two sessions outside your primary area of expertise.
Look at who's presenting—you may want to learn from institutions doing work you admire or professionals in roles similar to yours.
Give yourself permission to change plans if your interests evolve during the conference.
One of MEMS' greatest strengths is bringing together professionals from marketing, enrollment management, student success, communications, and institutional leadership. Even if a session isn't directly tied to your role, you'll often discover ideas and perspectives you can bring back to your own work.
💡 From the MEMS Community
"Review all of the session descriptions before you travel and choose your top one or two sessions for each time block. You'll spend less time deciding during the conference and more time learning."
Many first-time attendees worry about networking. The good news is that MEMS is known for being a welcoming and collaborative community.
Here are a few easy ways to make connections:
Arriving early? Join us at the optional and informal MEMS Meet Up on November 29 at 8 PM.
Attend the Newcomer (and More) Welcome session on November 30 at 11 AM.
Join the networking events—they're intentionally facilitated to help people connect.
Look for fellow first-time attendee ribbons on colleagues’ badges.
Sit with someone new during breakfast or lunch.
Sign up for a Dinner Group to join new friends for dinner on November 30 at 7 PM.
Stay in common areas between sessions.
Ask questions and share your own experiences.
Everyone is there because they care about helping higher education professionals succeed.
🤝 From the MEMS Community
"If you're attending by yourself, look for another person sitting alone at breakfast and simply say hello. I've met some of my closest professional colleagues that way."
🤝 From the MEMS Community
"Don't let the word 'networking' intimidate you. MEMS networking events are guided and intentional—you won't be left standing in a room wondering who to talk to."
These ideas come directly from experienced MEMS attendees and members of the MEMS Conference Planning Committee.
Bring both paper business cards and a digital option like your LinkedIn QR code.
Bring a refillable water bottle.
Take a few minutes to review the venue map before sessions begin.
Watch for informal activities hosted by exhibitors and sponsors, such as morning runs or meetups.
Exchange LinkedIn connections while conversations are fresh.
Share what's working at your institution—and don't be afraid to ask for advice.
⭐ From the MEMS Community
"Stay out of your hotel room between sessions whenever you can. Hallways, lounges, and coffee breaks are where many of the best conversations happen."
The conference app via Guidebook is your go-to resource throughout MEMS.
Use it to:
Build your personal schedule
View session descriptions and speakers
Find meeting rooms and venue maps
Receive important conference announcements
Connect with exhibitors and sponsors
Access conference information before, during, and after the event
View and download session slides and materials
We encourage you to download the app before arriving so everything is ready to go when the conference begins.
📱 MEMS Pro Tip
Turn on notifications for the conference app so you don't miss room changes, announcements, or networking opportunities.
The conference doesn't end when you head home.
Stay connected with the colleagues you've met on LinkedIn, connect and chat on CORe, share what you learned with your team, and look for ways to stay involved through UPCEA's Marketing, Enrollment, and Student Success (MESS) Network.
Whether you return next year as an attendee, presenter, volunteer, or committee member, we hope MEMS becomes an important part of your professional community.
🌟 First-Timer Reassurance
Every year, many first-time attendees leave MEMS with new ideas, new colleagues, and new friends. We hope this is just the beginning of your journey with the MEMS community.