After the University of Minnesota voted last year to raise tuition for out-of-state students, two recruiters were hired to bring students from the East Coast and the South to the Midwest.

The two recruiters — one who started in January and one who will start in March — are an addition to two existing national recruiters. The Office of Admissions also has about 12 admissions counselors who focus a majority of their work in Minnesota.

“We knew there would be parts of the country [where] we would be stepping up our recruiting efforts,” Regent Tom Anderson said of the decision to raise tuition prices for non-resident, non-reciprocity students.

Heidi Meyer, executive director of admissions, said they want to increase the number of strong students from a variety of places.

The University is focusing on locations in the South and on the East Coast due to increasing numbers of high school students in those areas.

One of the new recruiters will focus their efforts on students in Texas, and won’t be starting until the first week of March, said Meyer.

The other new regional recruiter, Brianne Kain, started on Jan. 2 and focuses her outreach on the East Coast, specifically in New York and New Jersey.

Kain is originally from New Jersey and will be residing in New York to speak with and advise graduating high school students in the two states.

“The mobility in this area is actually pretty high,” Kain said. “Students tend to want to leave and go out of state, so I think Minnesota beginning to recruit here will be a really positive experience.”

She added that New York and New Jersey have untapped potential for recruiting, as many students don’t realize the University of Minnesota is an option.

“We are certainly expanding our geographic diversity with out-of-state recruiters,” Meyer said.