Scope: TAMU Law is seeking proposals from qualified vendors (1) to design and execute a comprehensive, data-driven international
marketing campaign for its online Master of Laws (LLM) program., and (2) to provide recruitment services for international
students for the online LLM program. TAMU Law may choose to handle recruitment services internally so the proposal for
recruitment (including pricing) should be bifurcated from the proposal for marketing.
TAMU Law currently has one of the largest distance education law programs in the country with over 1,400 students enrolled in its four DE degree programs, as well as DE certificate programs. TAMU Law has 3 starts per year—fall, spring, and summer, and had over 375 new enrollments in spring of 2025. Most DE students are enrolled part-time, taking 6 credits per semester, and completing the degree in 4 to 5 semesters.
TAMU Law currently offers its LLM program both on campus and online. The on-campus LLM, which generally had 54 students enrolled in Spring 2025, primarily targets foreign-trained lawyers who want an LLM from a U.S. law school—usually because it will allow them to sit for the bar exam in Texas or another U.S. state, which is necessary to obtain a U.S. law license. The online LLM primarily targets U.S. lawyers who want to specialize in a particular area of law, such as international tax.
Until recently, a foreign-trained lawyer who wanted an LLM from a U.S. law school so that he/she could obtain a U.S. law license had no choice but to attend an on-campus LLM program at a U.S. law school. Recently, however, the Supreme Court of Texas modified the rules governing admission to the bar in Texas. The rules now permit a foreign-trained lawyer to sit for the Texas bar exam if the lawyer obtains an LLM from a U.S. law school through a synchronous online program that meets certain requirements.
This rule change opens up a new audience for the law school’s online LLM program—foreign-trained lawyers who wish to sit for the bar exam in Texas, but who prefer to obtain their LLM online without having to attend an on-campus program in the U.S. TAMU Law intends to broaden the reach of its online LLM program to attract these international students. To achieve this, the school requires a strategic partner(s) that can plan and execute an integrated, data-driven marketing and student-recruitment campaign in priority overseas markets—which would likely include China, India, Europe, and South America, among others. The initiative will emphasize the LL.M. program’s academic reputation, its pathway or opportunity to qualify to take the Texas Bar Exam, and the flexibility of distance-education delivery. TAMU Law wishes to have a contract in place with a vendor by the end of summer of 2025, with the goal of launching marketing and recruitment services as soon as possible thereafter to influence enrollment for the Fall 2026 start.
The vendor must have significant experience with international marketing for distance education programs and a demonstrated track record of delivering large enrollments. The vendor must show the capacity to manage high campaign volumes, multiple time zones and country-specific compliance. The vendor must also be able to handle the volume of work that the law school will generate. Preference will be given to vendors who have prior experience with law schools or similar graduate and professional schools. TAMU Law expects responsive, flexible, and individualized services from a vendor that dedicates specific personnel and resources to the law school.
Marketing
The vendor will be asked to provide end-to-end international market research, market strategy, and market strategy execution. Market research will include evidence-based analyses that identify target student populations by geographic area and professional profile; global industry professionals with content needs identified to the LLM; and labor market analysis trends indicative of future student demand. Market strategy includes leveraging worldwide channels across print & digital including but not limited to Google Ads, SEO strategies (paid), Meta, LinkedIn, and webinars/Facebook Live events. Paid and organic searches will extend beyond mainstream platforms to region-specific channels such as WhatsApp broadcasts, LINE, and X/Twitter. Timed webinars, Facebook- or YouTube-Live Q&A sessions, and alumni spotlights will provide interactive touchpoints across time zones.
TAMU Law engages in a dual-track approach that combines performance-driven direct marketing with longer-term brand building, and it expects the chosen vendor to do both. Campaigns must generate a steady pipeline of application-ready prospects while elevating the school’s global reputation with a high degree of efficiency. TAMU Law values imaginative and polished creative pieces, including ads, video, and audio—as well as landing pages and microsites.
The vendor will provide a detailed marketing plan that includes a variety of digital marketing, strategically selected global employer and professional association partnerships. Vendor will work to ensure that TAMU Law complies with all state, local, and international approvals required for digital marketing. In keeping with law school goals, the vendor’s marketing plan will focus on marketing to highly qualified students from worldwide populations.
Recruiting
At a minimum, the vendor will provide marketing services up to the point of lead capture. Once a lead is captured, TAMU Law may turn the lead over to a different vendor for nurturing. However, our preference is that the vendor that captures the lead will also nurture the lead. In that case, the vendor recruitment services necessary to bring in highly qualified global LL.M. candidates on a rolling basis. The vendor’s role is strictly to source, guide, and prepare candidates for review across all target regions. TAMU Law and Law School Office of Graduate Programs will provide standards for “highly qualified” and will have the final say on the admission status of prospective students.
We are open to a variety of proposals regarding how to nurture leads cost effectively for this program, but our preference would be for the vendor to operate a fully staffed enrollment contact center that covers major time-zone blocks for at least twelve hours per weekday. The center will integrate voice, CRM, chat, and knowledge-based platforms; maintain regional or toll-free numbers suitable for key markets; provide a technical help desk; and host program-specific landing pages—localized where necessary— through which prospects can request information.
We are particularly interested in proposals that incorporate the use of innovative technologies to recruit students, including the use of artificial intelligence (AI).
The vendor will be responsible for maintaining multichannel, multicultural communication with prospective students through enrollment, guiding the prospective student through the process. Contact may include email, phone, text, social media, traditional mail, etc. and messages will be linguistically accurate and culturally attuned.
The vendor will collect all pertinent admissions information required to complete a student admissions file as specified by the TAMU Law and will submit that information to the Assistant Director of LLM Programs, Assistant Dean of Graduate Programs and the School of Law Office of Admissions for final admission decisions in full compliance with international data-privacy regulations. The vendor shall have no involvement in admissions decisions. The vendor is expected to nurture all leads, including organic leads, and deliver completed applications. After admission, the vendor will provide yield services to avoid melt.
The vendor will not engage in cross-selling leads to other partners or other clients. We strongly prefer dedicated enrollment coaches equipped to serve candidates in their local languages. We will give strong preference to proposals in which TAMU Law retains ownership over the leads generated through any marketing effort for TAMU Law graduate programs.
Due Date: 8/15/2025 2:00 PM CDT
Contact: Patricia Winkler P-WINKLER@TAMU.EDU