converge 2014: the next generation - harms

The Next Generation

Brenda Harms Ph.D. – Senior Vice-President

October, 2014

The Next Generation…

?


• 20 years ago the idea of online education was looked down upon by the majority of schools sitting in this room

• 15 years ago social media was not part of your life

• 10 years ago the idea of competency based education

was absurd

• 8 years ago your website didn’t need to fit on your phone


?


• Will increasingly push higher education outside of

it’s historical comfort zone

• Will challenge us to think about the work we do in

relation to marketing and recruitment far differently

than we are right now

• Will cause our institutions (and perhaps leadership) to push back, not out of ignorance but out of fear

• Will push us all to consider ideas a few years ago we couldn’t have even imagine

The Importance of This Work…

The Importance of This Work…

At this time…

• Work in nimble and progressive ways within an organization that is not particularly nimble or progressive• Navigate the politics of an internal system that is change resistant• Continue to push the limits of the institutions we work for while continuing to push ourselves to be progressive within our area of expertise • Do more with less – in relation to both human and financial resources

Our Challenge…..

GROW!

Our Charge…..

National Research Trends in the Adult Student Market

Higher Education Attainment

High School Attainment of Younger and Older Adults –2005

Source: Education at a Glance, 2007, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD): prepared by National Center for Higher Education Management Systems (NCHEMS). * Japan data is from 2004.

Educational Attainment in the U.S.

US now ranks 12th among 36 developed nations for percentage of

post-secondary degree holders.

--The College Board

In the US, by 2018 63% of all jobs will require post-secondary education.

--Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce

The Levels of Education for the U.S. Population

• More than 22 percent (over 37 million Americans) have attended college but not completed a degree

Less than high scho

ol13%

High school27%

Some college, no degree

22%

As-so-ciate

de-gree8%

Bachelor's degree19%

Graduate or pro-fessional degree

10%

Levels of education for the U.S. popu-lation, aged 25-64

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2008

Tennessee

3,415,752 – Tennessee residents ages 25-64

• In 2012 - 33.3% of Tennessee’s working-age adults (25-64) have two or four-year degree

(national average – 39.4%)

• 1,110,300 – High school diploma• 759,104 – Some college no degree• 250,219 – Associate degree• 585,335 – Bachelor’s degree

Projected Change in H.S. Graduates to 2018–19 by State

Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 2008

Degree-attainment Rates by Race/Ethnicity

• 2008 Degree-attainment rates for Americans ages 25-64

Native American

Asian

Hispanic

Black

White

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%

22.5%

59.2%

18.6%

26.2%

42.2%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2008 American Community Survey

NCES Projected Increases 2007- 2018

White

Black

Hispanic

Asian or Pacific Islander

American Indian or Alaska Native

Nonresident Aliens

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40%

4%

26%

38%

29%

32%

14%

Sources: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics,

Fall Enrollment by Ethnicity

Population Ages 15 - 34

• 1980– 78% - White– 13% - Black– 7% - Hispanic– 2% - Asian/Pacific Islander

• 2012– 58% - White– 14% Black– 21% Hispanic– 6% Asian/Pacific Islander

Degree-attainment Rates by Income Levels

• Four out of five 24-year-olds in the upper income quartile hold four-year college degrees

• One out of ten in the lowest income quartile hold four-year

college degrees

• Low-income students are more likely to attend institutions with lower graduation rates and attend part-time.

Rising…But

• Some evidence of a rise in formal education participation– Nearly half of the adult population is now participating in

formal education, or work related training and the trend is rising.

• However – About 40 million adults function at the lowest levels of

literacy; only 3 million of these are receiving instruction.

TODAY’S UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT

Students Today…

The Emergence of Non-Traditional Students

The “Traditional” Undergraduate

A student who earns a high school diploma, enrolls full time immediately after finishing high school, depends on parents

for financial support, and either does not work during the school year or works part time.


Traditional Undergradua

te27 %

Non-Traditional

Undergraduate

73%

vs.

Traditional Undergradua

te16 %

• In 1999–2000, just 27 percent of undergraduates are traditional undergraduate students, those who earns a high school diploma, enrolls full time immediately after finishing high school, depends on parents for financial support, and either does not work during the school year or works part time—is the exception rather than the rule.

• Non-traditional students are creating a new majority among undergraduates at college campuses across the country

vs.

Non-Traditional

Undergraduate

84%

*1999-2000

*2008-2009, Peter Stoakes


• According to the National Center for Education Statistics - of undergraduate students

– The share of all students over age 25 is projected to increase another 23 percent by 2019.

– Nearly a quarter of postsecondary students in the United States (3.9 million) are parents.

– 43 percent of all undergraduates attend community colleges. – Adult learners make up as much as 60 percent of all

community college students– Almost 40 percent of all undergraduates and about 60

percent of those attending public two-year colleges are enrolled part-time.

Ask Yourself…

• Do trends at our institution follow these national trends?– Serving more minority students– Seeing the “tipping point” in the adult/graduate population

compared to the traditional undergrad

• Does our institution have (and use) data on who our current student population is? How segmented is it?– Have we developed student personas for the populations we

serve?

• Have we begun to shift our attention or efforts at our institution?– Has a representative from the “nontraditional” side of the house

recently acquired a seat at the senior leadership table?

Labor Market NeedsThe Benefit of Being Educated

Why Is Higher Education Attainment Needed?

• Higher education is the best insurance against unemployment. – While overall unemployment rates are hovering around 10

percent, percent, only 4.5 percent of college graduates were unemployed.

• Education is essential for economic prosperity and career advancement. – Workers with a bachelor’s degree enjoy an annual income

nearly $20,000 higher than workers who only have completed high school.

• The economic recovery is being hindered by a lack of workers with the advanced skills and knowledge demanded in this economy.

Demands for Higher Education

• Need to produce an additional 3 million workers with associate degrees or higher and 5 million workers with technical certificates and credentials by 2018 to promote economic competitiveness and economic mobility.

• Employers are seeking individuals with both technical knowledge in their field and also practical experience solving workplace problem.

• The type of integrated postsecondary education that yields this knowledge and skills mix is not commonplace in higher education.

• During the Great Recession of 2008-2010, four out of five jobs that were lost were held by Americans with a high school education or less.

• By comparison, Americans with a bachelor’s degree or above steadily gained jobs during the recession and have seen an increase of more than 2 million jobs during the recovery that began in 2010.

• Perhaps the clearest evidence of that comes from the fact that many employers say they cannot find people with the skills they need to fill current job openings.

Labor Layout

At your company, what workplace skills are considered most important for employees to have when they join? (select top 4) (% respondents)

Critical thinking and problem solving 72% Collaboration/teamwork 63%Communication 54%Technical skills associated with the job 54%Adaptability/managing multiple priorities 48%Professionalism 32%Planning/organization 21% Reading for information 10% Locating information 6%Networking 6%Applied mathematics 5%

Source: Economist Intelligence Unit survey, March 2014

The Cost of Not Being Educated

Ask Yourself…

• How is my institution responding to local labor demands?• How are my recruiters leveraging this type of

information when communicating with prospective students?

Public Opinion of Higher education

2012 Lumina Foundation Study – Public Opinion of Higher Education

• Nearly all Americans (97%) say having a degree or certificate beyond high school is at least somewhat important to a person’s financial security

• More than two-thirds (67%) say getting a good job is a very important reason for getting education beyond high school. Nearly as many, 65%, say earning more money is a very important reason to get education beyond high school

• Of Americans who do not have a postsecondary degree or certificate, the majority agree or strongly agree that they would feel more secure in their job and their financial future if they did have one


• About four in 10 (41%) Americans without a postsecondary degree or certificate say they have thought about going back to school within the last 12 months


Issues of Cost and Quality • 76% of those interviewed believe a U.S. education

was better or the same as education in other countries• 76% agree or strongly agree that traditional colleges

and universities offer high-quality education• 54% agree or strongly agree that community

colleges offer high- quality education• 33% agree or strongly agree that online colleges

and universities offer high-quality education


BUT only 26% of those interviewed believe higher education is affordable for

everyone who needs it

College Costs Surge 500% in U.S. Since 1985


Earning College Credit

• 87% of those interviewed believe students should be able to earn college credit for knowledge and skills they have learned outside the classroom

• 75% would be more likely to enroll in a program where they could be evaluated and receive credits for what they already know

• 70% believe that if they have mastered the material being taught in a course, they should be able to receive credit without completing the 16-week course

The Growth of Online Enrollment

• Online enrollments have continued to grow at rates far in excess of the total higher education student population

• As of 2012 - 6.7 million students had taken at least one online course.

• The portion of students taking at least one online course is at an all time high of 32% of those consuming education in the U.S.

Reality of Online Education

• The proportion of chief academic leaders that say online learning is critical to their long-term strategy is now at 69.1 percent • Of academic leaders 77% surveyed reported

online learning outcomes to be the same, somewhat superior or superior to face-to-face in 2012.

• From 2002 to 2012 academic leaders have reported little change in faculty acceptance of the value and legitimacy of online education.

Desires of Adult Students

Easier transfer of credit from institution to institution– Credit transfer policies must become more rational to support

working adults at ALL levels

More flexible course, certificate, and degree programs – Increased access to online learning, hybrid learning, competency

based learning, and education at the workplace

More flexible financial aid policies– More than 22 percent of prospective adult learners who choose

not to enroll cite cost as an obstacle – Increase grant aid rather than student loan programs or tax

credits

Lower-cost alternatives to attending college– Online courses– Hybrid courses– Competency based alternatives

Ask Yourself…

• Has my institution even considered doing something bold about the cost of higher education?

• If 40% of adults without a degree have at least considered the idea of coming back to school in the last 12 months what have we done to talk with them about that?

• Where are we in relation to online courses?– Do we charge more for online?– Do we offer what faculty want or what students want online?– How do we monitor what is being done online and what accountabilities

are in place for those who are teaching in this delivery mode?

Higher Education ResponsesTo Training Needs

• American corporations spent more than $51 billion on training in 2004

• More than $13 billion was devoted to purchasing services from third-party providers such as professional associations, consultancies, commercial training companies, colleges and universities, government agencies, and others.

• Colleges and universities had only a 5 percent share of these expenditures for outsourced services in 2004 – amounting to about $670 million.

Higher Education Must Become More Responsive to the Training Needs of Industry

• Universities are not designed to respond rapidly to the changing education and training needs of industry

– The top capabilities employers reported seeking third-party providers of education and training for were “customization” and “applied learning.”

– The top two areas where universities could improve to better

meet their education and training needs were “applied learning” and “customization.”

– Otherwise, industry will continue to do what it has done for the past two decades: work around higher education by creating its own system for training and development.

Higher Education Must Become More Responsive to the Training Needs of Industry

Ask Yourself…

• How does my institution team with employers in the region?– Community outreach– Employer partnerships– Tuition reimbursement

• In that relational dynamic who has the upper hand?

Policy Response

We Can Not Wait

While the national focus on Higher Education is encouraging we can not stand back and wait for someone else to lead in relation to financial aid, cost, definitions of credit hours, competency based learning,

etc…..

Our Response

Needs of Post-Traditional Learners

• New demand

– Modular, easy-to-access instruction

– Blended academic and occupational curricula

– Progressive credentialing of knowledge and skills

– Financial, academic, and career advising

– Public policy (or at least institutional policy) that reflects the complex task of balancing life, work, and education.

The Typical College Experience

• Most institutions are not designed around the needs of working adults

• Students must adjust to institution (place, time, pace)

• Traditional learning model (classes, grades, tests); sometimes too little feedback, too late

• Price can be high, especially with extra fees, books, etc.

• Financial aid runs out quickly, intimidating and sometimes overcomplicated process

• Failure/withdraw rates are high, especially in developmental courses

• Can be impersonal, doesn’t offer needed one-one coaching or peer support

Re-imagining Higher Education

Traditional Higher Education

• Faculty at heart of learning model

• High cost content

• 3 credit course as defining unit “big chunk learning”

• Time fixed, learning variable

• “Expert” teaching model

• Learners come to institution

New Model for Higher Education

• Individual student at heart of learning model

• Low cost and free content

• Competencies as defining units “small chunk learning”

• Time variable, learning fixed

• Mentor, peer to peer, community learning support model

• Learning comes to students where they live and work

• Students can enroll anytime, work anywhere, and set their own pace

• Primarily online or hybrid programs

• Aggressive partnerships with alternative credit pathways (LearningCounts, Straighterline, Coursera, ACE, etc.)

• Programs aimed at adults with complicated lives

• Programs that intentionally partner with business and industry

• Solid student support services - support and coaching, a true partnering

• Competency based learning model - values prior learning and experience

• Low cost

New Models for Higher Education

Specific Considerations in Serving the Adult Population

Proximity to work or homeAfter 5:00 p.m. and/or weekend course

schedule

Alternative modes of delivery Minimum barriers to admission

Transfer and prior learning credit Flexible tuition payments

Supplemental academic support Professional practitioners as instructors

Small classesUse of practicum, portfolios, and

capstones

No “frills” or extra fees Monitor retention

Responsiveness to students between classes

“Customer Service” model

One stop shopping / self-serve / 24-7 Product


• Marketing– Strategies from even 5 years ago are horribly outdated– Maximize your use of digital media to reach prospective

students when they are ready– Put your most relevant foot forward (you have better

things to promote than small class size)– Know your audience - market to those you serve (based

on data driven personas)– Stop placating your faculty, college president, or

academic dean with messaging that doesn’t matter– Segmented messaging – “what’s in it for me” messaging– Identify 3 data points and monitor them (obsessively)


• Recruiting– Admissions or Recruitment?– The majority of private and public institutions in the country

are using outdated recruitment methods– Look at your main competitors (places you actually loose

students to) they will almost always be out-recruiting you– Critically examine your internal processes– Get honest about your people – people recruit students

(marketing, shiny objects, gimmicks, and wild promotions do not)

– Develop a process – you are not as good as you believe you are

– Identify 3 data points and monitor them (obsessively)


• Retention– Cradle to grave approach– Professional advising – Student success team (coaches)– Hand-holding is the norm – Re-recruit your own students at least twice a year– There are no drop-outs, only stop-outs– Achieving their goals – understand their intentions from

the start– Develop a clear process for re-engagement– Identify 3 data points and monitor them (obsessively)


• Academics– The future of higher education will not be without

change– Higher education is more in need of gifted teachers

today than it ever has been before– Great classes will not be enough – delivery will matter – Those we MOST need to educate will also be the MOST

challenging– Courses that “even the playing field” may become the

norm– Higher education is desperate for creative content

delivery– Faculty are needed to lead the “hard conversations”

Creating Your Institution’s Success

Measureable MarketingEstablished Recruitment ProcessDegree Completion is the Goal

Willingness to Have the Hard Conversations

– Identify one thing “old” that you are willing to cut ties with and allocate that budget (both financial and human) on something “new”

– Identify ONE data point that you are not currently monitoring in your area and BY NEXT WEEK, start monitoring it

– Be open to What’s New and What’s Next!

My Challenge to You…. At This Event…

– Closing the Skills Gap - Economist Intelligence Unit Survey – 2014

– Changing Course – 10 Years of Tracking Online Education in the U.S. – Sloan C - 2012

– The Differentiated University – The Parthenon Group– Great Jobs Great Lives –Gallup/Purdue - 2014– Recovery – Job Growth and Education Requirements

Through 2020 - Georgetown University - 2013– The Students of the Future – Presidential Innovation

Lab– 15 Economic Facts About Millennials – The Council of

Economic Advisors – Oct. 2014

Do Some Reading…

Thank you!

References“Strategic Plan 2013-2016 Executive Summary,” Lumina FoundationVoorhees, Richard A. and Paul E. Lingenfelter, “Adult Learners and State Policy,” CAELChoy, Susan, "Nontraditional Undergraduates, Findings from the condition of education 2002," National Center For

Education StatisticsStokes, Peter J. "Hidden in Plain Sight: Adult Learners Forge a New Tradition in Higher Education, Eleventh in a series

of Issue Papers released at the request of Chairman Charles Miller to inform the work of the CommissionKnapp, Laura G., Janice E. Kelly-Reid, Scott A. Ginder (2010), "Enrollment in Postsecondary Institutions, Fall 2008;

Graduation Rates, 2002 and 2005 Cohorts; and Financial Statistics, Fiscal Year 2008, RTI International" A Strong Nation Through Higher Education" (2010) Special Report From Lumina Foundation for EducationVan Der Werf, Martin and Grant Sabatier(2009), "The College of 2020: STUDENTS" Chronicle Research ServiceAllen, I. Elaine and Jeff Seaman (2010), "Learning on Demand Online Education in the United States, 2009, BABSON

Survey Research GroupAuguste, Byron G., Adam Cota, Kartik Jayaram, Martha C. A. Laboissière (2010 November), Winning by degrees: the

strategies of highly productive higher education institutions, McKinsey&Company“Speak Up 2008,” Project Tomorrow, March 2009Allen, I. Elaine and Jeff Seaman (2005), "Growing by Degrees Online Education in the United States, 2005", The

Sloan ConsortiumSoares, Louis, "Post-traditional Learners and the Transformation of Postsecondary Education: A Manifesto for College

Leaders," American Council on EducationPusser, B., et al. (2007). Returning to learning: Adults’ success in college is key to America’s future. Lumina

Foundation for Education. Soares, L. (2011). Delivering innovation skills while wisely using public funds. Center for American Progress;

Osterman, P. (2008). College for all. Center for American Progress Levy, F., & Murnane, R.J. (2005). The new division of labor: How computers are creating the next job market.

Princeton University Press; and Alic, J.A. (2008, July). Technical knowledge and experiential learning: What people know and can do, Technology Analysis and Strategic Management, vol. 20, no. 4, 427–442.

Kiley, Kevin, "Nowhere to Turn." Inside in Higher Ed, retrieved from: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/01/17/moodys-report-calls-question-all-traditional-university-revenue-sources

converge 2014: the next generation - harms

Education

department of education

education statistics

higher education attainment

degreelevels of education

degreeattainment rates

high school diploma

idea of online education

formal education participation