Dive Brief:
- A new report issued by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation details the best takeaways for educators and administrators engaged in experiential learning programs, highlighting the need for more partnerships with employers.
- The report looked at ten institutional partnerships, examining how businesses and schools can partner for the benefit of students and found schools are most successful when they focus on students' return on investment, and integrating practical career-specific skills into the traditional curriculum to give them more tools for the workplace.
- Institutions should try to ensure that the experiences students undergo lead directly into career pathways, allowing for a seamless transition from school into the workplace. The report also found small companies may be more open to direct engagement with students than large ones.
Dive Insight:
As some state and federal governments are cutting back on public college and university funding, and administrators struggle with lower revenues, school leaders can work to emphasize programs and approaches that can be an easier sell to state legislatures. Career advancement programs which can be touted as delivering a likely return on investment for a state’s economy may make lawmakers more willing to fund such initiatives than when the economic benefits are more difficult to discern.
Engaging with businesses could help colleges and universities attract students who are wary of a four-year college but also may be hesitant of an alternative education or certification approach. The market is primed for such options; public confidence in higher education is declining, with 40% of Americans believing it is not necessary for a satisfying professional life. Additionally, 74% of students also increasingly have at least one trait that connotes a "nontraditional" student, and such students typically are returning to school in pursuit of marketable skills.
This could be a way forward for traditional liberal arts colleges and universities still determining the best way to advertise their value as venues for attaining marketable skills. Some schools are already invested in that transition: Bates College and Wellesley University, two renowned liberal arts institutions, are two of the case studies mentioned in the Chamber of Commerce’s report.