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This article by Sara Galer originally appeared on UIndy 360.
Navigating the transition from education to a career has always posed challenges for graduates. With today’s employers focused on soft skills like collaboration and problem-solving, the demands of the modern workforce require new solutions.
The University of Indianapolis recently hosted an event, Pathways to Prosperity: Rethinking the Transition from Education to Career, to explore the new approach universities are taking to prepare students for successful careers.
Jeffrey J. Selingo, author of “There is Life After College.” Pathways to Prosperity: Rethinking the Transition from Education to Career held in Schwitzer on April 10, 2017. Photo by D. Todd Moore.
The event was co-hosted by the University of Indianapolis, Strada Education Network (formerly USA Funds) and author Jeffrey J. Selingo. A group of local, state and regional education leaders, business executives and policymakers joined the collaborative workshop to explore how schools and universities can better equip students to succeed.
Selingo, author of “There is Life After College” and “College (Un)bound,” compared the skills his young children learned in preschool to the modern workplace – and argued they’re more relevant today than ever. Curiosity, sharing and negotiating – all important in the preschool and kindergarten world – also are key to career success. But instead of focusing on those skills, Selingo said higher education is “like the workplace of old – very rigid, very task-based. A syllabus tells you what you need to do and when you need to do it.”
In contrast, Selingo said today’s workplace tends to be less structured. While the need for hard skills and a strong liberal arts background–like that offered at UIndy–is still very much sought after, companies need graduates who “have the soft skills to navigate the ambiguity in the workplace.”
The University of Indianapolis addresses that need for soft skills and real-life learning through its partnership with the Strada Education Network on the coLAB (formerly known as the Professional Edge Fellowship Program). CoLAB is designed to match full-time students with real paying jobs related to their field of study, and allows students to develop crucial skills like problem-solving, collaboration, leadership, communication and conflict resolution. It’s those soft skills that Selingo said make graduates good employees capable of helping businesses prosper.
“CoLAB has significantly assisted in our efforts to engage central Indiana employers and provide opportunities for our students,” said Corey Wilson, associate vice president of the Professional Edge Center. “The Professional Edge Center is excited about the broadening conversation relative the increasing talent pipeline for employers. To ensure that our students are ready for these opportunities, our office stresses the importance of the development of high-demand soft skills that will give students the one point advantage they need when they are being interviewed for a position.”
In addition to programs like coLAB, internships are an ideal way to develop time management and other valuable soft skills, Selingo said. The most successful graduates he found in his study of millennials were those who had done an internship during their academic career.
“Large organizations hire directly from their intern pool. They don’t trust that new graduates have the soft skills,” Selingo said.
Time management is another skill that today’s graduates may need to practice before entering the workforce. Selingo gave an example of Xerox, which took a survey of new employees and found that their number one learning goal was time management. “It was the first time in their lives they were asked to manage their own time and they didn’t necessarily know how to do it,” Selingo said.
Selingo argued that the educational system should allow students more time to explore their passions, which he hopes will lead to more fulfilling careers.
“Students need to leave college with more than just those pieces of paper,” he said.
Written by Sara Galer, Senior Communications Specialist, University of Indianapolis. Contact newsdesk@UIndy.edu with your campus news.
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The letter was delivered in response to the department’s request for information regarding the disclosure of confidential wage records under the department’s regulations governing the confidentiality and disclosure of state unemployment compensation data. Strada also included specific recommendations for regulatory amendments.
Report indicates both success and need for improvement in meeting students’ varied goals
A new and improved Free Application for Federal Student Aid expected late this year should provide opportunities for more students and their families to access money to pay for college. Yet the transition to this new form presents unprecedented challenges for those who work to help students complete it.
According to new Strada Education Foundation research, community college attendees who complete an associate degree or successfully transfer to a four-year institution value their education at rates comparable to or higher than recent bachelor’s degree completers. However, researchers found first-generation students rated the value of their community college education about 20 percentage points lower than those who are not first-generation students.
Eloy Ortiz Oakley, president and CEO of College Futures Foundation and former chancellor of the California Community Colleges, will join a Strada Education Foundation webinar Sept. 7, when he and other panelists will explore Strada’s latest report, “The Value of Community Colleges: Recent Students' Motivations and Outcomes,” which captures several factors that motivated recent alumni to enroll in community college.
Major changes in the form, combined with an expected delay in its release, are combining to intensify the work of spreading the word about the updated FAFSA.
This article by Madeline St. Amour originally appeared in Inside Higher Ed.
Virginia’s largest community college and a prominent public research university have co-partnered with an educational management and student support service provider to improve academic outcomes for transfer students.
Edtech integration can cause headaches if technology solutions aren't "getting along"--but a new free tool could help alleviate that pain
New building will house over 500 employees
DXtera Institute, a nonprofit consortium of higher ed institutions, ed tech companies and other postsecondary education professionals, has released a free Next Generation Integration Scorecard (NGIS) aimed at improving technology integration in higher education.
Massachusetts will be the recipient of financial and technical help to build “data-driven approaches” to linking residents to jobs in growing industries, thanks to a partnership between the National Governors Association and the Strada Education Network.
This article by Carol D’Amico originally appeared on RealClear Education.
This article by Jeffrey J. Selingo originally appeared on the Washington Post.
The letter alerting Cal State Northridge students that they were being put on academic probation was pretty blunt and scary: shape up or risk getting kicked out.
Michigan State University has long worked with and competed against other colleges and universities in the United States.
One of the students leaving today on “Roadtrip Indiana” says she expects an “awakening” of what Indiana is about. Purdue University senior Shannon Newerth is joining two other Indiana students on a two-week RV trip throughout the state to take part in career exploration and work-based learning opportunities. The trip, organized in part by the Indiana Commission for Higher Education and several private partners, will be the subject of an upcoming public television documentary.
As a lifelong baseball fan, former high school baseball player, and coach for 20 years, I have always been struck by how deeply intertwined baseball and learning really are. An education advocate for most of my career, I have seen firsthand how a passion for sports can shift mindsets and create sustainable pathways to college, meaningful careers, and inspired lives.
More than half of adults in the U.S. would change at least one aspect of their higher education experience, according to a new survey from Gallup and the Strada Education Network. Common regrets were choice of institution and major or field of study. Comparatively, relatively few regretted their degree type.
A majority of Americans who attended college say they received a quality education. But half would change at least one of these three decisions if they could do it all over again: the type of degree they pursued or their choice of major or institution.
CLEVELAND, Ohio – Half of college graduates regret their choice of school or major, according to a national survey.
Approximately half of all U.S. adults who pursued or completed a postsecondary degree would change at least one aspect of their education experience if they could do it all over again, including their major or field of study, the institution they attended, or the type of degree they obtained.
Regrets, I’ve had a few…and so have most Americans — at least when it comes to decisions they’ve made regarding their education. A new Gallup poll out today finds that 51 percent of Americans would change at least one of their education decisions if they had to do it all over again. Thirty-six percent said they’d choose a different major, 28 percent would attend a different school and 12 percent would pursue a different type of degree, according to the poll.
On May 2, the Senate Career and Technical Education Caucus in conjunction with the Alliance for Excellent Education hosted “College and Career Pathways: Stories of Innovation.” The Alliance is a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy organization focusing on high school redesign for underrepresented students. The briefing revolved around “highlighting innovative approaches across the country to college and career pathways that have led to positive outcomes for traditionally underserved students.”
Data analytics has proven to be a powerful tool in a number of industries, and in higher ed, it has significant potential to help institutions streamline operations and improve experiences for students. But in using that data, colleges and universities must also be careful to also consider the underlying causes behind some of those numbers.
This is important news for admissions officers, who may feel that low-income students pose more of a risk at a four-year college or university. These students are just as capable of thriving as those from more affluent households, but institutions and policymakers must also consider that they may need more resources.
In a Monday morning session at the ASU+GSV Summit in Salt Lake City, a panel of thought leaders discussed how to expand access and success, particularly among low-income, first-generation and underrepresented student populations.
INDIANAPOLIS — Higher Education Commissioner Teresa Lubbers recently announced a new initiative, “Roadtrip Indiana,” that aims to help Hoosier students make more informed decisions about their futures through intentional career exploration and direct engagement with employers across the state.