Why should Higher Education transform the way it prepares students for careers? This presentation gives four reasons: Student expectations; employer needs; government intervention, and Higher Ed imperatives.

1. 4 Reasons to Rethink
College to Career
by Sheila Curran
President & Chief Strategy Consultant
Curran Consulting Group
© Curran Consulting Group. All rights reserved.
4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career

2. The 4 Reasons
Students
Employers
Government
Higher Ed
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4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career

3. Students
(Expectations)
Students
Do colleges and universities meet student
expectations for career preparation?
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4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career

4. Students want College to Lead to
Better Jobs
90.00%
85.00%
2012:
87.9%
incoming
freshmen
go
to
College
to
get
a
be=er
job
80.00%
75.00%
70.00%
65.00%
60.00%
55.00%
1976:
67.8%
incoming
freshmen
go
to
College
to
get
a
be=er
job
50.00%
1
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2
4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career
Students

5. Students
Students Face a Poor Job Market
Unemployment
%
of
College
Graduates
Aged
20-­‐24
Yearly
Averages:
2008
-­‐
2013
9.5
9
8.5
8
7.5
7
6.5
6
5.5
5
2008
2009
2010
2011
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Table Ten, Unpublished
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4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career
2012
2013

6. Students
Reality for New Grads
• The job market for new, young grads
has been tough for five years and shows
no sign of imminent improvement
• Approximately 37% of new grads are
believed to be mal-employed—
employed in part-time positions or
positions not requiring a college degree
• For significant numbers of students, the
path from college to career is unclear
• Many students start the job search too
late and do not see value in their
college’s career services
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4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career

7. Employers
(Disappointment)
Employers
Are students prepared for the work world?
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4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career

8. Students are Unprepared
for Job Search
Employers
“ Thirty one percent of
employers indicated that
recent graduates are
unprepared or very
unprepared for their job
search”
Source: The Role of Higher Education in Career Development: Employer Perceptions, The Chronicle of Higher Education and
American Public Media’s Marketplace, December 2012
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4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career

9. Students Can’t Do the Job
Employers
Only 16% of hiring decision makers say college grad applicants are “very
prepared” with the knowledge and skills they would need to do the job.
Source: The Role of Higher Education in Career Development: Employer Perceptions, The Chronicle of Higher Education and
American Public Media’s Marketplace, December 2012
© Curran Consulting Group. All rights reserved.
4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career

10. Government
Government
• Are students getting value for money from
Higher Education?
• How can Higher Education be more
transparent?
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4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career

11. Government Scrutiny
Government
• In 2001, annual tuition was 23%
of household income; in 2013, it
was 38%
• Average student loan debt in
2012 was 29.4K
• More than one in 7 borrowers
with federal student loans went
into default within 3 years of
graduation
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4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career

12. Government Action
Government
• Gainful Employment Initiatives
• The College ScoreCard
• President Obama’s planned
College Rating System
How many colleges and universities have sufficient data to prove the value of
their education and outcomes to students, parents and the government?
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4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career

13. Higher Ed
(Under Pressure)
Higher Ed
• Career outcomes affect matriculation, alumni
engagement and fundraising
• Good career outcomes may impact reputation
and even survival
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4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career

14. Higher Ed
Higher Ed Gives Itself an A
97% of college and university
presidents believe it is somewhat or
very important that graduates are
able to get a good job.
96% of chief academic officers
believe their institution is either
somewhat effective or very effective
in preparing students for the world
of work
Higher Ed’s self perception is very different from the perception of graduates and employers:
DOING NOTHING ABOUT ENHANCING CAREER OUTCOMES IS NOT AN OPTION
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4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career

15. 4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career
Students
Employers
Increasingly want College
to lead to better jobs, but
many colleges are illequipped to help them
Believe new graduates are
neither prepared for the job
search nor the jobs they
want
Higher Ed
Government
Seeks greater accountability
and transparency on career
outcomes from Higher Ed
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Will face increased scrutiny
and regulation if it does not
act to enhance career
outcomes
4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career

16. Higher Ed
Higher Ed Needs a Plan to Rethink Careers
• DO A STRATEGIC OPPORTUNITY ASSESSMENT
• MAKE CAREERS an INSTITUTIONAL RESPONSIBILITY AND PRIORITY
• DEFINE & IMPLEMENT QUICK WINS AND A LONG-TERM STRATEGY
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4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career

17. NEXT
STEPS
Imagine a Better Future for Your Graduates:
Transform Careers on Your Campus
Contact:
Sheila Curran, CEO and Chief Strategy Consultant
Curran Consulting Group
CurranonCareers.com
© Curran Consulting Group. All rights reserved.
4 Reasons to Rethink College to Career