This session will be jointly delivered by King’s College London and Pearson, and will reflect on our experience of working together in partnership to deliver online education at scale. Participants will be encouraged to debate the advantages and disadvantages of working with a commercial provider, guided by our own experiences of the challenges we have faced. Participants will gain an insight into what online student support can look like, and will have an opportunity to discuss the applicability and feasibility of providing such personalised, proactive support to on-campus students. We will also discuss other areas of transformation, such as the challenge of changing academic perceptions of online learning and commercial partnerships, and the transformation of our business processes to meet the needs of a different model of delivering education.

1. And never the twain
shall meet……..
Tee Holden Head of Student Support
Services Pearson UK Higher Education
Partnerships
&
Duncan Smith Business Manager, King’s
Online.
April 2017 1
Presentation Title
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2. A reflection on the experience of King’s
College and Pearson working together in
partnership to deliver online education at
scale.
2

3. At the end of this session we
hope……….
• You will be able to understand the opportunities and
challenges of working with a commercial provider.
• You will be able to apply the lessons learned by King’s
and Pearson to their own transformation projects (e.g. in
student support).
• You will be able to understand how high quality
education can be delivered online.
3
Presentation Title
Image by Photographer's Name (Credit in black type) or
Image by Photographer's Name (Credit in white type)

4. Pearson Strategy…..
Transformation to support
the delivery of online learning

5. Partnering with Pearson assists the institution to
• Leverage global experience and best practices
• Achieve rapid growth in online distance learning
• Deliver excellence in learning and teaching, and a valuable student experience
• Achieve financial sustainability, through a prudent approach to risk and investment
Additional
Course Design and Development
Technical Infrastructure & Support
Instructor Training
Tuition Billing and Collection
5
Pearson Online Programme Management
Pearson is the leading provider of services to enable high-quality online learning at scale.
We offer long-term, strategic partnership to select institutions, and core OPM services
• Research & Consultancy
• Student Acquisition
• Student Support and Retention
• IT Systems & Support

6. Partnership
Manager
Marketing
Manager
Enrolment
Advisors
Senior Student
Advisor
Content
Developer
Technology
Marketing
Recruitment
Student
Support
Marketing
Finance
Dedicated Cross-functional Team
• Dedicated programme team
• Culturally aligned with
King’s
• Functionally transparent
• Invisible to King’s students
• In-sourced staff, based at
Pearson’s UK head office
Research
Manager

7. 7
Working in
Partnership
Institutional level regulations and policies
Institutional processes
Faculty processes
Programme
Services, processes and policies designed together to
support the online operation
Collaborative approach
We took the King’s College’s processes and assist in transforming for the online
operation.

8. Our Partnership
In September 2015, Pearson entered in to long term partnership with
King's College London to launch 10+ online distance learning
programmes, covering a range of disciplines and targeting both
domestic and international students
8
Speed to market
By leveraging Pearson's significant global resources it proved possible
- within just 4 months of contract signing - to develop and launch an
all-new Masters programme and enrol our first cohort of students.
International recruitment
Through an integrated student acquisition approach comprising
international digital marketing and best-in-class recruitment systems
and processes, Pearson are exceeding enrolment targets – with 41%
of students recruited from international markets
Scale
Over the course of the
10 year partnership it
is estimated that King's
and Pearson will
recruit 5000 students.

9. 9
What’s different?
We took the King’s College’s processes and assist in transforming for the online
operation. • One module every seven/eight weeks, but with
flexibility to take a break from studyPace of study
• Six entry points per yearAcademic calendar
• Average turnaround of approximately three days
from application to decision
Turnaround time for
offers
• Due to advance screening by partner
Higher offer and
acceptance rates
• Modular fee billing for studentsFinancial model
• Instructional Designers working with academics to
design modules
Pedagogy – programme
design and assessment

10. What’s the same?
10
• Same academic rigour as on-campus studyAcademic Standards
• All new programmes approved via the same
committee process as on-campusApprovals
• Some adaptations for online, but students
governed by the same College regulationsRegulations
• Online programmes have student representatives
and programme committeesStudent Engagement
• Students can access online resources and support
that are equal to our on-campus provision.Access to Resources

11. Challenges
11
Partnership presents a challenge to
traditional models.
Resistance to
change
CMA Competing
priorities
Ways of working
Information for students needs to be right
first time.
King’s in a period of transformation –
many ongoing projects requiring attention.
University – slow-paced!
Private sector – faster, (sometimes) more
agile.

12. Change in a traditional university
1.Resistance!
‒Academic – quality of education, threat to traditional model
‒Cultural – perception of commercial partner versus university goals, values
‒Professional Services – challenge to traditional processes
2.Collaboration
‒Working with a partner drives change
‒Requires senior support and buy-in
‒Change as a collaborative experience rather than an imposition
12

13. Timeline
13
Oct 14 Nov 14 Dec 14 Jan 15 Feb 15 Mar 15 Apr 15 May 15 Jun 15 July 15 Aug 15
Nov 14
Internal due diligence
May 15
Market Viability Study for
Psychology approved
Jun 15
Institutional Readiness
Assessment completed
July 15
Internal business case for
King’s Online approved
July 15
Market Viability Studies
for Law completed

14. 14
Sep 15
Managed Programmes
Agreement signed
Nov 15
MSc Psychology &
Neuroscience of Mental
Health approved and
launched to market
Jan 16
LLM International Corporate &
Commercial Law approved &
launched to market
Mar 16
MSc Psychology &
Neuroscience of Mental
Health launches for teaching
May 16
LLM International Corporate &
Commercial Law launches for
teaching
Oct 15 Nov 15 Dec 15 Jan 16 Feb 16 Mar 16 Apr 16 May 16 Jun 16 July 16 Aug 16Sep 15

15. 15
Nov 16
Term Sheets signed for MSc
Applied Neuroscience & LLM
International Financial &
Commercial Law
Feb 17
Term Sheet for MSc Public
Health signed
Mar 17
LLM International Financial &
Commercial Law launches
for teaching
Jun 17
MSc Applied Neuroscience
launches for teaching
Oct 16 Nov 16 Dec 16 Jan 17 Feb 17 Mar 17 Apr 17 May 17 Jun 17 July 17 Aug 17Sep 16

16. Roles & Responsibilities
16
• Training for teaching online
• Market analysis and research
for new programmes
• Student recruitment
• Student support and retention
• Web presence for King’s
Online managed
programmes
• Channel marketing strategy
Pearson
Education
Limited
• Administrative services for
admissions, finance and
programme administration
• Programme development and
curriculum
• Academic oversight
• Academic staffing
• Academic credit, degrees and
graduation
• Learning Management Platform
• System access
• Records management
• 24/7 IT helpdesk
King’s
College
London

17. Marketing Model
17
Online students…
• Are already committed to studying online
• Are primarily either lifelong learners or interested in progressing their careers
• Are international – our student cohorts are global
Our marketing model is…
• Digital – because this is where students are searching
• Oriented to social media
• Driven by brand compatibility – our core brand is our biggest selling point

18. Pearson’s experience
• A new operation built from the ground up based on Pearson Embanet US operation.
• Development of structures in marketing, recruitment and student support from a
standing start.
• Being fleet of foot to get programmes to market quickly
• Developing a scalable operation in a sustainable way to allow us to grow in
partnership
18

19. Pearson’s domestic and international
student acquisition network
Creating a virtuous insight circle to continuously improve and refine
our lead generation and conversion activities
Campaign
planning:
Market insight
Marketing
potential
Lead
generation:
Best performing
channels
Best performing
markets
Global teams UK Research UK Marketing UK Recruitment
Helps to improve and
refine messaging and
targeting
Informs future research and
improves understanding of
target markets and customer
segments
Marketing
planning:
Best practice
Historic data
HE insight
Informs global
best practice
Lead
conversion:
Best Performing Markets
Quality of leads
Decision making process

20. Our approach to student support
20
Objective
Creating a seamless student journey from enquiry through to graduation
• We offer a personalised service tailored to the programmes.
• We promote King's College culture and ethos and ensure online students have a
comparative experience to on campus students.
•
Delivery
Focussed team of experts working closely with colleagues within our partnership

21. How we support the student to study
21
Establish the
relationship
• Welcome Call
• Welcome Packs
• Welcome Webinar
Guidance through
processes Proactive support One Stop Shop
1 2 3 4
• Support to enrol
• Access VLE
• Breaks in Study
• Access to specialist Services
• Touchbase at the relevant
points.
• Reminders of key dates
• Support moving through
programme
• Monitor engagement
• By phone, skype, hangout 8 to
5.30pm
• Response to email within 24
hours 7 days per week.
• Never refer, but facilitate

22. Student Retention
22
Removing barriers, making it easy to focus on study.
Early
indications
and
actions
Identify
students at
most risk.
Apply
internvention
Coaching,
accessing
support,
tools and
planners
Guidance Monitoring and Intervention Risk system Tools & Support
Systems
and
process

23. Student feedback
23
Thank you for your
unending patience
Laura much
appreciated.
First of all I'd like to thank all
the people involved in the
organization of this
programme as I'm impressed
with the quality of the content
and the immediate attention
given to our questions.
I would like to thank you for
replying to my emails so
promptly, and thank you for
your detailed email on the
important dates and the
assignment reminder! I really
appreciate the great support I
have received from Student
Services.
Thank you for your
commitment to our learning
experience, I feel blessed to
have you as part of my
journey in studying here at
King's College! I am sure
your significant other would
agree with me on that!
I'm glad I got good
marks. Thank you so
much for all your
support. Couldn't have
been done without
your encouragement.
I really appreciate your help and
also Tee's help. It means a lot!
Both of you are brilliant at what you
do and make the students feel so
supported. I have had the pleasure
of talking to Tee on the phone a
couple of times a few months ago.
It's always a delight to speak with
either of you. We are so lucky to be
in such good hands. Thank you for
all you both do.
Again, thank you and
your team for all that
you do to make this
program possible and
to help me reach my
goals in the study of
mind.
I needed a laugh! Thanks. I think a
beer is called for all round. You
sound like you have the right
attitude for your job and that the
students, including me appreciate
your support - i.e. having a "real"
person at the other end of the
email.

24. What are the advantages and disadvantages of working
with a commercial partner ?
Catalyst for change
New models & innovation
Customer focused approach
Cultural differences
Time commitment
Cost

25. Have we met the objective?
• You will be able to understand the opportunities and
challenges of working with a commercial provider.
• You will be able to apply the lessons learned by King’s and
Pearson to their own transformation projects (e.g. in
student support).
• You will be able to understand how high quality education
can be delivered online.

26. Thank you for listening Questions
and Comments ?