As professionals we should always network. Whether we are on or off the clock our business card is a very effective tool. Recently at a Job Fair, I was able to build relationships with several organizations in the community who never heard of our school but has resources for our students such as: bus passes, food shelter allowances for those who qualify and some even give a monthly stipend for school as long as the student is actively seeking employment. This did not cost any money but provided substantial resources to our students simply through networking.
Jeanette,
You are right - alumni impact so many areas of the school. They can refer friends, family, and co workers and therefore increase enrollment. They can help students and instructors in class and increase retention. They can tell you about job openings and new training needed. MaxK offers a course on developing return on investment from Alumni. Thanks, Susan
Dr. Susan Schulz
Reaching out to previous graduates is always a great way to mentor and assist the current student body. Alumni's can serve as speakers and advise the current student body.
Current student body can also be incorporated to facilitate student services. They can create a student goverment and promote student events.
Stephanie ,
Good idea to learn from both the successes and challenges of others. Then make improvements.Many school owners are discovering the benefits of active alumni. Alumni are usually are happy to assist the school in all areas of operations starting with admissions. Just make the alumni feel valued and needed and provide lots of rewards and recognitions. MaxKnowledge has a course on Alumni Community development. Thanks, Susan
Dr. Susan Schulz
Stephanie ,
Good idea for in-person interview - especially for massage therapy. We have found it is essential that prospective students understand the program - how challenging A & P might be, that they are working on their fellow students, that there are levels of undress. And we feel it is a must that prospective students have a massage. Surprisingly many haven't. To head off wrong information being given, you might want to consider a book of do's and don'ts and musts and must nots. Thanks, Susan
Dr. Susan Schulz
I have just the opposite problem however! Here at the college, we have lots of people involved every step of the way. The downside to this is that a student may not get the correct information about the massage program unless the other contacts send them to me for advising. I make sure I speak to everyone of my incoming students and that the students understands our program requirements, enollment requirements, and costs. Many want to do it on the phone or by email and I will only advise in person!!
I would attempt to collaborate with another massage school or community college if my school did not have the resources to handle this. There might be a way to hire a consultant or someone who had experience in these areas.
Understanding how others manage this area of their massage school would be helpful. I believe networking is one of the best ways to learn new things and to discover what others have overcome or used to make a situation work.
Jan,
Sounds like a challenge with only two people who are probably doing a few full time job tasks. This is where am Alumni community might be very beneficial. If you engage and involve Alumni they can assist with resume reviews, interviews, confidence building, and lots more. Alumni can handle a lot of responsibilities that overworked staff now have. Placement and employment skills training really isn't an option. Students MUST be prepared to gain employment. Thanks, Susan
Dr. Susan Schulz
We have a very small school and have no dedicated staff member to student services. We have 2 people who work with students on resumes and interviewing skills. We have recently set up an area with a student computer so our students can work on their resumes and complete online applications. I was reading some of the replies and am very interested in the "career corner" that was mentioned that has pre-loaded programs to help the students in various areas. That is an area I am going to explore. Our students are almost all male and other services we offer are referrals to clinics, bus routes, day care, etc.
MIRIAM,
You make a good point. What if you have limited personnel because of budget limitations? The goal is to get everyone working towards the same goals. And motivate your staff to perform multiple tasks and become cross trained. If all personnel are excited and motivated they will be able to see that their efforts can yield great results. Thanks, Susan
Dr. Susan Schulz
We have to understand when the institution work with limited operating resource like a personnel, is possible affect the student services. But when group work as a teamwork the result was better. Is important create a strategic to obtain the business goals.
Janet,
Great to keep student satisfaction as the main goal. Can't go wrong with that. Also cross training is an excellent idea as well. That means everyone can fill in when needed and also appreciate the challenges of the other person's job. Team work is always a great benchmark. Many schools find that Alumni are a great source of free talent. Ask them to assist with enrollment, in the classroom, with students, and coach grads so they can enter the workplace successfully. Great ideas. Thanks, Susan
Dr. Susan Schulz
Some creatvie things that I have done is to ensure that we all have the same goal in mind...the student and their success....so we have crossed trained and joined departments together for added support. For example, Student Services and Education so that there is a joined effort on the success of students. Because our Student Services department is so small and the resources are limited (financially and human) by adding the support of more people in the Education department, and getting them trained on how to better support the students, there is now a higher degree of Student Services available to the student population.
By instilling a teamwork attitude on the campus and concentrating on the student, we are able to meet the needs of the students better and more effectively.
Sounds great. There is also lots of information to make decisions. We all have to remember to use it! Thanks, Susan
Yes, each representative report on their interaction and findings. If it would benefit the school changes are made and surveys are sent to students specifically to determine how the school is progressing.
Sounds like a good plan. Does each Student Service representative report on their interaction and findings. Are any changes made as a result of these updates and any metrics derived? Thanks, Susan
Since our school operates under a highly distributed business model and students are located throughout the United States, we seek to assign a Point of Contact (POC) to serve as a liaison for each cohort. This provides the school as well as a cohort a way of communicating with the students. In addition, Student Services representatives are always ready and available to assist the students.
That is what we currently do. We have begun cross-training across many of the department lines.
Maybe an effective approach is to have everyone on staff engaged in the career services and employment training process. It's amazing that many school personnel have no clue about the role of career services. And everyone needs to be promoting it. Susan
We already made some changes that do require the completion of interactive projects by our students. We also made changes to the personnel that deliver the message. In the past, faculty delivered the Student and Career Sevices messages. Now representatives from their associated departments make the delivery. So far, so good!
