Cathy,
Great point! Our staff, and our students will sometimes tune us out or not take our comments seriously. This is because we often become "Mom or Dad". So bringing in employers and past grads to speak to instructors and students is an ideal way to get a point across. It is my belief that it doesn't matter who the student learns from, as long as they learn and feel inspired and confident.
Sheri Leach
I think one of the things that really speaks to all departments is feedback from employers that participate on our Professional Advisory Committee (PAC). Since they are external to our organization and work or have worked with our graduates their feedback holds a bit more weight than an internal staff person reporting about the job market and employment rates/trends.
I would recommend the formation of a PAC to any organization.
Cathy,
I commend you and your organization for coming together to discuss and address issues affecting your employment rates. It is only when placement becomes a campus wide culture will an institution and their graduates be truly successful. Do you have any advice for those struggling to involve all campus departments on how to encourage and win their participation and support?
Sheri Leach
Our Management Team, consisting of department managers of Admissions, Student Services, Education, Financial Aid, and Career Services, has consistent opportunities to review and discuss employment rates and feedback from employers about our graduates and their performance. This analysis and dialogue provides an opportunity for all the departments to make any necessary changes/adjustments in an effort to address and remove barriers within that may be contributing to a less than maximal employment rate. For instance, employers may indicate to us that they have noticed a trend in which our graduates are displaying a particular weakness in a skill set that is desired for those jobs. We, as an institution, then look at different possibilities which may help to minimize or erase that weakness (i.e., adjusting curriculum, providing more support through Student Services to students who are struggling with particular skills, etc.)
