Working together
What is the most difficult obstacle to overcome in building an institutional culture which supports employment outcomes at every instance of the students tenure?
Doris,
Do you have any suggestions about how to reach the students to change their mindset?
Sheri Leach
The most difficult challenge we found is the transportation or geographical areas of our students or graduates not will to travel for employment opportunities. We also found students or graduates are not willing to take a lower paying job to be able to utilize their skills learned from school.
D. Hampton
Laura,
Great ideas! When people feel valued and important they don't mind helping. You already do this by recognizing your instructors. Keep this in mind when trying to implement new initiatives and when working with your students. Always remember that it is human nature to ask what's in it for me? If you can answer that up front for whomever you are talking to, you will have many people helping you and your students will respond to you!
Sheri Leach
Communication, is what I see as the most difficult obstacle. We have done a few things which has helped break down this barrier. The first is educate all the instructors on the importance of employment outcomes. We have a top ten list of students we don't know where they are working, that we send out weekly, to all staff and faculty. This way if someone hears something they will let us know. If an instructor finds a top ten student they get recognized in staff meeting and get a "reward" which is something small like a seasonal pencil or a gold star sticker. It seems silly but it gets them involved. We also have a bulletin board which announces when a graduate gets a job, that helps keep all students motivated and gives them ideas on where they too may be able to work.
Judi,
What a great program. Having instructors performing Career Services/employability tasks (looking for job opportunities, matching students to employers, prepping students for interviews and doing follow-up with students and employers) gives the instructors a greater understanding of all the things that are involved with placement assistance. It is not as easy as it looks! A big benefit is that instructors will share this experience in the classroom and will approach career services in a more positive and assertive way with their students. Have your instructors developed job leads as part of this new program?
Sheri Leach
This past year our placement was low and it was pointed out at the annual meeting that all instructors had to be involved in the placement of students and graduates. An individual instructor is assigned every day to work on the placement books. The clinical instructors are being asked to discuss jobs at the end of the clinical after they are debriefed their shift. This gives the instructor individual time and group time to discuss job opportunities and job's that the student might be interested in. I am providing all staff and students with the mosst updated job openings on Mondays. The focus has changed and all staff now realize they need to be involved and share their connections with the appropriate student or graduate.
April,
When all departments understand that the goal of the institution is to educate and train their their students for employment in their chosen field everyone benefits. Career services issues and employability skills (including soft skills) should be present throughout the students time on campus, not something that is only addressed at the end, like an after thought. Since faculty spend the most time with the student when they are on campus, they have the most influence on the student. That is why it is so important the instructors believe in their students and prepare them from day one on employability issues. Can you share how they relate to each other on your campus and some of the ways they work together for the benefit of the students?
Sheri Leach
It is difficult to speak on this topic as a new institution; however, I envision Ann's comments to be right on the mark! I believe that the divide between instructors and admissions staff likely lends to some counter-productivity within the institution.
At our institution we require that all department heads take ownership of a limited number of duties in the career services department so that all departments intuitively consider career readiness and concepts of employability. In this manner, a cohesive planning and oversight is automatically built-in and can be naturally executed.
The benefit to this model is that during our meetings, each department does not view career services independently, as they already 'know' how they are impacted (or how they impact) career services. Therefore, the focus and discussion of departmental objectives is no longer about how each department relates or contributes to career services, but how they relate to each other to ensure the 'ultra-alignment' of goals.
Jessica ,
I agree. A campus will not be as successful as possible until everyone works together. To create a total campus culture where everyone is focused on placement outcomes there are many things that can be done. To start with, when a new employee is hired on campus, they spend at least a half hour with the head of each department (Admissions, Education, Financial Aid, Business Office, Student Services, Career Services, Etc.) to learn about what that department does and how all departments can and should interact with each other.
Another best practice is to schedule regular meetings with the people that you need to work with to achieve the campus's goals. For instance, the person who handles the internships/externships so that you can work together to place students on sites that have a high probability of hiring them. Also, a regular meeting with the Campus Director/President keeps them informed, gains their support and gives you designated time to meet with them to discuss issues as they arise.
What has been successful for you in your experience?
Sheri Leach
I think this is the most important strategy an organization can take to see better placements rates. It is not soley the responsiblity of one of the departments to prepare students for their future careers. We are all working toward the same goal which is to see graduates succeed not only while they are in school, but to see them succeed in their careers in the long term. I would personally love to see a more collaborative and communicative approach throught the institution. What are some specific ways your institution has been able to acheive this?
Identifying that the culture of the organization needs to align with a focus that it is everyone’s responsibility regardless of the department is the first step in the right direction. I like the idea of tying performance metrics or rewards to everyone. This fosters a team relationship and interdependency for all staff. Imagine if an admissions representative had to sit down with someone from academics and career services to discuss incoming students like a surgical team does before surgery. Identifying barriers early as a team would only build upon student success but institution success.
Ann Marie,
There are some great resources/idea identified in the course which helps faculty tie learning outcomes to employment. Were there any in particular that you feel might work for your school?
Ann Cross
I would say 2 things are difficult and are seen as obstacles: having instructors teach professionalism and having admissions factor in employment outcomes when recruiting students. Instructors like to focus on technical skills and it is hard for them to see why professional skills are so important. As far as admissions department, they have to meet certain goals and numbers so sometimes certain things are compromised.
Simple answer: Employees who have the initiative and the desire to see that changes because they believe in it.
Jennifer
Jennifer,
What was the catalyst which caused the change?
Ann Cross
Our institution has improved in breaking down the silos and ensuring that we all are supportive of each functional unit goal. With Career Services and employment outcomes, Admissions is more educated on the trends of the industries, Academic Affairs has become a close partner in identifying internship/ externship sites that could lead to employment. We also conduct periodic initiatives where all personnel assist with finding potential employer partners with openings. At first, it was difficult to create this culture with employees focusing on their own specific goals, but once everyone saw how we can all support each other, it made the organization stronger.
