Hidden obstacles
What hidden obstacles have you encountered with your prospective students?
How do you overcome these obstacles?
Deborah, Excellent! Showcasing your value with a great attitude is always a good place to start. Well done!
Dr. Jean Norris
Our courses can be completed in months vs years, we have free on-site tutoring, we offer free refresher courses, and we have day and evening classes for convenience.
Deborah, So knowing that, what are some of the benefits and attributes of your institution to build value with the student?
Dr. Jean Norris
One is the community college, they can accept IEP diplomas but I don't know why. It may be something specific to private career schools that we cannot. BPSS also does not allow us to accept foreign high school diplomas.
Deborah, It's great that you offer them other options to help them achieve their goal. What is a point of difference between the other schools and your school?
Dr. Jean Norris
Some obstacles we are finding more and more is the IEP or foreign diploma. We cannot accept either of these and have to tell the prospective student they must take the GED or contact a company who will evaluate and convert their deiploma to a U.S diploma. They usually do not want to do the extra work or pay the money for this, so they find another school who will accept what they have so they can start school sooner. Any suggestions?
That sounds like a great approach Doug. I especially like that your are helping to ease the students' fears before they express that it may even be an issue, and that you let the professionally trained FA staff handle those conversations. What kind of feedback do you typically get when you ask the student what they learned from FA?
Definately the biggest hidden obstacle I have come across is paying for school. Many people think they can't afford school, do not understand FA and how it works, or just assume school is too much for them. I've found that if I let them know when they come in for their consultation, one of the people they will meet is our FA Director and she will "go over all the options available to you as a student to help you pay for school." I want them to understand there is more than one way to go to school, then let FA talk to them about options. I also ask what they learned from FA to see if they got it or need to go back for more info.
Those types of obstacles seem to come up more and more these days. How do you work with your students to overcome these obstacles?
Some hidden obstacles I have found are prior student loan debt that is in default. Background clearances that they have not disclosed. Working full time and will have to continue to work/doesn't fit with our school schedule.
Some of the hidden obstacles I have encounted is when the prospective student says he/she has a HS Diploma/GED, and once it is time to enroll they do not have a HS diploma or GED, that can be very frustrating especially when you are trying to help them change there lives, the thing we tell them it to go back to school and get there diploma/GED.
besides finances in which I would redirect them to financial aid in order to discuss all options I have also encountered Some students that do not have transportation to and from the school all the time. In this instance I would research the option of buses (provide bus route.schedules) and if the students lives in an area where no buses run then setting up a car pool with other students in that vicinity.
The obstacles I come across most have to do with Financial Aid. Many times its learnt that a student already has outstanding student loans they were unaware about or are not eligible for a number of reasons. This can be a real energy drainer for the prospective student. Eager and motivated to return to school, but with the idea that this is no longer possible.
During this time I find working to resolve the financial issue is possible, looking for another way to finance education,or creating a plan to overcome these issues and focus on a later start date.
Does anyone else face this issue and have suggestions?
Many times students will tell us that cost is their challenge because it's the "safest" challenge to discuss. One suggestion for dealing with the cost/tuition challenge is to ask the student, "is that what you expected?". Once the student gives you their answer, you'll have a clearer picture of what it is that they're thinking, you can then ask, "compared to what?", to get a better understanding of what they are comparing your school to.
Wonderful observations, Nanette. For many students there is a lot going on besides the challenges or issues they bring to light. Working to continually build trust with your student will help you to address these challenges as you see them.
It sounds like you do your best to provide a variety of resources for your students in regards to these specific challenges, Devin. I imagine that your students appreciate having options to choose from. It can also be helpful to talk to the students about what they've considered to address those same challenges. Not only does this get the student to start problem solving, it also gives you a clearer picture of what some additional resources may be available to them.
Financial aid, no money to fund remaining tuition, uncertain about the value of UG degree verses where they are in their career.
Many times, the hidden obstacle is an uncertainty about the future, whether it is finances, fear of failure, lack of support. It is important to uncover these and once trust and rapport have been established to ask the right questions that will help the individual see past their fears and into the possibilities of achieving this goal and what other opportunities may then arise.
I have encountered the following as top obstacles from my students:
* Tuition is too costly
* I really wanted to complete this in less than 4 years
Many times these are coupled together as well from an individual. So I just explain about CLEP and DANTE options and PLC. I break down the cost factor and time factor and compare. The key for me is also telling them I have a resource for them to purchase study materials and the cost for those. Once I explain that it seems to ease their fears. Many times I think my students don't want "one more thing to do." So providing them with the tools seems to help a lot.
