The Chronicle of Higher Education: For-Profit Colleges’ Winter Meeting Focuses on Employment
In the winter months of years past, the Association of Private Sector Colleges and Universities has held swanky meetings at resort destinations like Lake Tahoe or Beaver Creek, Colo., and its annual symposium in Washington was more inwardly focused. As policy makers and the public began to scrutinize the debt, default rates, and poor employment prospects of students coming out of some prominent colleges in the for-profit sector, however, the setting and the tone of the meetings didn’t play well in some news outlets.
The meetings have been “sort of half investor conference and half cheerleading,” with the cheers led by politicians aligned with the for-profit education industry, said Trace A. Urdan, a managing director at Wells Fargo Securities who follows the education sector. This year, he added, “it sounds like maybe they wanted to get into a little more substance.”
For this winter’s symposium, starting on Monday in Washington, the association holds its inaugural “State of the Workforce Symposium,” focused on employment trends, the “skills gap,” and how colleges (and not just for-profit ones) can prepare the work force. Speakers include economists from George Washington University and the RAND Corporation, a former president of the Service Employees International Union, advocates for veterans, chief executive officers from employers like Siemens, and representatives of nonprofit education associations. The theme is likely to return for years to come.
“This is really the next chapter in the evolution in what APSCU should be doing as a voice and vision for the sector that we serve and represent,” said Steve Gunderson, a former Republican congressman who became the association’s president and chief executive last year. “The absolute message is that postsecondary education should lead to employment in [students'] field of study, with a skill that is productive for both the employee and the employer. What all of us in higher education need to do is see us as part of the employment chain.”
Observers say it is a sensible shift in focus, and savvy on a number of levels. Stock prices among the big-name colleges have flagged in recent years, and the sector appears to be facing renewed pressure with revisions to the Education Department’s “gainful employment” rule, which may be imposed in more stringent form. (The concluding session at the symposium will be a briefing about the rule, closed to outsiders, Tuesday afternoon.) Vocational training is one area where the public looks at for-profit colleges more favorably, and it’s a business that nonprofits want to horn in on.
So if the industry is going to address concerns publicly, those observers say, a good place to do it is in Washington—with an audience. The symposium features a special three-for-one registration deal, but the association tells registrants that, “instead of members from your organization, we ask you to bring employer partners, work-force professionals in your industry, state or local policy makers.”
Mr. Gunderson said the association had never tried that tactic before. Partnerships with industry—tailoring programs to specific needs outlined by employers—needs to be the trend for the future. “We cannot and should not just say, ‘OK, you pursue whatever kind of course you want, and good luck in the job world,’” he said. “That day is sort of gone for everyone in higher ed.”
But in Washington, said Mr. Urdan, the symposium may also be a way to “collect stories and fans” that speak to the industry’s ability to train a certain segment of the work force in selected skills. To have local employers and local officials standing with the for-profit colleges just blocks from the U.S. Capitol—that could send a message to Washington policy makers. “Politics is all about the anecdote,” he said. Among politicians who are sympathetic with for-profit colleges, “what the politicians always complain about is that they are not sufficiently armed by the industry with positive examples.”
The industry is trying to tie itself to vocation, rather than compare itself to traditional institutions. “They are not trying to hide under Harvard’s skirts anymore,” Mr. Urdan said. “They are saying that we are all about employment, and we do a good job of it, and we are investing resources in doing a better job of it.”
Kevin Kinser, an associate professor of education at the State University of New York at Albany who studies the for-profit industry and blogs regularly for The Chronicle, said the focus on work-force education may be a way of “localizing” the debate about graduation rates and value of the industry.
“What has happened to the for-profits is that the question of value has been nationalized, so people look at these large data sets and see how poorly the for-profits in the aggregate, across states, are performing,” he said. But at the local level, there are a number of institutions that do a good job—”and in fact are almost models of success and access for low-income populations,” he said.
The symposium’s emphasis on ties between employer and college “might be a way to recapture that local connection that many for-profits had in the past, trying to re-establish the local benefits to the local economy that for-profits can provide,” he said.
Jobs, in fact, are intimately tied to the fate of the for-profit sector. Mr. Urdan pointed out that last week’s unemployment report, which showed the unemployment rate dropping to a five-year low, echoed a more positive message he has heard from for-profit colleges. While enrollment at some online colleges, like the University of Phoenix, is “still in freefall,” among more vocationally oriented colleges “the declines have leveled off.”
For example, Universal Technical Institute, a for-profit institution specializing in automotive and mechanic training, reported that its graduates were having more success in the job market. “They are seeing all the manufacturers that were running away from them during the recessions coming back,” Mr. Urdan said.
The problem is that this hasn’t quite shown up in enrollments yet, he said. The “show rate” is down—students are signing up but bailing out before classes start.
“They get cold feet around the money,” Mr. Urdan said. “Students remain apprehensive about whether going to school is a good investment and whether there is going to be a job at the other end of the program.” As an investment, he said, the for-profit industry won’t turn around until that trend turns.
APSCU Press Release: Private Sector Colleges and Universities are a key driver in student workplace readiness
IP-Intensive Industries Skill Sets Are Focus of New Report
Washington, DC, December 5, 2013–Private sector institutions were responsible for awarding 23 percent of all the degrees and certifications required to earn jobs in IP-intensive industries in 2012. Three-quarters of these jobs are in STEM fields: technologists, technicians, and production workers that support scientists, engineers, and managers who research, develop, and manufacture innovative products and services. This data is in a new report released today by the Association of Private Sector Colleges and Universities (APSCU).
The report is authored by Nam D. Pham, Ph.D. Partner, ndp/analytics who will present its findings at the APSCU Inaugural Workforce Symposium on December 9-10 in Washington, DC, where stakeholders from business, government, academia and NGO’s will convene to address the skills gap in America’s future workforce.
The U.S. currently accounts for more than one-third of global research and development (R&D), most of which is contributed by private companies. In 2011, private R&D contributed to more than 1.4 million STEM related jobs. Empirical studies have shown that innovation — the process of turning an idea into a final product or service — is a key driver of economic expansion in both developed and developing countries, accounting for 80 percent of U.S. economic growth.
Other key findings in the report documents trends in enrollment at PSCU, such as:
The number of institutions, student enrollment, and degrees conferred by private sector schools has grown exponentially over the past decades in response to higher demand for the skills needed to enter the 21st century labor market or career advancement. About 13 percent of postsecondary enrollment is in private sector schools, which in 2012 conferred 32.5 percent of all postsecondary credentials and associate’s degrees, 7.4 percent of all bachelor’s degrees, and 9.5 percent of master’s or other advanced degrees.
Evidence shows a highly positive correlation between education, employment and earnings. In 2012, when the national unemployment rate reached a high of 8.1 percent, the unemployment rates for those without a high school diploma and those with one were 12.4 percent and 8.3 percent, respectively.
For those with some college and an associate’s degree, the unemployment rates were 7.7 percent and 6.2 percent, respectively. The unemployment rates were lower for those people who had earned a bachelor’s degree (4.5 percent), a master’s degree (3.5 percent), and a doctor’s degree (2.5 percent).
The full report can be found on the APSCU website.
APSCU’s Workforce Symposium will take place at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill, December 9-10, 2013.
Symposium speakers include:
Eric Spiegel, President and CEO, Siemens Corporation
The Honorable John Kline (R-MN), Chairman, House Education and Workforce Committee
The Honorable Rob Andrews (D-NJ), House Education and Workforce Committee
Andy Stern, President Emeritus, Service Employees International Union
Matthew Sigelman, President and CEO, Burning Glass Technologies
For more information or to register to attend, visit: www.apscu.org/workforce
Washington, DC, December 5, 2013–Private sector institutions were responsible for awarding 23 percent of all the degrees and certifications required to earn jobs in IP-intensive industries in 2012. Three-quarters of these jobs are in STEM fields: technologists, technicians, and production workers that support scientists, engineers, and managers who research, develop, and manufacture innovative products and services. This data is in a new report released today by the Association of Private Sector Colleges and Universities (APSCU).
The report is authored by Nam D. Pham, Ph.D. Partner, ndp/analytics who will present its findings at the APSCU Inaugural Workforce Symposium on December 9-10 in Washington, DC, where stakeholders from business, government, academia and NGO’s will convene to address the skills gap in America’s future workforce.
The U.S. currently accounts for more than one-third of global research and development (R&D), most of which is contributed by private companies. In 2011, private R&D contributed to more than 1.4 million STEM related jobs. Empirical studies have shown that innovation — the process of turning an idea into a final product or service — is a key driver of economic expansion in both developed and developing countries, accounting for 80 percent of U.S. economic growth.
Other key findings in the report documents trends in enrollment at PSCU, such as:
The number of institutions, student enrollment, and degrees conferred by private sector schools has grown exponentially over the past decades in response to higher demand for the skills needed to enter the 21st century labor market or career advancement. About 13 percent of postsecondary enrollment is in private sector schools, which in 2012 conferred 32.5 percent of all postsecondary credentials and associate’s degrees, 7.4 percent of all bachelor’s degrees, and 9.5 percent of master’s or other advanced degrees.
Evidence shows a highly positive correlation between education, employment and earnings. In 2012, when the national unemployment rate reached a high of 8.1 percent, the unemployment rates for those without a high school diploma and those with one were 12.4 percent and 8.3 percent, respectively.
For those with some college and an associate’s degree, the unemployment rates were 7.7 percent and 6.2 percent, respectively. The unemployment rates were lower for those people who had earned a bachelor’s degree (4.5 percent), a master’s degree (3.5 percent), and a doctor’s degree (2.5 percent).
The full report can be found on the APSCU website.
APSCU’s Workforce Symposium will take place at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill, December 9-10, 2013.
Symposium speakers include:
Eric Spiegel, President and CEO, Siemens Corporation
The Honorable John Kline (R-MN), Chairman, House Education and Workforce Committee
The Honorable Rob Andrews (D-NJ), House Education and Workforce Committee
Andy Stern, President Emeritus, Service Employees International Union
Matthew Sigelman, President and CEO, Burning Glass Technologies
For more information or to register to attend, visit: www.apscu.org/workforce
U.S. News 10 Universities With the Largest Undergraduate Populations& World Report:
December 3, 2013 RSS Feed Print
By Delece Smith-Barrow
Each of these schools had more than 37,000 undergraduate students.
The U.S. News Short List, separate from our overall rankings, is a regular series that magnifies individual data points in hopes of providing students and parents a way to find which undergraduate or graduate programs excel or have room to grow in specific areas. Be sure to explore The Short List: College and The Short List: Grad School to find data that matters to you in your college or grad school search.
Going to college may be increasingly expensive, but the cost hasn't deterred thousands of students from enrolling. Between 1992 and 1998, undergraduate enrollment was stable, but it increased by 37 percent between 2000 and 2010, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.
Universities with a large undergraduate enrollment usually offer hundreds of clubs, intramural sports and other activities to keep students engaged. Arizona State University, for example, has 850 registered student clubs for the 59,382 undergraduates enrolled in fall 2012, according to the results of a spring 2013 survey by U.S. News. The school had the largest undergraduate enrollment for a traditional brick-and-mortar school, according to data submitted to U.S. News by 1,248 ranked schools.
[Use these strategies when applying to college with bad grades.]
Other schools with large undergraduate enrollment include University of Central Florida with 50,968 students, Ohio State University—Columbus with 43,058 students and Texas A&M University—College Station, which had 40,103 undergrads.
DeVry University, a for-profit school, had the largest undergraduate enrollment overall with 59,484 students.
Of the 10 schools with the most undergrads, the average number of enrolled students was 45,320. Among all 1,248 schools that submitted data to U.S. News, the average was 6,218.
[Avoid these big college application mistakes.]
Eight of the 10 schools are categorized as National Universities, which means they offer a range of undergraduate and graduate degrees and are committing to doing groundbreaking research.
College of St. Joseph in Vermont had the fewest undergraduates in fall 2012, with just 179 students.
Below is a list of the 10 universities with the highest undergraduate enrollment. Unranked schools, which did not meet certain criteria required by U.S. News to be numerically ranked, were not considered for this report.
School name (state) Fall 2012 undergraduate student enrollment U.S. News rank and category
DeVry University (IL) 59,484 RNP*, Regional Universities (Midwest)
Arizona State University 59,382 142, National Universities
University of Central Florida 50,968 170, National Universities
Liberty University (VA) 46,133 89, Regional Universities (South)
Ohio State University—Columbus 43,058 52, National Universities
Texas A&M University—College Station 40,103 69, National Universities
University of Texas—Austin 39,955 52, National Universities
Pennsylvania State University—University Park 39,192 37, National Universities
Florida International University 37,468 RNP, National Universities
Michigan State University 37,454 73, National Universities
*RNP denotes an institution that is ranked in the bottom one-fourth of its ranking category. U.S. News calculates a rank for the school but has decided not to publish it.
Don't see your school in the top 10? Access the U.S. News College Compass to find undergraduate enrollment data, complete rankings and much more. School officials can access historical data and rankings, including of peer institutions, via U.S. News Academic Insights.
U.S. News surveyed nearly 1,800 colleges and universities for our 2013 survey of undergraduate programs. Schools self-reported a myriad of data regarding their academic programs and the makeup of their student body, among other areas, making U.S. News's data the most accurate and detailed collection of college facts and figures of its kind. While U.S. News uses much of this survey data to rank schools for our annual Best Colleges rankings, the data can also be useful when examined on a smaller scale. U.S. News will now produce lists of data, separate from the overall rankings, meant to provide students and parents a means to find which schools excel, or have room to grow, in specific areas that are important to them. While the data come from the schools themselves, these lists are not related to, and have no influence over, U.S. News's rankings of Best Colleges or Best Graduate Schools. The undergraduate enrollment data above are correct as of Dec. 3, 2013.
By Delece Smith-Barrow
Each of these schools had more than 37,000 undergraduate students.
The U.S. News Short List, separate from our overall rankings, is a regular series that magnifies individual data points in hopes of providing students and parents a way to find which undergraduate or graduate programs excel or have room to grow in specific areas. Be sure to explore The Short List: College and The Short List: Grad School to find data that matters to you in your college or grad school search.
Going to college may be increasingly expensive, but the cost hasn't deterred thousands of students from enrolling. Between 1992 and 1998, undergraduate enrollment was stable, but it increased by 37 percent between 2000 and 2010, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.
Universities with a large undergraduate enrollment usually offer hundreds of clubs, intramural sports and other activities to keep students engaged. Arizona State University, for example, has 850 registered student clubs for the 59,382 undergraduates enrolled in fall 2012, according to the results of a spring 2013 survey by U.S. News. The school had the largest undergraduate enrollment for a traditional brick-and-mortar school, according to data submitted to U.S. News by 1,248 ranked schools.
[Use these strategies when applying to college with bad grades.]
Other schools with large undergraduate enrollment include University of Central Florida with 50,968 students, Ohio State University—Columbus with 43,058 students and Texas A&M University—College Station, which had 40,103 undergrads.
DeVry University, a for-profit school, had the largest undergraduate enrollment overall with 59,484 students.
Of the 10 schools with the most undergrads, the average number of enrolled students was 45,320. Among all 1,248 schools that submitted data to U.S. News, the average was 6,218.
[Avoid these big college application mistakes.]
Eight of the 10 schools are categorized as National Universities, which means they offer a range of undergraduate and graduate degrees and are committing to doing groundbreaking research.
College of St. Joseph in Vermont had the fewest undergraduates in fall 2012, with just 179 students.
Below is a list of the 10 universities with the highest undergraduate enrollment. Unranked schools, which did not meet certain criteria required by U.S. News to be numerically ranked, were not considered for this report.
School name (state) Fall 2012 undergraduate student enrollment U.S. News rank and category
DeVry University (IL) 59,484 RNP*, Regional Universities (Midwest)
Arizona State University 59,382 142, National Universities
University of Central Florida 50,968 170, National Universities
Liberty University (VA) 46,133 89, Regional Universities (South)
Ohio State University—Columbus 43,058 52, National Universities
Texas A&M University—College Station 40,103 69, National Universities
University of Texas—Austin 39,955 52, National Universities
Pennsylvania State University—University Park 39,192 37, National Universities
Florida International University 37,468 RNP, National Universities
Michigan State University 37,454 73, National Universities
*RNP denotes an institution that is ranked in the bottom one-fourth of its ranking category. U.S. News calculates a rank for the school but has decided not to publish it.
Don't see your school in the top 10? Access the U.S. News College Compass to find undergraduate enrollment data, complete rankings and much more. School officials can access historical data and rankings, including of peer institutions, via U.S. News Academic Insights.
U.S. News surveyed nearly 1,800 colleges and universities for our 2013 survey of undergraduate programs. Schools self-reported a myriad of data regarding their academic programs and the makeup of their student body, among other areas, making U.S. News's data the most accurate and detailed collection of college facts and figures of its kind. While U.S. News uses much of this survey data to rank schools for our annual Best Colleges rankings, the data can also be useful when examined on a smaller scale. U.S. News will now produce lists of data, separate from the overall rankings, meant to provide students and parents a means to find which schools excel, or have room to grow, in specific areas that are important to them. While the data come from the schools themselves, these lists are not related to, and have no influence over, U.S. News's rankings of Best Colleges or Best Graduate Schools. The undergraduate enrollment data above are correct as of Dec. 3, 2013.
Education Industry Reporter: Final Gainful Employment Rulemaking Session Scheduled for Friday, December 13
Politico’s Libby Nelson, in today’s “Morning Education” email (and in a tweet on Black Friday) reports that the U.S. Department of Education “has scheduled its third session of negotiated rule-making on the ‘gainful employment’ rule for Dec. 13 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Education Department’s 1990 K St. offices, according to an email sent to negotiators Friday.” This is also the last day of the next NACIQI meeting (the Department’s advisory committee on accreditation). In case you are curious, 1990 K Street is no where near 415 New Jersey Ave. NW. (where the NACIQI sessions will be held).
As you may recall from our past reporting, one of the purposes of this session is to review data on the anticipated effect of the proposed rules. It will be interesting to see how these various rules shake out and if there are a number of programs that would pass the debt metrics proposed in September, but would fail the new measures proposed by the Department before the last session.
UPDATE (8:23 PM): The Federal Register has the pre-publication notice for the new session. Nothing else of note in the notice.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)