Infographic: The 5 Jobs of postsecondary education
1. Help Me Get Into My Best School
Students:
Want the classic college experience in hopes of reinventing themselves. And yet, they’ve rarely thought about what they’ll do once enrolled. For them, making progress is all about getting accepted.
Institutions:
Many colleges are set up well for this Job. But skyrocketing costs are limiting the performance of a high-touch experience.
2. Help Me Do What’s Expected of Me
Students:
Looking to satisfy someone else’s expectations of them—like parents, friends, etc. They see school as the next logical step in their journey. They also don’t have—or can’t see—other options. They believe a degree will provide a safety net.
Institutions:
Consider counseling students into a gap year or structure yourself as a ‘transfer college’—a short-term destination that helps students get into the right school for them.
3. Help Me Get Away
Students:
Looking to get away from their day job; break a current habit; or leave home and their family, town, or a relationship. They’re looking for a fresh start with a support system and to check a box with a degree.
Institutions:
Revamp your first-year program to help students build passions and learn what they do—and don’t—like.
4. Help Me Step It Up
Students:
Want to leave their current circumstances and are ready to invest resources to improve prospects. They believe practical skills or certifications will help them get back on track.
Institutions:
Create pathways that move students through a clear, convenient, fixed set of learning experiences that result in students’ desired outcomes.
5. Help Me Extend Myself
Students:
Looking to challenge themselves in pursuit of a bolder vision for their life. Life is OK, but they can now make the time and allocate the budget to pursue practical skills or certifications.
Institutions:
Make your program as low risk as possible to encourage people to enroll and align program experiences with the highly emotional reasons students are attending.
Find out more at: www.christenseninstitute.org/theory/jobs-to-be-done
