2024 Challenges, Goals, & Opportunities in Career Education
At the end of 2022, we surveyed 150 career education professionals to learn more about their top priorities for 2023 (Get the full report).
As we approach the end of the year, we asked our customers the same questions to learn what career education priorities have changed this year, what’s stayed the same, and if there are new challenges on the horizon for 2024.
Here’s what we found.
Student retention outpaced placement as the most important goal for 2024
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Last year, improving placement rates was the most important goal for 2023, followed closely by improving retention rates. This year, retention rates have eclipsed placement rates to take the number one spot, followed by increasing student enrollment.
Of course, placement will always remain a top five priority, particularly as new Gainful Employment regulations come into effect. The regulatory environment as a whole is top of mind, as reducing compliance risks takes the number four spot as a top priority for 2024 after failing to make the top five in 2023.
For Lisa Beaman, Executive Director of Academic Operations at Arizona College – Glendale, it’s not about one goal or the other. It’s about finding balance. When asked about her most important goal for 2024, she said:
“We all have the outcome goals for enrollments, retention, and placement that we strive to achieve. For me, the most important goal is one of balance. If our enrollments are high but retention and placement rates are low, we haven’t achieved anything. The same thing happens if we only reach our retention goals and fall below goal with our placement rates. I believe the key must be in balancing all three areas and working toward a way to align all three goals. This is easier said than done as various departments have quotas and budgets to meet, but for me, this is something I’d like to focus on in the coming year.”
Retention outpaced enrollment as the top challenge
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Last year, enrollment declines and retaining staff were tied as the top challenge facing schools as they headed into 2023. Now, student retention is cited as the top challenge facing schools, with staff retention as a close second.
Enrollment declines have dropped to spot four, behind student placement but before increasing operating costs. With an optimistic outlook, these results signal that the enrollment declines some organizations saw going into 2023 are beginning to level out. After facing fluctuations in enrollment, schools have begun doubling down on retention for 2024 to ensure they’re keeping every student who walks through their door.
Schools are also feeling relief as inflation cools across the entire economy, dropping increasing operating costs to spot number five.
Faster intervention is the top change schools want to make to power student success
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Last year, survey respondents said the top change they wanted to make in 2023 to power student success was offering better placement services. This year, they’re focusing on faster intervention with at-risk students to ensure more students make it to graduation and placement.
While smaller class sizes fell completely off the list, respondents are instead looking to add increased opportunities for student engagement in other ways.
How schools planned to retain students remained relatively the same
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How schools plan to retain students remained relatively similar between surveys. Ultimately, improving student communication is one of the most effective, and lowest investment ways to lift student retention.
That being said, communication is only impactful if it’s timely and relevant to the student journey. By improving engagement tracking alongside student communication, schools can have a greater impact on student retention.
While fewer schools are investing in new courses as a 2024 retention strategy, both adding more instructors to teach existing courses and upgrading facilities remain top of mind.
At Arizona College, Lisa is also looking at the factors outside of her organization that impact student retention. She said:
“Some of the most significant challenges our students face are obstacles outside of school that interfere with their educational goals. Transportation, childcare, and financial obligations have always been challenging, but these obstacles seem to overwhelm our students on a higher level in recent years. They want an education and a career, but they aren’t always able to see a way to solve their problems in a way that allows them to continue school. Encouragement and coaching will only go so far when students need to put food on the table or even find a place to live.
In 2024, I’m hoping to learn more about our local resources and find ways to partner with organizations that can assist our students and help them find ways to overcome their obstacles and continue toward success.”
A trend emerges: Retention is key for 2024
If 2023 was the year of placement, 2024 is shaping up to be the year of retention.
After prioritizing placement in 2023 and strengthening career services departments, schools are spending 2024 making sure that more students make it to placement by doubling down on their retention efforts.
Improved student communications, frequent engagement, and creating a high quality student experience are top priorities, but compliance risks loom top of mind with new Gainful Employment, BDR, and other new regulations surrounding administrative capability, financial responsibility, and more.
Fortunately, according to leading compliance expert Edward Cramp, “a lot these regulatory changes can be mitigated by doubling-down on student experience and outcomes.”
Request a demo if you’d like to learn more about how CourseKey users see an average 3.5% lift in retention rates and an improved student experience.
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