Despite the evidence that a college degree significantly improves graduates’ employment prospects and earnings, there is much more colleges and universities can do to help their students land their dream jobs. According to the Association of Public & Land-Grant Universities (APLU), sixty percent of bachelor’s degrees in the United States are awarded by public institutions.
Return on investment (ROI) by level of education
Bachelor’s degree holders are half as likely to be unemployed as their peers who only have a high school degree. Bachelor degree holders make $1 million in additional earnings on average over their lifetime, according to APLU.
In addition, a study conducted by APLU found that life expectancy is longer for those who attend college, with studies suggesting a life expectancy increase of seven years to those who have attended at least some college over their peers with no post-secondary education.
The benefits are clear. Yet, colleges and universities can do more to help their upcoming graduates land a job faster after graduation by using some of the online offering solutions that LinkedIn has created for universities, academics, education marketers, and students including online learning programs and help with enrollment.
LinkedIn on campus
LinkedIn, the social platform which connects over 347 million professionals across the globe has also become an essential tool to help students transition into the working world.
LinkedIn Learning is an online learning platform offering various benefits to colleges and universities through partnerships and a strategy they can implement in their institutions. Such benefits include:
- Tracking student outcomes and workforce readiness
- Real-time skills insights
- World-class collaborative content
- Host proprietary content
LinkedIn Higher Education also brings insight into the relevant 21st century skills, green skills, all the in-demand skills that will empower your students as well as helping to attract more companies to recruit at your university.
LinkedIn Higher Education
Since digital transformation in education is rapidly becoming a common topic of discussion, LinkedIn Higher Education should be also part of such discussion. Higher Education professionals can find support ranging from preparing students for careers and engaging alumni to marketing and admissions outreach. Not all members of faculty or administrators know that they can find top resources right at their fingertips.
According to LinkedIn’s data-backed guide on improving student outcomes, institutions that have a LinkedIn Strategy in place can drive recent graduate employment by 11 percent. According to LinkedIn, the four benefits an institution can reap from having a LinkedIn strategy are:
- Improve student outcomes by teaming with the world’s largest professional network
- Get exclusive real-time data on skill gaps and student outcomes
- Foster relationships beyond your campus
- Keep your students, staff, and faculty on the cutting edge
The University of Central Florida (UCF), the second-largest public university in the United States incorporated LinkedIn Learning as part of their online learning resources in the Integrated Business Program, one of the most sought-after majors at the university. “We are training students for the jobs that exist today, not the jobs that existed 30 years ago,” said Jim Gilkeson, Chair, Integrated Business department and Associate Professor of Finance and who has led the program since its inception using the flipped classroom model.
When the program was born, Gilkeson asked successful UCF alumni what they wished they learned in college. He also asked large Florida employers what skills recent graduates tend to lack. Both groups highlighted soft skills as the biggest gap, including teamwork, leadership, written communication, presentation, and critical thinking.
The network effect
Teaching students how to grow their network from the start of their career can lead them to better opportunities in the future. At the same time, harnessing your alumni network can boost enrollment, especially in online courses.
By and large, LinkedIn Learning and LinkedIn Higher Education can be powerful tools to increase upcoming graduates' employment rate.