Research Findings from Students, Faculty and Administrators Show
Student Experience is at the Heart of Higher Ed’s Post-Pandemic
Transformation
Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. (NYSE: BNED), a leading
solutions provider for the education industry, today announced
findings from its latest research report, COLLEGE 2030™:
Transforming the Student Experience. Featuring insights from
college students, faculty members and campus administrators, the
report provides a comprehensive view of the current state of higher
education and an exclusive outlook on the decade ahead.
“The pandemic did not change the path for higher education, but
it did change the speed at which we’re traveling on that path,”
said Michael P. Huseby, CEO and Chairman, BNED. “Within the next 10
years, we will see a transformation of the student experience –
from admissions through graduation – that will ultimately create a
better, more inclusive and smarter world.”
The Rise of Flexible, Personalized Learning
The pandemic has prompted colleges and universities to revisit
traditional methods of teaching and engaging students. And though
the abrupt, nationwide switch to online and hybrid learning
presented many challenges, it also served to emphasize that
students do not all learn in the same way or at the same pace, and
that for many, online learning can offer much-needed flexibility.
As one community college student explained, “Not everyone is a
traditional student with the same amount of time and
resources.”
While in-person learning will always maintain its value,
technology will allow the future of higher education to become more
accessible, and more desirable, to students. In fact, 69% of
students said more flexibility for attending classes and completing
coursework was a key need.
“Online learning can be a great tool for extending the
flexibility of education, but it can also be a challenge for many
students who have limited access to technology or who struggle with
learning through a screen,” said Lisa Malat, President of Barnes
& Noble College. “As schools continue to invest and improve
their digital learning systems, we’ll see students have more
flexibility in choosing the class formats that work with their
schedules and preferred learning styles, opening up possibilities
for students who are caregivers or in the workforce.”
Enhancing the Value of Education
While online offerings are expected to increase options for
students in the near future, today, they are raising questions
about the value of education. Already under scrutiny before the
pandemic, tuition costs have become a source of strain between
students and institutions. While about six in 10 of all respondents
agreed that schools need to focus more on affordability, agreements
broke down when looking at payments. While 94% of all students
think schools should charge less for online classes, less than half
of faculty (41%) and administrators (43%) say the same.
Crossing that divide will require institutions to shift their
focus and learning models to where students are most focused today
– career development. A majority (84%) of students feel that access
to career development services is important to achieving success,
and 47% say they want their schools to offer more career planning.
Students also recognize the value of rounding out their learning
outside of coursework, with 41% pointing to the opportunity to
build soft skills as an essential value driver for education. On
this, faculty and administrators agree, with many pointing to the
expansion of micro-credentialing programs and lifetime learning
options as ways to get students there.
A Seamless Student Experience
As students’ academic life becomes more tailored to their
personal needs, so will their lives on campus. The pandemic has
highlighted just how crucial college services can be to getting a
students’ education off on the right foot, but it also highlighted
how disjointed the delivery of these services can be. Providing
students with the practical skills that enable lifelong learning
and growth – and enhance the value of education – goes well beyond
the classroom. To ensure students’ success, it should be on every
school’s to-do list to develop a “Community of Care” – an umbrella
of seamless student support that includes faculty advisers, mental
health professionals, success coaches and peer mentors, all acting
in a collaborative, integrated manner to guide each student through
their college (and life) experience.
“Students, above all, want to know that they’re being heard. And
we’re seeing colleges and universities increasingly take that into
account as they work to balance the short-term challenges of the
pandemic with the long-term needs of higher education growth. No
one group can determine what the future of higher education will be
– it will take students, faculty and administrators working
together to build the new framework for learning in the U.S.,” said
Huseby.
Download the full report here.
Survey Methodology
Barnes & Noble College Insights™ conducted online
quantitative surveys 1,438 college students, 323 faculty members
(department heads, professors, adjuncts, instructors, and teaching
assistants), and 104 administrators (presidents, vice presidents,
provosts, CFOs, deans, and other academic leadership) across the
U.S. in November 2020 to better understand how each group is
reshaping the future of higher education following the COVID-19
pandemic and the changes it accelerated.
About Barnes & Noble Education
Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. (NYSE: BNED) is a leading
solutions provider for the education industry, driving
affordability, access, and achievement at hundreds of academic
institutions nationwide and ensuring millions of students are
equipped for success in the classroom and beyond. Through its
family of brands, BNED offers campus retail services and academic
solutions, a digital direct-to-student learning ecosystem,
wholesale capabilities and more. BNED is a company serving all who
work to elevate their lives through education, supporting students,
faculty, and institutions as they make tomorrow a better, more
inclusive and smarter world. For more information, visit
www.bned.com.
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Media Contact: Carolyn J. Brown Senior Vice President
Corporate Communications & Public Affairs (908) 991-2967
cbrown@bned.com
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