Academic Packaging Facilitating Value Proposition

I recently participated in a session with a colleague on higher education marketing and a series of questions were asked about the value of higher education in regard to competing with organizations who offer non-degree education courses.  Luckily, I was recently on the campus of a two-year institution and learned about the non-degree certificates and badges offered in a stackable format that met the employment needs of the community.  Regardless of the media representation on the value of higher education, these types of institutions and curricular options provide an example of the service to communities at a scale that organizations will struggle compete with given the physical, human, and curricular infrastructure already in place at higher education institutions.

This serves as an example of the value of higher education message that institutions can shout about from mountain tops.  While many organizations continue to require a bachelor’s degree, and in some industries a master’s degree is a must have, and earnings data continue to show the return on investment of bachelor’s and master’s degrees over a lifetime, credentialing without a degree, in some industries, is of equal value. 

Another example of what I am calling, academic packaging, also exists at the graduate level.  For instance, an institution offering a one-year MBA and a one-year Master of Accounting or a Master of Finance in a second year, leading to two-degrees in two years, in a stackable fashion, provides real value for future accounting or finance professionals.  To add to this, an institution offering a one-year certificate to earn a Certified Financial Planner or Certified Financial Analyst credential that can be stacked in year two leading to a Master of Finance degree serves as another academic packaging example with value in the finance industry.   

Yet another example of academic packaging involves creating a certification in Public Relations where, in one year, students take two courses in marketing, one in public relations, and an elective in either media studies or communication.  Stacking this in a second year with additional courses can lead to a Master of Marketing, Public Relations, or Media Studies all using existing curricular and faculty infrastructure; something individual organizations cannot easily or economically replicate.    

Institutions that can build and leverage this type of academic packaging and then communicate it to prospective students and/or corporate partners are carving out a distinct value proposition for themselves.  From a marketing perspective, once this value proposition is articulated, the next step for institutions is to identify current students who are choosing these paths and communicate their stories via a variety of media.  Knowing where students are researching options is critical in what media to use in reaching them.  The web for sure via story-telling video content.  Digital and social media is another avenue.  Targeted web advertising, while more expensive, can be a consideration.  Virtual information sessions and yes, email, can also be effective.   

Another question asked in the marketing session involved value proposition development that is authentic, coherent, and resonating in a more focused manner such that the institution is not trying to be all things to all people in working to satisfy constituents.  This is a tricky one.  From my perspective, beginning more narrowly in scope is a more effective approach as there is no way to satisfy all constituents that is also authentic.  Addressing a core population is a great beginning.  It could be dual enrollment high school students if that population is meaningful.  It could be students from a certain demographic background if that is a growth market opportunity.  It could be based on your institution’s geography – more urban – so working professionals or rural – more small business service industries. 

Ultimately, an opportunity exists for academic packaging in higher education that meets student credential and degree demand in helping them achieve their educational goals.  This sentiment was echoed in the InsideHigherEd piece by Anthony Wheeler on August 7, 2022.  The next step is for higher education institutions to champion the opportunity by articulating academic packaging as a value proposition for their institutions.