The Steppingblocks Graduate Insights data can be utilized to solve multiple common challenges in Higher Education. Have a particular challenge or interesting data solution? Share it with our team!
Whether it be for accreditors, donors, or state agencies, increased accountability in Higher Education has required universities to strengthen their data and report capabilities. Universities are leveraging first destination data but that does not always tell the entire story. Using graduate insights data to supplement other reporting sources allows universities to better triangulate the outcomes of their graduates. This includes:
Exploring outcomes data to identify areas of success and improvement.
Leveraging data and reports to enhance strategic planning and mission-driven outcomes.
Understanding where students go after graduation with a particular program/major is incredibly powerful. Whether it be through the classroom, internships, or on the job, gaining an understanding of the skills and salary outcomes of their graduates can help department chairs and deans shape their programs to maximize student success. Steppingblocks data can help inform academics by showing the skills that align with higher salaries, specific jobs/careers, or even individual companies. By using our easy-to-use dashboard faculty, staff, and students can all identify the skills most needed for their areas of interest. For example:
Identifying the skills for a particular major or at a particular employer.
Exploring the top employers of recent graduates (or any other parameters).
Filtering data by salary to understand what skills correlate with the highest ROI.
Exploring the industries where alumni are working.
Ascertaining ROI on research and other initiatives.
Building and maintaining relationships has become integral for universities hoping to foster life-long and meaningful connections with their alumni. Over time, the response rates for surveys and other data requests decrease, meaning the institutions must rely on external data sources to track the latest and greatest outcomes of their graduates. As the connection between institutions and communities is ever growing, Steppingblocks allows staff to target alumni based on a large variety of filterable fields. From location to salary to major or skills, it is easy to create very specific lists of alumni. The Steppingblocks platform also allows for these lists to be downloaded and email is included so contacting them is easy as well. Consider:
Segmenting alumni by geographic or firmographic parameters.
Leveraging multiple filters to develop targeted approaches to engage alumni.
Building alumni affinity groups.
Click here to read about how Husson University's Advancement team has leveraged Steppingblocks data for Alumni Relations & Advancement initiatives.
Similar to the ability to build relationships with alumni, it’s easy to target specific groups of alumni for advancement efforts. The Steppingblocks platform can filter based on location, salary, major, job title, company and more, allowing for very targeted outreach. The platform also allows for the option to download the lists, with contact info, so that alumni can be incorporated into highly-personalized campaigns. For example:
Identifying top employers who facilitate donation matching and directly communicate this to alumni.
Leveraging industry and salary filters to fundraise for a specific campaign.
Multiple units on campus, including Career Services and Student Success, use the platform to support student career development. The added emphasis on career outcomes that is increasing around the country and the push to be more data-driven makes the Steppingblocks platform a favorite tool for working with and for students. For example:
Understanding where the talent gaps are within industry and shifting practices to support those gaps.
Leveraging data to support skills development.
Supporting your students through career roadmaps.
Using technology to drive student engagement.
Driving student success initiatives on your campus.
Leveraging data with incoming students to support success.
As increased accountability has driven the need to enhance reporting, so to has a desire for outcomes transparency shaped admissions and student recruitment practices. The Steppingblocks platform is used for:
Developing program or major webpages that highlight alumni outcomes.
Recruiting graduate students by identifying alumni employed out-of-field.
Generating transparent alumni outcomes reports.