Understanding Today’s and Tomorrow’s Learners and Their Mind-Sets The Different Types of Potential Learners and What They Want Executive Summary

 

Major Findings:

 

This article written by Doug Lederman was published by Inside Higher Education in July of 2022. Lederman is addressing the pivots many institutions are needing to face given the change in the academic climate during the recovery period of the Covid-19 pandemic. He is stating that universities should be paying closer attention to the types of learners looking to pursue education and what they are looking to find in their education in order to properly lend themselves to these stakeholders. The research utilized in the article describes six distinct segments of learners:

1. Wayfinding Intellectuals: Full-time, intellectually curious students seeking to explore a broad array of disciplines and to conduct research, with strong interest in staying within academe.
2. Campus Enthusiasts: Residential students actively participating on campus

—inside and outside the classroom—who plan to start their first job after graduation

3. Junior Specialists: Focused learners pursuing a credential to secure their first job in a specific field (nursing school).
4. Evolving Professionals: Successful, early-stage workers seeking to expand their industry knowledge while satisfying their intellectual curiosity (MBA seekers).
5. Midcareer Climbers: Full-time workers looking to advance in their careers by obtaining a credential in a specific skill-based area valued by their employer.
6. Trajectory Transformers: Full-time workers who are skeptical about the value and outcomes of credentials but seek short, focused programs for building specific skills and being able to change careers.

-- Definitions provided by Lederman (p. 2-3).

 

The distinct differences found in these six types of learners can be found on almost every college campus, but most university environments are traditionally only tailored to about half,

i.e. the Wayfinding Intellectuals, Campus Enthusiasts, and Junior Specialists. Lederman is arguing that by reevaluating the options higher education is offering to all of its students may be one successful way forward in recovery.

 

Implications for Point Park:

 

Many of the qualities cross-identified in the “what matters most” section of the article are those already established in Point Park curriculum such as, a variety of academic experiences, acquiring job-specific skills, a flexible quality to courses, a wide variety of co- curricular experiences, and real-world application.

Point Park is arguably ahead of the game in regard to these findings. The university prides itself on hosting more non-traditional, full-time working students than the traditional post-high school graduate. The implications taken from this article can supply Point Park with two notes moving forward. The first is to continue on this path of being cognizant and proud to

serve and support non-traditional students. This entails continuing to supplement credentialing-based courses, creating and supporting more certificate programs, and staying conscious of the non-traditional student population in the course offerings and willingness to bolster and encourage experiential learning.

The second implication Point Park should take away from Lederman’s article is that we need to continue to sell and better promote our strength in not catering to the traditional student body. Point Park is not in the physical location to support a traditional college experience, the offerings one may find at the university differ greatly than on a traditional campus (initiatives led by COPA and the RSB), and the professors employed by the university have backgrounds that differ from your traditional wayfinder intellectual. These are not aspects to be downplayed, but rather emphasized and sought after by many different types of non- traditional student bodies.

 

Implications for Higher Education Moving Forward:

 

The implications for the higher education landscape overall are what this article is about at its core. Though it may seem disappointing to some, higher education is shifting towards a more inclusive, less specific framework that does not cast out the wayfinding intellectuals but does not cater to them exclusively either. Academia is becoming a place of truly fostering a sustainable future while equipping students with the appropriate skills to do so, as opposed to an institution where one acquires a degree for the sake of acquiring a degree. Leveraging the changes rather than fighting them will mean moving toward certificate- based degrees and building upon the non-traditional trajectory.