The “traditional” student is quickly becoming a relic of a bygone era. The future of enrollment is concentrated in new, non-traditional markets: adult learners seeking rapid re-skilling, dual-enrolled high school students, and the millions of Americans with “some college, no credential” who represent a significant scalable opportunity for growth. Universities know they must pivot decisively…
I recently contributed a chapter in the recently released book, AI Applications in Online Higher Education Administration: Strategies for Maximizing Returns and Improving Outcomes edited by Kathleen Ives, Marie Cini, and Ray Schroeder. This blog highlights key take-aways from my chapter. Higher education recruitment is undergoing one of the most significant transformations in decades. Traditional…
Technologists, economists, and visionaries are warning us that in the next three to 18 months, we are going to experience rapid and pervasive disruption of our professional lives, workplace models, and distribution of income. Professional positions requiring college degrees will be lost, remade into highly-productive, cost-efficient, hybrid human-AI models where human contributions and compensation will…
I asked Gemini 3 Thinking, ChatGPT 5.4 Thinking, and Sonnet 4.6 Extended to tell me what jobs in higher education are most vulnerable to replacement by Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the next five years. I also asked for recommendations for current and prospective employees in the field. First, let me share with you links to…
Announcing a new direction for UPCEA’s Regions
UPCEA is excited to share the new strategic direction for the association’s five Regions. The Regions are an integral component of UPCEA’s access mission, and are key to both UPCEA’s legacy and future success. Over UPCEA’s 107 year history, the Regions have undergone changes like geographic boundaries, to the more recent Regional conference pilot events…
Google’s low-cost certificate program aims to help jumpstart tech careers (The College Fix)
Google is making headway with a less expensive and self-paced option to earn digital certifications amid a decline in college enrollment. Google advertises the certification programs as a low-cost option to an expensive and time-consuming four-year higher education pathway. According to the tech giant, a certificate can be earned in three to six months applying…
U.S. Department of Education Announces Regulatory Agenda; Pushes Some Rulemaking Issues to Next Federal Calendar | Policy Matters (June 2022)
Major Updates U.S. Department of Education Announces Regulatory Agenda; Pushes Some Rulemaking Issues to Next Federal Calendar The Department of Education released their Spring 2022 Agenda and Regulatory Plan, providing timelines and intended regulations they will release this year, and which they will push until the next yearly cycle. The Department broke apart the recent…
US Government Accountability Office Releases Long-Awaited Report on OPMs | Policy Matters (May 2022)
Major Updates US Government Accountability Office Releases Long-Awaited Report on OPMs The United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a highly anticipated report following a multi-year review of the relationships between Online Program Managers (OPMs) and universities. In their report, they recommended some changes around how the Department of Education deals with universities and…
The tagline for Convergence, Credential Innovation in Higher Education, raises two important questions: First, what kind of credentials are we talking about? Is the scope of credentials unlimited, blue sky, or confined to incremental changes on the margins of the status quo? And second, who is leading that innovation, and what do they need to…
We are pleased to share the foreword by UPCEA CEO Bob Hansen from the newly released Chief Online Learning Officers’ Guidebook: A Framework for Strategy and Practice in Higher Education. The guidebook, now available from Routledge in paperback, hardback, and eBook formats, provides a comprehensive framework for today’s online learning leaders. Learn more and purchase…
Online enrollment leaders don’t need another mandate to “use AI.” They need relief. Most teams are already stretched thin by demands to manage inquiry volume, follow-up expectations, data hygiene, and prospect responsiveness. They lack the capacity to take on yet another complex initiative, especially one that feels abstract or disruptive. AI mandates promise transformation when…
Discover how to explain AI SEO ROI to university leadership when attribution is imperfect, with insights and strategy from Search Influence. Across higher education, marketing teams are being asked to explain AI search visibility before institutions agree on how to measure it. Leadership discussions are moving quickly, while reporting frameworks remain centered on keyword rankings,…