Industry Insights

Valuable insights from UPCEA's trusted corporate partners.

The Power of Virtual Peers: How to Foster Connectedness Among Online Learners

December 1, 2023

Online learning provides a convenient way for students to achieve their academic goals from a distance. At the same time, it presents a unique set of challenges that can impact student belonging, connectedness, and ultimately, retention.  Post-pandemic, hybrid course design has become the standard for many universities and colleges. 30% of degree-seekers study exclusively online.1…

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Buying Continuing Education Registration Software? Watch Out for These Red Flags

November 27, 2023

If you are trying to pick a new registration system for your Continuing and Professional Education unit, I promise this article will be worth your time.  I’ve led a number of organizations through this process (three as a decisionmaker and dozens of others in advisory roles) and I can assure you it’s not an overstatement…

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IT Certification: A Powerful Career Catalyst

October 4, 2023

Do I need to earn a certification? Professionals in IT, cybersecurity, privacy, risk, audit and related digital trust fields have wrestled with this question for years. Do certifications actually help with competitive job applications, increasing earning potential, and staying up to date with the latest IT trends? Or are they just acronyms on a resume…

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Forming Strategic Partnerships To Increase Equity in Access to Education

September 28, 2023

Addressing the Digital Divide in the Age of Cybersecurity As technology and the internet continue to reshape modern education, the question of equitable access to these resources becomes more pressing. Educational institutions, governments, and private organizations are working diligently to bridge this digital divide, with cybersecurity emerging as a key concern. Strategic partnerships can play…

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How Rising Professionals Can Obtain Coveted Expertise in Emerging Tech

September 22, 2023

At a time when enterprises are racing to experiment with fast-growing artificial intelligence capabilities, cloud computing is increasingly relied upon for organizations to operate efficiently and connected devices are proliferating at a staggering pace, harnessing emerging technology is becoming a leading priority for companies in all sectors and geographies. That means companies are on the…

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Other Blogs and News:

UPCEA’s 2025 Online Education Benchmarking Report Provides Vital Data for University Leaders

Second annual study provides new KPI benchmarks around enrollments, finance, and budget, explores the impact of AI, and provides strategic recommendations for online leaders to thrive in these uncertain times.  WASHINGTON, D.C., ISSUED AUGUST 12, 2025…UPCEA, the online and professional education association, today announced the release of a new research report, “Benchmarking Online Enterprises: Insights…

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How to Build Strong Employer Partnerships to Support Student Success

Now, possibly more than ever, it is critically important for colleges and universities to engage with employers for the benefit of our students. Higher education is facing an unprecedented time. The demographic cliff is upon us, the current political environment has led to policy whiplash and has upended funding sources for research. Our campuses have…

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Artificial Intelligence is Non-Negotiable for Higher Education Marketing and Enrollment Management

Why Institutional Leaders Can No Longer Afford to Wait on AI adoption The clock is ticking for higher education institutions that haven’t fully embraced AI. What was once an experimental advantage in marketing and enrollment has quickly become an urgent necessity. AI has firmly established itself as an operational imperative across diverse industries, with the…

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Congress Passes President Trump’s OBBB—Workforce Pell Included, but Higher Ed Gets $300 Billion Slash | Policy Matters (July 2025)

Major Updates Congress Passes President Trump’s OBBB—Workforce Pell Included, but Higher Ed Gets $300 Billion Slash President Trump’s newly signed One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBB) overhauls the federal approach to higher education policy. Short-term Pell advocates (of which UPCEA has been a long supporter) have something to be thankful for, as it opens Workforce…

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Synchronizing Pathways: Advancing the National Dialogue on Credentials and Learning Mobility

Incubator grant supports critical work to align data practices and learning mobility frameworks to benefit today’s learners WASHINGTON July 31, 2025 – UPCEA, the online and professional education association, has launched a national initiative to advance credential transparency and learner mobility through improved data quality and institutional capacity-building. The project titled, “Synchronizing Pathways: Expanding Institutional…

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Accelerating Institutional Capacity for Employer Engagement in Credential Innovation

As the future of work rapidly evolves, higher education institutions must accelerate their capacity to engage with employers—building bridges between learning and labor market relevance. At UPCEA, with support from Walmart, the world’s largest employer, we’ve undertaken two major initiatives to strengthen these bridges. The first project provided foundational benchmarking data, a practical playbook, and…

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