Over the past decade, a number of National College Attainment Network (NCAN) member organizations have expanded their missions to include helping the students they serve launch their careers after earning a degree or credential. To aid college attainment
nonprofit organizations in implementing or enhancing their postsecondary career advising services, NCAN has gathered a list of best practices and resources on one, convenient web page.
Key topics on this page are outlined below.
Getting Started
New to advising students on their postsecondary path? While it may seem challenging, especially for those used to providing career advice to high schoolers, the major difference lies in the end goal, not the tactics. So, what services should your program
consider offering?
To start, NCAN recommends encouraging students to explore what they like to do, their skills and strengths, and their values through activities such as researching potential careers and learning about the educational requirements needed to enter those
career fields. Next, advisors should aid students in making a decision about their career path and developing a career plan with specific goals and objectives. Lastly, students should be encouraged to attain real-world career experience, such as internships,
job shadowing, or research opportunities. Read more about tips for getting your program started here.
Working with Private Sector Employees
The importance of the student-workforce connection cannot be overstated. NCAN member programs with similar initiatives offer workplace learning experiences such as internships and access to job fairs and either have connections directly with employers
or encourage the students they serve to make connections themselves. Some member programs even incorporate labor market and earnings data into their advising services.
To cultivate and sustain employer partnerships, your program should focus
on understanding why employers are interested in these partnerships and ensure they have a good experience with your program, among other strategies.
Incorporating federal, state, and local labor market and earnings data into your advising services is easier than ever thanks to this information becoming more and more accessible. As the cost of attendance continues to rise, this data can help students
gauge their return on investment in higher education. Read more about partnering with the private sector, the importance of workplace learning and experiences, and labor market and earnings data here.
Leveraging Resources and Working with the Community
In addition to working with employers, many postsecondary career advising programs collaborate with other sectors to serve more students and provide additional services. NCAN identified three key focus areas of existing programs: alumni, nonprofit organizations,
and university partners.
Alumni can serve as mentors, coaches, or advisors to current students. They can also offer work-based opportunities as employers and provide insight on the direction a program can take the students you serve. Your program should also consider working
with nonprofit organizations that have similar goals, such as one of NCAN’s many members. Our member programs can help students understand how to take full advantage of on-campus career
services and provide supplemental advising and support when needed. Learn more about this approach by clicking here.
Metrics and Evaluating Outcomes
Tracking the outcomes of your efforts is key to determining whether your postsecondary career advising program has been successful in achieving its goals. While deciding metrics by which to gauge outcomes is certainly a challenge, it is nevertheless important.
If discrepancies are found between demographic groups or individuals, then changes can be made to address these differences and ensure equitable results.
So, what metrics should your program consider tracking? NCAN suggests tracking milestones which can be broken down into three categories: students enrolled in postsecondary education, long-term programmatic success, and organizational.
For tracking students enrolled in postsecondary education:
Career exploration and awareness, such as the number of students who completed a career plan while in college
Career exposure and preparation, including the number of students who participated in internships or job shadowing or students’ abilities to cultivate and demonstrate networking abilities
Ensuring students have a complete career “toolbox”, such as a completed resume, cover letter template, and have engaged in interview preparation
For tracking long-term programmatic success:
The number of students who have obtained jobs related to their career interest
Student income at various intervals after graduation
Degree to which alumni continue to be connected to the organization
For the organization:
Awareness of or tracking the local workforces needs and trends
The degree to which the organization works with existing partners and cultivates relationships with new partners
Read more about best practices for identifying metrics and tracking outcomes here.
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