College students often struggle to land the internships they need to bolster their job chances after graduation.
And an August survey conducted by Gallup and Inside Higher Ed shows that many university and college presidents believe their institutions are not coming through for their students on the job front.
Brandon Busteed, executive director of Gallup’s education division, said when Gallup surveys business leaders to find out what they are looking for in a college graduate, most say they want to see internship experience. But Busteed said a May poll revealed that out of 30,000 college students surveyed, only 29 percent had an internship in which they applied skills they were learning in school.
“College presidents are seeing (that internships are) important,” he said. “They don’t feel confident their institutions are doing a great job — the reality is, they’re not.”
Gallup's new survey found that 89 percent of college and university presidents strongly believe critical thinking skills and personal development are essential qualities that students need to gain throughout their college education, and 86 percent of them think an emphasis on writing skills is necessary.
But less than half of the presidents surveyed — 40 percent — said they thought their institutions were "very effective" in helping students achieve critical thinking skills and personal development. Only 38 percent responded that their schools were very effective in helping students get internships to apply classroom learning, and 28 percent believed their schools were very effective in teaching writing skills.
Due to confidentiality reasons Busteed said he couldn’t disclose if UNC-system schools were a part of the survey, but he said nearly 1,000 presidents responded to the survey nationwide and there’s a good chance some of them were from North Carolina institutions.
If nearly 600 college and university presidents aren’t confident in their campuses' ability to prepare students for careers, there is clearly an opportunity for change. And Busteed said it’s important to keep in mind that change doesn’t have to be costly — it’s about a shift in values and the way people are incentivized.
He pointed out that most institutions put a lot of effort into fundraising from alumni, while they could be recruiting more alumni to serve as mentors to college students and foster connections that could lead to internships.
The faculty tenure process followed by most higher education institutions can also hinder students’ networking abilities, Busteed said, because it incentivizes professors to publish research, but not to make connections between students and alumni. Busteed suggested creating an additional tenure track in which professors are incentivized to help their students get internships and network with employers.
Only 22 percent of college presidents included in the survey thought their school's faculty members had a strong understanding of the skills and abilities needed by employers.
Busteed also said most schools aren’t aware of the opportunities provided by local employers — and it’s these smaller firms and companies, not Fortune 500 corporations, that could benefit students the most because they are more likely to offer jobs to recent college graduates.
“This is something that doesn't have to cost a lot of money. It’s just a change in how we operate and the things we value,” Busteed said. “I think that’s empowering and inspiring, because the answer is we don’t have to throw out more money to improve these outcomes.”
state@dailytarheel.com
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