Q&A
Workforce development initiatives for transfer students
0:40:21
·
3 min
Council Member Brewer inquires about the role of workforce development in CUNY's transfer programs. Executive Vice Chancellor Hensel and Vice Chancellor Alvero explain various initiatives to integrate career planning into academic advising and curriculum design.
- CUNY is aligning career and academic advisers to improve retention and guide students' academic choices
- Career milestones are being embedded into degree maps to ensure job readiness
- The university is redesigning AAS degrees to balance career outcomes with transferability
- Apprenticeships with New York CEO jobs councils are being incorporated into programs
Gale Brewer
0:40:21
The only question I have is, and this is just because I love the center for an urban future.
0:40:25
So I know Jonathan Bowes are very focused as he should be on workforce development.
0:40:31
In other words, that's also part of so how does that, if at all, play a role in the transfer student?
0:40:38
You can do whatever you want.
0:40:39
But is there some is there more effort perhaps for that topic to come up in the discussion?
0:40:45
Because I think he's right.
0:40:48
Kun, you could help more in this area.
0:40:50
So how how is workforce development, which is his big thing part of your transfer program?
Wendy Hensel
0:40:55
And part of it comes into play by understanding what the students goals are.
0:41:00
If the student you know, one thing we haven't talked about, a place where students lose credits on a fairly routine basis as they change their major.
0:41:07
And so some of the classes that you take don't transfer.
0:41:10
And so part of what we've been talking about is actually aligning very closely career and academic advisers to be either the same person or the addition in multiple places.
0:41:21
We know that our retention numbers go up significantly when there is discussion from the 1st day of matriculation as to what the career outcome is.
0:41:31
And then career milestones are linked to the academic career and degree path.
0:41:36
So that's true for transfer students.
0:41:37
That's true for every student.
0:41:39
And we are having those conversations both separately and in tandem with the conversations about transfer.
Gale Brewer
0:41:45
And is that also an issue, again, back to the advice of having enough advisors who are up on that topic because that's also his big thing.
0:41:52
I'm a big down of the Bulls.
Wendy Hensel
0:41:55
IT'S A PARTICULARLY ACCUT ISSUE BECAUSE OFTEN WE NEED OUTSIDE INDUSTRY EXPERTS TO COME IN AND ASSIST WITH THAT PROCESS
Alicia Alvero
0:42:04
two more things related to the workforce development.
0:42:07
We have traditional degree maps that tell us to which courses to take.
0:42:12
We have been talking about out having transfer maps so that how to what courses to take at the community college, but the more important thing is we're embedding career milestones into degree match.
0:42:23
So it's not just about which courses to take, but what activities do I need to be doing in order to ensure success in getting a job?
0:42:30
And then the second piece that we've worked on in the office of transformation as we worked on this.
0:42:36
There is a distinction between an AA and AS and an AAS.
0:42:41
And AAS is essentially a tech degree, and that is a terminal degree designed to get you a job.
0:42:50
But what has happened over the years in development and curriculum development and without coordination many students take an AAS degree, either because they and there's this few that take it thinking they want a job and then transfer.
0:43:04
But we have found very large numbers of students getting an AAS and transferring.
0:43:09
And AAS has very applied courses, very few Gen Ed courses.
0:43:14
So they, by definition, will lose transfer credit.
0:43:18
And so in these conversations, the schools within AS have been redesigning the AS to guarantee career outcomes and career success, but also ensure the students are advised correctly from the beginning so they don't miss takenly enroll in a program that is not designed to transfer where they would lose transfer credits.
Wendy Hensel
0:43:38
They're also embedding apprenticeships with New York CEO jobs councils in different industries.
0:43:43
So it's a very comprehensive reimagining of the AAS degree, but distinguishing it very clearly from the transferable degrees.