Giving Compass' Take:

• The author discusses recommendations by career services professionals, who offer suggestions of how to broaden career prep resources for students during their post-secondary education. 

• How will broadening career service plans bolster students' workforce opportunities? 

• Read about how high schools are boosting college and career readiness plans.

As pressure builds against tuition increases while other economic headwinds make them difficult to avoid, colleges and universities are looking for ways to prove the education they offer is worth the sometimes hefty price tag. One way many are doing so is by raising the profile of their little-used yet widely marketed career services office.

Bolstered by data showing use can improve students' academic performance and job placement rates, the career services office is becoming more proactive on campuses nationwide. But in many cases, funding, staffing and awareness are not forthcoming.

Jeremy Podany, a consultant and former career services professional, however, believes career services are becoming more visible and effective as colleges see their value and invest in them. To be effective across the institution, Podany said, career services offices must broaden awareness of their work and enlist a network of others within and outside of the college.

"The trend is for the career office to be a campus leader," he said. "The savvy career offices go well beyond their walls and flip the old adage of 'Come see us and a counselor will help you out,' to 'Career preparation is unavoidable around this campus.'"

Here are four ways colleges can make that switch:

  1. See the big picture
  2. Gather good data
  3. Help students explore
  4. Expand career services' reach

Read the full article about how colleges can focus on career prep by James Paterson at Education Dive