Universities pay close attention to workplace demand as they develop new degree programs.

by Jerry Davich

Big data. It's not only the next big thing in the business world. It's also a skyrocketing trend with colleges and universities looking to recast their academic programs to better cater to students' ever-evolving, real world focuses. They're doing so by expanding students' degree options to meet the growing demand from the business community.

“We're definitely getting more big data from many different sources,” says Anna Rominger, dean of the School of Business and Economics at Indiana University Northwest in Gary. “In the last year, we've noticed a tremendous demand from the business community, specifically in marketing, accounting, finance services and human resources management.”

Rominger, who's been at IUN since 1992, acknowledges that certain trends are cyclical in university circles, but this one is new, thanks to emerging technology. “It just keeps getting stronger and stronger,” she says.

With more gray-haired professionals retiring from the workforce, the demand to replace them is being placed on educational facilities which, in turn, rely on big data to gauge which academic programs need retooling.

“It all works together in a very collaborative effort,” Rominger says.

Purdue University Calumet in Hammond claims it's the first university in the state to offer business analytics as a new major in its undergraduate program. It's the study of data through statistical and quantitative analysis, explanatory and predictive modeling, and prescriptive analysis to drive decision-making and business planning.

According to Raida Abuizam, associate professor of operations management at PUC's College of Business, this program was developed in response to business needs, specifically for people who can analyze big data.

The program helps decision-makers and managers discover new ways to strategize, plan, optimize business operations, and capture new market opportunities, she says.

The school recently earned accreditation by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business International, the world's premier business accrediting body. With 1,723 undergraduates and 225 master's level students, the school is the largest AACSB International-accredited program in Northwest Indiana.

“The curriculum and the senior project offer you the opportunity to apply what you have learned to real-life problems and walk away with a project guaranteed to impress potential employers,” Abuizam says.

Such programs at schools across Northwest Indiana provide a multitude of career choices, including logistics analyst, sustainability director, and business analytics consultant.

“Ivy Tech is the engine for Indiana's workforce development,” says Thomas Coley, chancellor for Ivy Tech Community College Northwest and North Central regions. “The community college serves as Indiana's engine of workforce development by offering affordable degree programs and training that are aligned with the needs of its communities.”

In Ivy Tech's strategic plan, “Accelerating Greatness 2025,” an objective is to improve and expand external relationships by working with employers and the business community to address global workforce needs in curriculum and experiential learning opportunities for students, faculty, and staff.

Examples include:

* Launching the Machine Tool Technology program last fall, investing more than $1.5 million.

* Creating a Center of Excellence in Automation and Robotics.

* Launching a Paramedics program with substantial support from Porter Regional Health.

* At its East Chicago campus, revitalizing the automotive program with the goal of becoming ASE certified.

* At its Michigan City campus, creating customized training in robotics for an initiative at Alcoa Howmet's new LaPorte plant going into operation this fall.

“An assessment of local needs identified logistics and manufacturing as key economic drivers for the LaPorte community,” Coley says. “But we also know that needs are not limited to LaPorte. Northwest Indiana is the crossroads of transportation for our nation, and manufacturing continues to grow here as well.”

According to the Indiana Business Research Center, the state continues to rank first in percentage of its workforce engaged in manufacturing, and ranks second in manufacturing employment growth over the past year. However, with advances in technology, today's workforce is in need of middle skills beyond a high school diploma.

“These are skills that Ivy Tech is in a position to deliver, including certificates and associate degrees,” Coley says. “These often include nationally recognized certifications which are embedded in much of our curriculum.”

Demand for a skilled labor force in the manufacturing and logistics industries continues to grow in this region, particularly for entry-level positions. For example, the high need for commercial truck drivers, including roughly 2,000 needed drivers to meet the needs of the RV industry alone.

Valparaiso University‘s professional graduate school aims all of its programs at real-world needs in business, officials say.

“We develop and grow new programs as industries begin to express growing fields and positions,” says Megan Mankerian-Stem, admissions specialist at VU's Graduate School & Continuing Education. “This includes some of our newer programs, such as Healthcare Administration, which we have both on-campus and online options, as well as Cyber Security, which is also available on-campus and online. These two industries are expanding greatly in the coming years, so we are helping to prepare a workforce to fill this demand.”

The Indiana Commission for Higher Education takes such demand into account when examining degree programs before giving them approval.

“When faculty develop coursework and curricula in all subject areas, they do so with an eye on today's demands and also equip students with the critical thinking, communication and decision-making skills that will help them be leaders in tomorrow's career fields,” says Carol Connelly, spokeswoman for Purdue University North Central in Westville. “After all, many of our grads will end up working in jobs that do not exist today.”

PNC works hard to match its degree programs to real-world needs and also today's marketplace demands, she notes. “We have to show there is a demand for people with these degrees in our geographic area and in our state,” Connelly says.

Over the past few years, PNC has added several degrees, including human resources, early childhood education, mechanical engineering, civil engineering and health studies.

Similarly, professors teaching traditional classes such as English, math and history also do so with an eye on today's world and workplace relevance.

“We also work closely with our advisory boards to keep abreast of current trends or needs they may have,” says Cynthia Roberts, dean of the PNC College of Business.

That school has redesigned two of its certificate programs to be delivered completely online–one in organizational leadership, the other in human resources.

“Both were developed to assist with upskilling our current workforce in response to area needs,” Roberts says. “In addition, we chat with our exiting seniors to find out what they have seen as a need. Therefore, our curricula are continuously being examined for relevance.”

Most recent examples: Revising its management track to include courses in entrepreneurship and logistics; adding a social media marketing course; and a global human resources course.

Trine University in Angola prides itself on offering degrees designed to meet expanding needs while preparing students to succeed in a global economy. “Our goal is to provide real-world experience to enable our graduates for career success,” says Trine President Earl D. Brooks II. “Trine collaborates with industry leaders, such as Parkview Health and legendary coach Lou Holtz, to develop programs and cultivate relationships so our students can gain hands-on experience.”

One example is its Doctor of Physical Therapy program, where the first cohort of students began last fall. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there will be a 39 percent spike in the number of physical therapists needed through 2020.

“The program will help meet growing demand for more physical therapists with doctorate degrees,” says Max Baumgartner, dean of Trine's School of Health Sciences. “As the knowledge base in the field has grown, physical therapists have had to increase their studies, making doctorate degrees the new standard.”

Trine also is developing a master of science in physician assistant studies program to help fill a growing need for physician assistants, with specialties in orthopedics, cardiology, trauma and emergency.

At Purdue University-West Lafayette, the name-changing transformation of the campus' Polytechnic Institute is a key element of the university's “Purdue Moves” initiative.

“The institute provides a 21st century poly-technical education that will prepare students with skills, knowledge and experiences required by business and industry today and in decades to come,” says its dean, Gary Bertoline. “It incorporates innovative learning environments, integrates humanities with technical studies in a learn-by-doing atmosphere, and offers new options for majors and for earning a degree. As we work to address the needs of today's economy, we are redefining the polytechnic experience.”

Purdue President Mitch Daniels said in a statement, “By revamping their teaching methods so comprehensively, to match the evolving needs of the marketplace, they have refuted the stereotype that higher education cannot be nimble and innovative.”

Students enrolling this fall can choose from unmanned aerial systems, audio engineering technology, supply chain management technology, game studies or health-care construction management. In all, students can choose from 36-plus majors.

“The economy has irreversibly moved to a thinking economy era where integration, innovation and collaborative problem solving are now key skills of the workforce,” Bertoline says. “This is the beginning of a new chapter for our faculty, staff and students.”

P.N. Saksena, associate dean of Graduate Programs and Accreditation at the Judd Leighton School of Business and Economics, Indiana University South Bend, says when his school decided to redesign its MBA program, officials approached the task from several perspectives.

“We looked at what employers and students deemed to be important in an MBA program. We looked at our accrediting body–the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business–which requires a focus on continuous quality improvement in management education through engagement, innovation and impact. And we looked at our core strength to determine how to tailor the curriculum to provide the greatest advantage to future leaders and managers,” he says.

Saksena also looked at how to best leverage technology to make the school's in-class time more engaging, and how students could best engage with the North Central Indiana Small Business Development Center, housed on campus.

“Our efforts revealed the redesigned program would be strengthened by a focus on engaging, experiential, real-world problem solving. This led to a commitment by faculty to offer a program with active learning at its core and a capstone experience which requires experiential, real-world problem solving.”

The University of Notre Dame also is writing new real-world chapters regarding its Mendoza College of Business' Master of Science in Management courses. The school's MS in Finance and MS in Business Analytics were designed to help people develop a career-related skill, says spokeswoman Shannon Chapla.

Rominger, dean of the School of Business and Economics at IUN, said it's the winning combination of big data, business analytics and student needs behind this trend in the educational community. “We're consistently looking at what jobs are in demand and which of our programs should be fine-tuned.”