Identifying Needs

Identify, Resolve, Improve

I work with a variety of postsecondary career schools that face many different challenges.  Those challenges may include a complete transition to an online system, reducing accounts receivables, improving reporting capabilities, or many others.  I understand those issues, and helping you overcome those challenges is the best part of my role.  My purpose is to help schools solve problems and produce better outcomes. 

Here are a few commonly known challenges that our client schools ask us to help with.

1. Online Everything.  Schools are currently moving many of their processes to the online environment. This includes the registration process of completing applications and enrollment agreements. In addition, many courses that were traditionally taught only at “brick and mortar” institutions are slowly moving to online platforms.  Therefore, schools want to develop online programs for students who want a virtual learning experience.  The STARS system provides features and applications that help schools make this transition.  Between our online application feature and our integration with third party learning management systems, STARS is a valuable resource for schools needing an online solution! 
    
2. Reporting Miscues.  Postsecondary career schools, especially those that are accredited and receiving Title IV funding, have several layers of reporting requirements.  There is a significant focus on every eligible student’s academic and financial data.  I have worked with many schools that struggle to report their data. They use a variety of systems, but they do not have an easy way to sort, organize and pull it all together.  As a result, much time is required trying to create reports.  Every school should be using reports to identify problems, make decisions, and analyze results.  STARS will act as the centralized location for easy access and analysis of data.  Our library of reports can help any career school with internal evaluation and government requirements.  
    
3. Elimination of Multiple Systems.  This is the problem I encounter most often.  Many schools use more than one system which makes tasks very time consuming and labor intensive.  For example, last week I worked with a school who were looking for a new system.  They were using HubSpot as their CRM, Excel for grades and attendance tracking, QuickBooks for financial tracking, and Access for placement tracking.  The members of the management team could not properly evaluate their progress because they couldn’t create accurate reports.  When trying to view the most important information - such as lead conversion rates, retention rates, and graduation rates - they spent several hours compiling the data.  It should have required only a few seconds!  STARS was able to resolve this problem because it allowed them to track everything in one system. The team was quickly able see all the key performance indicators responsible for the school’s success.              

I could discuss many other examples of how the STARS system can help schools, but these three are the most common. They illustrate how STARS allows schools to accurately and efficiently meet their needs.  

Don’t wait!  Make improvements today by using STARS to overcome your problems and challenges.  

Written By:  Tyler Yeager, STARS Business Development Associate