CLOSING THE SKILLS GAP: INNOVATION IN HIGHER EDUCATION

Students choose to pursue higher education for a variety of reasons, including personal development and the promotion of economic and social change. But the most important reason for many is the opportunity to equip themselves with the skills required to obtain desirable jobs and broaden their career options.

In the latter aim, higher education has been falling short in recent years. In fact, according to the 2022 ManpowerGroup Talent Shortage Survey, 75 per cent of businesses say they are having difficulty hiring people with the right skills. And a 2021 report from McKinsey found that 87 per cent of companies all over the world are aware that they already have a skills gap or will have one within a decade. The OECD estimates that 1.1 billion jobs globally will be radically transformed by technology in the next decade. And the World Economic Forum warns that, “if current trends continue, outdated learning programmes will further exacerbate the skills mismatch in the future.”

Closing this gap between the talent pool and the needs of industry is one of the biggest challenges facing higher education today. But the most forward-thinking business schools and other institutions are adopting a host of innovative strategies to ensure they develop work-ready graduates with both the technical and soft skills required to succeed in the workplace of the future.

1. Partnering with business

A key step to resolving the skills gap crisis is to foster closer bonds between higher education institutions and the business world. This symbiotic relationship ensures that higher education institutions can offer carefully tailored programmes in industry-relevant subject areas, and that the businesses themselves can access a pool of talent with the skills they need when the students graduate. In the USA, for example, Google partnered with Howard University to offer students training at Google as well as access to courses taught by both faculty from Howard and engineers from Google, and Facebook partnered with the City College of New York to develop a cybersecurity graduate programme, a niche but highly sought-after field.

Other higher education institutions, such as EU Business School (EU), which has three campuses in Europe plus a Digital Campus, offer their students the opportunity to regularly attend company visits, from startups to multinational HQs, in order to gain an insider’s perspective of how these businesses really function. They also have a packed roster of illustrious guest speakers from a wide range of industries who share their insights on the latest trends in business with students. In addition, their faculty features academics, entrepreneurs and business professionals who can draw on their own experience to demonstrate how classroom theory works in practice. EU’s portfolio of programmes, which include foundation, bachelor’s, master’s and MBA degrees, are continuously reviewed and updated in order to respond to the latest demands of industry: recent introductions have included degree programmes in cloud computing, one of the most high-demand areas of business; supply chain and logistics, a job sector which the US Bureau of Labor Statistics forecasts will grow 30 per cent by 2030; and business technology, a next-gen business discipline that bridges the gap between management and information technology.

Clearly, fostering closer ties between higher education institutions and business should be a priority for all educational establishments whose function is to prepare students effectively for success in the workplace of the future.

2. Promoting hands-on learning

The shift toward more active learning methodologies began in the 1990s, but it has taken on a central role today in higher education institutions, particularly in the context of the skills gap. When students are encouraged to engage more actively with their learning – through discussing, researching, creating, thinking, etc. – not only do their learning outcomes improve, but they hone key skills, such as critical thinking, problemsolving and decision-making, which are crucial for professional success.

As Dr. Svetlana Elinova, Group Academic Director at EU Business School, points out, “To become game-changers in a fast-paced world, we need to transform the way we do business, learn and communicate. Students need to be curious, creative, disruptive and adaptable to stay employable.” EU Business School uses an experiential learning approach designed to bring business to life through hands-on learning, which has proved highly effective. Case studies, business simulations and project work are integral to their programme curricula, providing practical experience of how classroom theory can be put into effect in real businesses. Its flagship conference series, Learning From Leaders, features globally renowned thought leaders, business experts and entrepreneurs, including the chairman of Nestlé, Paul Bulcke; former president of Switzerland, Adolf Ogi; co-founder of Starbucks, Zev Siegel; and Steve Davis, strategic advisor to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. They have also introduced innovative Business Immersion Weeks, which take place every semester, and which are specifically designed to immerse students in the real world of business through a wide range of dynamic and interactive activities such as company visits, exclusive conferences by industry-leading guest speakers and interactive workshops across a range of cutting-edge business topics.

3. Honing crucial soft skills

However, the acquisition of specific technical skills required by industry is just half the story. The advance of new technologies has fuelled the rapid transformation of the workplace, and the pace of change is only increasing. A decade ago, comparatively few workers had even heard of cloud computing or blockchain, for example, but now skills in these areas are highly sought after across many industries. The careers of the future may not yet exist –but students should be well prepared to grasp the new opportunities that emerge. Given this rapidly evolving employment landscape, students today must acquire essential soft skills such as agile thinking and the ability to respond quickly to changing circumstances. In addition, they require a multicultural and open mindset that will allow them to connect with colleagues, suppliers and partners who may be located anywhere in the world.

According to the ManpowerGroup Talent Shortage Survey 2021, the top soft skills employers seek are “reliability, resilience, stress tolerance and adaptability”, along with “initiative taking, leadership and social influence, reasoning and problem solving”. Therefore, higher education institutions need to provide graduates not only with the technical knowledge they require for career success, but also the human strengths and capacity for lifelong learning that will help them to adapt as priorities shift.

EU Business School’s experiential learning approach is designed to foster these soft skills by encouraging students to think critically, solve problems creatively and adapt and pivot to changing circumstances, just as they will need to do in the workplace. Its multicultural community of more than 100+ students, plus the opportunities it offers for intercampus exchanges between its campuses in the top European business and tech hubs of Barcelona, Geneva and Munich, further expand their global mindset.

4. Expanding access to online learning

Online learning has seen strong growth in the past decade, with the number of hybrid and distance learners at traditional universities increasing 36 per cent between 2012 and 2019, and an additional 92 per cent moving online owing to the global pandemic in 2020. According to the WEF, expanding access to online learning “is an important step in helping people future-proof their skills and seek new opportunities for growth and development.” In addition, given the fundamental importance of DEI, providing high-quality online learning opens up pathways to success for people who, for example, may be unable to attend traditional in-person courses owing to physical disabilities. EU Business School’s Digital Campus was established in 2012 in order to offer maximum flexibility and convenience, giving students the opportunity to learn anytime, anywhere, and combine their degree programme with other commitments. Programmes are supported on easy-to-use web platforms and are delivered by acclaimed lecturers who offer real-time, personalised tutoring from around the globe. Students also have the opportunity to participate in oncampus weeks on EU’s European campuses in order to connect with faculty and peers from all over the world.

About Eu Business School

EU Business School (EU) is a high-ranking international business school with campuses in Geneva, Munich and Barcelona, as well as its Digital Campus. We foster entrepreneurial thinking and creative problem-solving, crucial aptitudes to succeed in a world in constant flux. Our students are part of a vibrant and diverse community of more than 100 nationalities, which helps them to expand their global perspective. Our experiential approach to learning gives our students the real-world business skills to excel and our innovative programmes have been specifically designed to respond to the latest demands of industry. Find out more at www.euruni.edu.