The Prep Academy courses are required for adult students with no prior experience taking college-level courses online. When students complete the program, they are granted admission into their chosen course of study with 12 credit hours under their belt.
“Students are demonstrating they can do college-level work, putting into practice all the skills we think they’ll need in a low-risk environment,” says Irwin. He adds that UofM Global officials are looking at how they can replicate this program for all adult learners, not just those in the LiFE program.
3. Offer personalized coaching.
All LiFE participants are assigned a “success coach” who continually checks in with them throughout the duration of their online learning experience to nudge them along. “This is a pretty vulnerable student population, so we have created a high-touch environment to help them succeed.”
UofM Global assigns coaches to students based on the level of college experience they start out with. For instance, adults who have no prior college experience are given a coach who specializes in helping first-time college students, while those with at least 30 credit hours of college experience (but not a full degree) are coached by someone from the university’s transfer office, who has expertise in advising this particular student population.
4. Award credit for prior experience.
UofM Global officials review the FedEx training records of LiFE participants to see if they’ve undergone any training that can translate into credit for prior learning experience. In fact, the college recently awarded two FedEx employees 30 credit hours for prior training they received in leadership and project management, which moved them a whole year ahead in their degree program.
Related: America’s 20 most innovative colleges for adult learners
Awarding credit for prior experience is something the university takes pride in across all UofM Global programs, and it’s a key strategy for helping adult students finish faster. Last year, the university’s online branch saved more than 300 students at least $1 million in combined tuition expenses overall, Irwin says.
5. Bill corporate partners directly.
A final aspect of the LiFE program that contributes to its success is that there are no up-front costs to employees. All they have to do is sign up for online courses; the university bills FedEx directly for their tuition costs.
“That’s a game changer,” says Irwin. “It opens up opportunities for so many more people to participate.”
A former eCampus News editor, Dennis Pierce is now a freelance writer with more than 20 years of experience in writing about educational innovation.
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