Elon University this week revealed their next-generation visual transcript. Applying infographic design with experiential education, they’ve delivered a solution that fits well with workforce development for the 21st century. Until now, college transcripts were a combination of semesters, course numbers, names, dates, and grades. But in a post-information society that conveys little about what the student actually knows or can do.
As a result, Elon students are able to create a holistic, experiential transcript that includes opportunities both on- and off-campus, co-curricular activities, study abroad, and traditional education. Each of the five Elon Experiences (Service, Undergraduate Research, Leadership, Internship, and Global Engagement) is presented in the infographic, and together they are presented chronologically along a four-year timeline. As students engage in experiential opportunities on and off campus, information about those experiences are collected for the student and verified by university faculty and staff. Student results are verified by university faculty and staff and then become part of their digital-only Visual EXP Transcript.
The design provides a more powerful visual experience for employers and demonstrates an integrated summation of what the student knows, did, and how they can contribute to an employers needs.
Elon students also gain a comprehensible tool that serves as an anchor for synthesizing their overall collegiate experience and sharing their Elon story. No longer will volunteer and extracurricular activities be required on a resume; they have been migrated to the transcript.
The Visual Experiential Transcript was created as part of a NASPA and AACRAOpartnership funded by the Lumina Foundation to develop new models for comprehensive student records. It is currently available to graduating students in the Class of 2016.
The Experiential Transcript development team was led by Dr. Rodney Parks, University Registrar, and included Evan Heiser, Assistant to the Vice President for Student Life; Dr. Paul Miller, Professor of Exercise Science and Director of Undergraduate Research and Intellectual Climate Initiatives; and Julie White, Programmer/Analyst with Application Technologies. Along with Parchment (the university’s transcript provider) and an independent developer, the visual transcript is designed to breathe life into the co-curricular transcript and pave the way for further innovation.
Two questions remain:
- Will employers understand what it means? When the GED high school equivalency tests were overhauled four years ago, they came with steep price increases and online-only requirements. As a result, many states chose other assessments (HiSET, TASC) delivering lower prices, relying on traditional paper-and-pencil formats, and still aligned with common core standards. In short, the market fractured. Increased flexibility for educators makes sense, but it creates large ripple effects for graduate hiring. Very few recruiters recognize or differentiate the exams and what they mean for candidates. If a HiSet graduate in one state applies for a job in another state that doesn’t recognize the HiSet as a standardized GED equivalent, does that mean that the individual lacks the credential? Are we creating more “diploma mills” without increasing the ability for a candidate to demonstrate their best qualifications? Will employers be able to decipher a candidate’s visual transcript? My predication is that they will. Transcripts usually appear far down the hiring process (except in educational hiring), and the transcripts may be used by candidates to differentiate themselves higher up the hiring funnel. The Visual Transcript provides greater confidence to the employer that the candidate actually possesses the skills and experiences over self-reported qualifications.
- Why is Elon ignoring their alumni? The natural move is to extend the Visual EXP transcript to a lifetime relationship. Allow graduates to extend the transcript with materials from work, volunteering, community activities, graduate schools, etc. so that the Visual EXP transcript becomes a living experiential transcript for lifelong learning. By doing so, Elon forges stronger bonds between graduates and the school, provides a useful service to Elon alumni, and helps build stronger bridges between the university and business communities. A valid argument can be made as to who will validate the entries, as Elon faculty and administration have to manage current students. My response would be that verification can be made by career or alumni services, or they can appear as non-certified.
The need to change the emerging talent supply chain’s value promise to employers in a 21st century marketplace is essential. Top employers have been looking for what a candidate can do beyond what they know. And now, they will be able to see the candidate more clearly.
For More Information:
- Elon University Visual EXP Transcript Announcement
- White Paper – A Framework for Extending the Transcript
- NASPA: Comprehensive Student Record Project
- AACRAO: Comprehensive Student Record Project
- Inside Higher Education: Beyond the Transcript
- Chronicle of Higher Education: Making Transcripts More Than ‘a Record of Everything the Student Has Forgotten’
- AACRAO: Growing student records beyond the traditional transcript
- E-Net: Announcing Elon’s Visual Experiential Transcript
Dan DeMaioNewton's Blog 