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Author Jeff Selingo to share insight on preparing college students for job market Oct. 19-20

Kim Chaudoin | 615.966.6494 | 

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With higher education in the national spotlight for the rising cost of tuition, parents and students often have concerns about whether their investment in a college education will lead to job after graduation. Central to graduates’ success in finding employment after college is institutions offering programs that are relevant to employers, says higher education expert and author Jeff Selingo.

Selingo will share his insight and advice with parents, students, employers and university leaders at a series of events Oct. 19-20 hosted by Lipscomb University’s College of Professional Studies.

Selingo_250A bestselling author and award-winning columnist, Selingo helps parents and higher-education leaders imagine the college and university of the future and how to succeed in a fast-changing economy. His newest book, “There Is Life After College” (HarperCollins, 2016), is a New York Times bestseller. It explores how today’s young adults need to navigate school for the job market of tomorrow.

“There is Life After College” discussion and book signing • Wednesday, Oct. 19

On Wednesday, Oct. 19, from 7-8 p.m., Selingo will be featured in a free session for parents, students and recent graduates in which he will discuss "There is Life After College," and give practical advice needed to jumpstart their careers and will answer key questions about the transition to post-college life and how graduates can market themselves among other topics. There will be a book signing following seminar. The session will take place in the Ezell Center, Room 301. The event is hosted in partnership with Parnassus Books. Click here to register. 

Students are graduating into an uncertain job market saddled with thousands of dollars of debt that is leaving them financially dependent on their parents for years to come, which is causing parents and students to wonder if they have made a wise investment in a college education. “There is Life after College,” offers a hopeful, inspiring blueprint to help alleviate parents’ anxiety and prepare their college-educated child to successfully land a job after graduation.

In the book, Selingo answers key questions—Why is the transition to post-college life so difficult for many recent graduates? How can graduates market themselves to employers that are reluctant to provide on-the-job training? What can institutions and individuals do to end the current educational and economic stalemate?—and offers a practical step-by-step plan every young professional can follow. From the end of high school through college graduation, he lays out exactly what students need to do to acquire the skills companies want. Full of tips, advice, and insight, this wise, practical guide will help every student, no matter their major or degree, find real employment—and give their parents some peace of mind.

“Driving Innovation: Setting the Pace for the Next 125 Years” • Thursday, Oct. 20

On Thursday, Oct 20, from 8 a.m.-2:30 p.m., Selingo will be the featured speaker at "Driving Innovation: Setting the Pace for the Next 125 Years." This conference is designed to facilitate deeper dialog between Nashville area employers and area colleges and universities, which educate the community’s future workforce. Some of the topics they will explore is "Matching higher education program outcomes with employer and community needs," "Forming the T-shaped student into the T-shaped employee," "Redesigning higher education credentials," "Rethinking degree pathways, the college student and the classroom" and "Engaging employers to create unique partnerships." The cost is $125 for participants. The event will take place in the Ezell Center. Click here to register.

book cover_250"Driving Innovation: Setting the Pace for the Next 125 Years,” which is one of Lipscomb University’s 125th anniversary signature events, includes a panel discussion with Bruce Griffiths, Organization Systems International; Corey Driggs, Lee Company; Chip Higgins, Pinnacle Financial Partners; Tammy Stone, Cumberland Heights; and Janko Mandakovic, Coca-Cola Consolidated, that will focus on how universities can help meet workforce needs through innovative programs. Selingo will be featured in a special session for faculty and will be the keynote luncheon speaker.

“I admire Jeff Selingo’s books because a lot of the innovation that has become a hallmark at Lipscomb’s College of Professional Studies has been influenced by his research and reporting,” said Nina Morel, dean of the college. “ We are very excited to have him on campus and to provide a resource for parents who are concerned that their children are not just getting an education at college, but are ready for the workforce when they graduate.”

“At Lipscomb we seek to prepare young men and women to go into the world a whole person — spiritually, academically and professionally,” she continued. “This discussion will engage colleagues in other institutions in dialog on how we can stay relevant to the employers of the 21st century as the needs of students and employers are ever-evolving in our changing world.”

Selingo is also the author of “College (Un)Bound: The Future of Higher Education and What It Means for Students” and “MOOC U: Who Is Getting the Most Out of Online Education and Why”A regular contributor to the Washington Post, Selingo is a special advisor and professor of practice at Arizona State University and a visiting scholar at Georgia Tech’s Center for 21st Century Universities. He is the former top editor of the Chronicle of Higher Education, where he worked for 16 years in a variety of reporting and editing roles.

His writing has also appeared in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and Slate, and he is a contributor to LinkedIn, where you can follow his blog posts on higher education. Selingo’s work has been honored with awards from the Education Writers Association, Society of Professional Journalists and the Associated Press. He has been the keynote speaker before dozens of associations and universities and appears regularly on regional and national radio and television programs.

He received a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Ithaca College and a master’s degree in government from the Johns Hopkins University. He lives with his wife and two daughters in Chevy Chase, Maryland.

Lipscomb University College of Professional Studies

Lipscomb University’s College of Professional Studies offers the credentials of a traditional degree program, balanced with nontraditional delivery and coaching that helps students develop the skills to meet the workforce needs of today and tomorrow. It offers the university’s innovative competency-based education program which awards college credit based on prior learning as well as life and professional experiences through the college’s CORE (Customized, Outcome-based, Relevant Evaluation) Competency Assessment and Development Center. Students can earn up to 30 credits, following a rigorous behavioral assessment, saving them thousands of dollars in tuition money.

Lipscomb’s program, which is already considered a leader and innovator in this area among liberal arts institutions nationally, was the first to have its competency-based program accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and is one of only a few of its kind in the nation. The college also houses the university’s Adult Degree Program, which offers a variety of programs of study options. For more information about Lipscomb’s College of Professional Studies, visit lipscomb.edu/professionalstudies or call 615.966.1104.