How School Consulting Has Changed
I had the wonderful opportunity to share with Western Boarding School Heads and Directors of Admission about how the field of school consulting has changed in the last 10 years. Among the major changes, here are 10:
1. Increased education and professional training of consultants.
2. A doubling of their number: over 300 IECA Members do school advising (a smaller percentage, but membership growth means more of them).
3. More consultants are out west: just 52 in 1999, today more than 175 IECA Members live in the western states.
4. Transition of consulting from an avocation to a full-time profession that can support a family.
5. Adoption of far stricter rules that prohibit the acceptance of gifts valued over $50 and a prohibition against activities by consultants that seek to influence a school’s admission decision.
6. Growth in international consulting.
7. Closer ties with NAIS, TABS, SSATB.
8. Availability of social networking tools to enhance communications between schools and consultants.
9. Change in the IECA conference format to ensure more face-to-face time between schools and consultants.
10.New standards of excellence that will ensure those doing school advising are well-informed and well-prepared.
Posted by Mark Sklarow, IECA Executive Director
Related posts:
- Transitioning from a School or College to Independent Educational Consulting
- Years-Long Effort Results in Major Step Forward for the Profession of Educational Consulting
- THE Fundamental Difference Among School and College Consultants: A Brief Primer for Parents
- School District Moves to Contract with Educational Consultants for College Advising; are we moving toward the tipping point?
- The Economy is Rebounding; is Consulting Poised for Improvement?
