Summer Training for Consultants Demonstrates Diversity of Profession
by Mark Sklarow, Executive Director, IECA
The very popular and well-respected IECA Summer Training Institute kicks off its 2010 program on the campus of Swarthmore College on Tuesday, July 27. The attendees themselves may demonstrate how the profession of educational consulting has changed over the last several years. They are a racially and culturally diverse group of nearly 90
participants, representing 25 states plus Puerto Rico, and five foreign countries. Within the U.S. they hail from Florida to Alaska, and California to Maine.
As they look ahead to careers in educational consulting, 91% see themselves in college advising, 24% in secondary school consulting, 19% working with teens with emotional and behavioral issues, and over 30% expect to be working in the area of learning disabilities. Simple math indicates that most attendees expect their consulting work to cover more than one specialty.
While decades ago most entering the field of consulting were either admission directors or school-based counselors, today those categories account for only about half of new consultants. Among STI attendees are lawyers, small businessmen, school headmasters, college professors, and high school teachers, as well as mental health and allied professionals, among many others. Another change: while in the past virtually everyone
entering the field was on their third, fourth, or terminal career, in recent years STI attendees have ranged in age from twenty-somethings examining a first career, to those further along the continuum. Such diversity in attendees and their backgrounds has opened the field of consulting and provided our gatherings with all the benefits that come from a diverse population. It has also meant a growth in the diversity of students we serve as a profession, another wonderful bonus as we seek to become more reflective of the U.S. population as a whole.
We have made changes to the educational content of the institute’s offerings, as well. We now commit about four hours to fully cover the entrepreneurial needs of attendees, to fully understand the demands on establishing, promoting, and running a small business. A new full group session on understanding new media and social networking has also been added as well an elective on graduate school advising.
Joining the faculty are a number of guest presenters and panelists: Suzi Nam, director of admissions at Swarthmore College; Erin Finn, assistant VP for admissions at Drexel University; Richard Floyd, director of admission at Ursinus College; Joyce Latimer, director of admission at Auldern Academy; Barry Sysler, IECA member and financial aid expert; and Carolyn Mulligan, IECA member and expert on LD issues.
We’ll blog through the week so you will be able to follow the Summer Training Institute and the Independent Educational Consultants Association.
Related posts:
- Summer Training Concludes with Attendees Crafting Their Business Plans
- Summer Training Institute Participants: What Educational Consulting is All About
- VP for Enrollment: “You Are Great Ambassadors for the Profession”
- Summer Training Attendees Examine Ethical Practices
- Opening Day of Summer Institute: Becoming an Entrepreneur & Attendee Insights
