In higher education, we’ve long viewed collaboration as a professional value. Yet many institutions still approach it as a collection of disconnected activities, rather than a coordinated institutional strategy. Advisory boards meet periodically, employers provide occasional feedback and faculty engage industry partners when necessary.
However, as workforce expectations continue to shift rapidly, institutions can no longer rely on slow programme cycles and isolated decision-making processes. Collaboration must become part of how colleges and universities plan, teach, innovate and respond to change.
This shift is especially urgent in health and wellness education, where workforce shortages, technological transformation and changing employer expectations continue to reshape the field. Healthcare occupations are projected to grow much faster than the average for all occupations, with approximately 1.9 million job openings projected each year through 2033 owing to both industry growth and workforce replacement needs, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
At the same time, many institutions continue to face challenges related to retention, programme completion and licensure preparation.
- Collaboration is a skill – here’s how to master it
- Academic collaboration isn’t automatic – here’s how to make it work
- Find the courage to teach collaboratively
Institutions are being forced to rethink how programme planning, student success and industry responsiveness intersect. One of the most overlooked opportunities in this process lies within advisory boards. Too often, advisory boards are treated primarily as accreditation requirements rather than strategic institutional resources. When advisory boards are intentionally engaged as part of broader planning, we can tap into valuable workforce intelligence that can shape curriculum design, programme expansion and enrolment strategy.
In many cases, employers identify emerging workforce needs long before those trends appear in institutional reports or labour-market dashboards. Healthcare leaders, for example, continue to emphasise the growing demand for flexible and stackable programme pathways that better support working adults and non-traditional learners.
In response, universities are developing evening, weekend and part-time pathways in nursing and allied health fields that aim to address workforce shortages projected through 2025 and beyond. These models are not developed in isolation; they emerge through ongoing engagement with healthcare systems, workforce partners and regional industry leaders.
At the same time, apprenticeship and experiential-learning opportunities are becoming increasingly important across higher education. Employers are no longer prioritising academic preparation alone. They are seeking graduates who can demonstrate communication skills, adaptability, critical thinking and workplace readiness before entering the profession.
Healthcare apprenticeships have expanded significantly in recent years as employers seek more sustainable workforce pipelines, according to the US Department of Labor research. Institutions that build stronger partnerships with employers are better positioned to create apprenticeship pathways, clinical partnerships and applied-learning experiences that support both student engagement and workforce preparation.
The role of artificial intelligence
Alongside these workforce shifts, artificial intelligence is beginning to reshape institutional planning and academic decision-making. AI-supported tools can help institutions analyse workforce projections, enrolment patterns, student progression data and programme demand more efficiently. These insights allow colleges and universities to identify emerging programme opportunities earlier and align curricular offerings more strategically with workforce realities. Recent national surveys also show that institutions are increasingly incorporating AI into enrolment forecasting, student support systems and institutional planning initiatives.
Even so, institutional responsiveness cannot become solely data-driven. AI may help identify patterns and trends, but meaningful decision-making still depends on human expertise, professional judgement and stakeholder relationships. Faculty, employers and student support teams provide the context necessary to interpret workforce data meaningfully and translate it into actionable academic strategies.
The strongest institutions are not simply adopting AI tools; they are integrating those tools into broader cultures of communication, adaptability and continuous improvement.
What do students need?
These conversations become even more important inside the classroom. In many health sciences and allied health programmes, institutions continue to navigate the challenges related to student retention, attrition and programme completion. National studies frequently place attrition rates in nursing and allied health pathways near or above 20 per cent, with academic intensity, financial pressures, work-life balance challenges and clinical requirements contributing significantly to student persistence challenges.
We need to create stronger alignment between workforce expectations, classroom instruction and student support systems. When we incorporate real-world healthcare scenarios, ethical dilemmas, communication challenges and clinical decision-making into classroom discussions, we help students better understand the realities of professional practice before entering the workforce.
At the same time, these discussions allow faculty to identify areas where students may need additional academic, clinical or personal support to keep afloat through rigorous programmes.
Square the circle
This alignment is becoming increasingly important as accreditation expectations continue to evolve. Regional accreditors now place greater emphasis on workforce relevance, stakeholder engagement, continuous improvement and measurable evidence of student success. Institutions are expected not only to demonstrate strong outcomes but also to show meaningful connections between academic programmes, workforce preparation and institutional mission.
Embedding these practices into everyday operations leaves us better positioned to respond to both accreditation expectations and workforce change. Advisory boards inform programme direction, workforce data supports strategic planning, employer partnerships strengthen experiential-learning opportunities and faculty connect these realities directly to classroom instruction. When these efforts operate together rather than independently, collaboration becomes more than an institutional talking point; it becomes part of the institution’s operational culture.
Higher education is entering a period that demands greater agility, responsiveness and workforce alignment than ever before. Institutions that continue relying on traditional structures and slow adaptation cycles risk falling further out of step with student, employer and industry needs. Those willing to rethink collaboration as a long-term institutional strategy, rather than a series of isolated initiatives, will be better positioned to support student success, workforce readiness and institutional sustainability in the years ahead.
Key takeaways
- Collaboration should function as an institutional strategy, not simply an accreditation activity.
- Insights from the workforce and advisory board can help institutions respond more quickly to industry and enrolment trends.
- Flexible and stackable pathways are becoming increasingly important for workforce responsiveness and adult learner access.
- Apprenticeships and experiential learning strengthen workforce readiness while improving student engagement and retention.
- AI-supported analytics can support strategic planning, but human expertise remains essential for institutional decision-making.
- Stronger alignment between workforce expectations, classroom instruction and student support is critical to improving persistence and completion outcomes.
- Institutions that embed employer engagement, workforce planning and applied learning into everyday operations are better positioned for long-term sustainability and responsiveness.
Walaa Awad is an educator at Colorado State University Global.
If you would like advice and insight from academics and university staff delivered direct to your inbox each week, sign up for the Campus newsletter.
comment