NACE Foundation Funding Priorities 2007-2008
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The NACE Foundation supports research on issues related to the employment of college graduates and the corporate and educational organizations that facilitate the process of linking graduates to the job market. For the 2007-2008 academic year the Foundation has chosen to emphasize several broad issues as research priorities. These priorities are identified below. While these are areas of emphasis research proposals that address other issues related to the employment of college graduates will be considered for support.
Accountability
The Foundation is interested in (1) identifying methodologies for measuring the effectiveness of student learning programs related to employment outcomes and/or employee retention, (2) measurement models for determining the return on investment (ROI) from employer recruitment activities, and (3) assessing the effectiveness of student learning programs or determining the ROI of various employer recruitment activities.
Branding
The Foundation is interested in projects that assist institutions of higher education and organizations that recruit college graduates in identifying and developing effective branding and advertising strategies and programs. Questions that could be the focus of research under this rubric may involve what it means to develop a brand in the context of college recruiting both from the standpoint of the employer/recruiter and from the position of the education institution; what advertising/marketing techniques may be shown to be effective in constructing a desired image with students or employers, and how does the establishment of a desired brand impact the effectiveness of either recruiting talent to an employer or assisting graduates with entry into the job market.
Career Development
The Foundation is interested in studies that promote the understanding of student career development patterns. The studies may address questions, such as: how and when do students identify their career objectives; are there specific patterns to the development of career choices that can be identified with specific groups of students, and what factors impact the direction of a student's career choice? In addition, the Foundation is interested in studies that analyze programs or activities in place or under consideration by employers, institutions of higher learning, or others that attempt to structure and direct a student's career development options.
Diversity
The Foundation is interested in studies that identify and/or assess programs developed by either employers or institutions of higher education that are designed to promote the career development and employment of a diverse college-educated workforce. These studies may deal with workforce issues related to race, gender, age, sexual orientation, religion, ethnic and cultural identity, and the physically challenged.
Experiential Education Programs
The Foundation is interested in studies focused on the development of experiential education programs and activities. Experiential education is defined broadly to include both traditional models (e.g. cooperative education; internships-domestic or international) as well as emerging and nontraditional models (e.g. study/work abroad, shadowing programs, employer site visits, and industry-sponsored projects completed on campus). The research should concern itself with one or all of the following: (1) how a program enhances the workplace skills of participants; (2) how the program influences the career choices of students engaged in the activity, and (3) how the activity impacts the employment opportunities of participants.
Studies to be considered for funding are not limited to those issues within
the context of the American education/employment environment. The NACE Foundation
invites proposals dealing with the preceding issues whether the issues are
examined within another national labor market; focused on cross-national
comparisons, or examined from the perspective of an international education/employment
marketplace.
