Ad-ology Research recently updated their Industry Marketing Insights report for Tutoring Services. The following are the predicted Top 5 Opportunities/Challenges from the report for this industry for the upcoming 12 months:

• Mandated state-competency testing is influencing more parents to get tutoring for their children.
• Due to increasingly overloaded classes, students are getting tutors for tailored teaching.
• Tutor and learning centers are increasingly in demand by community college students who want to transition to a four-year college.
• Many businesses offer summer tutor “camps.”
• Competition from online tutoring videos is a challenge to the industry.

The Industry Marketing Insights report for Tutoring Services is available on Ad-ology.com (Research Store) for $195 USD with local market data for any U.S. market.

[Source: Ad-ology Research. March 2, 2010]

Ad-ology Research recently updated their Industry Marketing Insights report for Community Colleges. The following are the predicted Top 5 Opportunities/Challenges from the report for this industry for the upcoming 12 months:

• Many colleges are offering online classes to accommodate students, especially those who commute.
• Classes are becoming more technology-based, with professors using podcasts for lessons.
• An increasing number of community colleges are offering on-campus housing.
• Increased demand from from prospective students is forcing some community colleges to turn applicants away.
• The weak economy is making it more difficult for students to get loans.

The Industry Marketing Insights report for Community Colleges is available on Ad-ology.com (Research Store) for $195 USD with local market data for any U.S. market.

[Source: Ad-ology Research.  January 20, 2010.]

While Congress debates the fine points of the expected new health care legislation bill, the cost of health care continues to rise. As a percentage of the typical U.S. household budget, health care costs have risen from 5.3% to 5.9% in the past 10 years. To keep pace with demand, employment continues to rise in this sector, despite the general economic slowdown. Overall, private sector health care employment stands at 11.6% of total private sector employment.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, continued growth is expected in several health care-related professions. These include:

• Registered Nurses
• Home Health Aides
• Nursing Aides
• Personal and Home Health Care Attendants
• Medical Assistants

As the U.S. population continues to age, the demand for health care professionals is expected to rise. This trend will increase business activity in the following industries:

• Education services
• Employment services

Education services will be marketing to young adults who may just be completing high school and are seeking certification in a health care field. Older adults who want to pursue a new career in health care and require retraining also represent potential candidates for education services. As all of these newly trained professionals emerge from degree and certificate programs they’ll require placement. Look for employment services to market their expertise in both recruiting and placing individuals in the health care field in 2010 and beyond.

[Source: Health Care release, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Fall 2009]

Since 2000, the Department of Defense has been paying college costs of up to $4,500 annually for active members of the military. The availability of these funds are leading institutions of higher education to compete for students who qualify for this special funding. A recent Businessweek article pointed out that over $3 billion has been spent on this program in the past 9 years.

Daniel Golden notes that for-profit colleges have managed to enroll nearly 1/3^rd of military students. The big advantages that online, for-profit colleges have are ‘flexibility and options’. These schools also accelerate learning programs to allow students to quickly complete degree programs and sometimes accept transfer credits for classes in which students earned poor grades. This practice has led critics to question the quality of these degree programs but there is no shortage of students interested in enrolling.

Golden points to several policy changes made by the Defense Department since 2000 which are leading to increased enrollment in the military market. The Department pays tuition assistance to regionally and nationally accredited colleges and now pays 100% of tuition costs up to $250 per credit.  Competition for students interested in these programs and the associated government-funded tuition is so fierce that schools try to outdo each other by offering bonuses such as free laptops or textbooks.

This trend is also causing a major shift in the military education market from traditional to online classrooms. Online courses are increasingly popular with active duty students because they can complete their studies even if they deploy. Nearly 2/3’s of active-duty students who choose to study do so online. Several large operators have emerged in this market including American Military University with 36,772 active-duty students, Columbia Southern with  9,582 students  and  TUI with 7,665 students.

Some for-profit colleges have tried to market themselves on military bases but those doors are starting to close.  Still, many active-duty personnel are eager to advance their education in hopes of a future career. As schools reach this pool of students, look for for-profits to shift their marketing to other strategies such as online or via direct mail.

[source: Golden, Daniel, Online Colleges Surge with Marketing to Military, Businessweek, 12.15.09]