A course for Higher Education leaders, Administrators, EdTech enthusiasts and Teaching & Learning professionals as well as anyone with a keen interest in the sector.
Higher Education has not been immune to the disruption brought about by technology and an accelerating pace of change. As a result, many Higher Education professionals have felt unsure of how to harness the power of the EdTech revolution in the great work they do. This course, founded on a credible and curated body of knowledge from leading EdTech and Higher Education experts, will help anyone working in Higher Education to understand both the challenges and opportunities that exist in the next wave of Higher Education.

Program Overview
Week 00 | Orientation
Week 01 | Leaning into the future of Higher Education
Week 02 | Digital transformation in the context of Higher Education
Week 03 | The business of education
Week 04 | Marketing, enrolment and student retention
Week 05 | Partnering for success
Week 06 | A modern approach to teaching and learning
Week 07 | Big data and learning analytics
Week 08 | Leading education in the digital era
Week 09 | Nano-capstone submission and feedback
Price | $725 USD (~$995 AUD)
Duration | 8 weeks
Effort | 4-6 hours per week
Cohort size | 25
These are undoubtedly exciting times in Higher Education. While unprecedented levels of change will have mixed consequences, the intention of this course is to enable you to apply tried and tested lessons from the very best in their field, thereby improving the likelihood that both you, and your organisation not only remain relevant, but seize the latent opportunity this change presents.
The course has been designed to offer a thorough and holistic view of what is a broadly defined ‘Higher Education’ sector. Through an exemplar relationship-based, Next Generation Learning Environment (NGLE), you will engage with content, your fellow peers and industry mentors in a rich and immersive online learning experience.


Curriculum
Orientation
Week 00
Prepare yourself for this immersive learning experience. Familiarise yourself with Cahoot’s collaborative learning platform and navigate through a brief orientation module that will set you up for success and help you get comfortable with your online learning journey.
Leaning into the future of Higher Education
Week 01
Orient to past, present and possible futures for Higher Education. Discuss and debate macro, global challenges facing the sector, attempt to define them and to achieve consensus with fellow learners, both in terms of their interpretation and strategic priority.
Digital transformation in the context of Higher Education
Week 02
Consider the role of emerging technology as relates to the business of education, both in terms of their impact to internal and external operational business systems and processes, as well as the ability for emerging technology to deliver better learning outcomes for students.
Extend interpretation beyond the technologies themselves by unpacking contemporary ways of working used by leading organisations.
The business of education
Week 03
Explore traditional, as well as novel commercial models adopted by experimental organisations at the periphery. Both legacy and modern business models are routinely disrupted in the wake of the 4th industrial revolution, and in addition to their effect on existing internal operations, there are substantive downstream impacts to all stakeholders in the ecosystem.
Challenge conventional wisdom, investigate sources of revenue and the rationale for existing business models, while discovering innovative ways to be commercially sustainable in the face of increasing competition.
Marketing, enrolment and student retention
Week 04
Learn why marketing and enrolment management are core to the commercial engine. Discover how to identify and communicate key points of differentiation, target prospective students and ensure commercial success while building relevant, attractive products and services.
Develop a deeper appreciation of the modern marketing stack and the specialised team of multidisciplinary experts needed to constantly optimise and report performance of campaigns in real time.
Facilitation team
In addition to a range of experts availing themselves to support participants learning throughout the course, the following team members enrich your learning experience across the program.
Partnering for success
Week 05
Consider the collaboration imperative. Navigate through various partnership types, their pitfalls, challenges and opportunities. Learn about the culture, strategic and operational teams, the market conditions and effort required for effective, sustainable and mutually rewarding partnerships.
A modern approach to teaching and learning
Week 06
Discover innovative teaching and learning that embrace both existing and nascent technologies. Discover how to build and deliver better education products and services while measuring their effectiveness.
Big data and learning analytics
Week 07
Discover the importance of data, and in particular, the power of data visualisation for decision making. Explore data in the context of business operations, with the majority focus being on learning analytics - learning gains, student experience and satisfaction.
Understand base logic underpinning data modelling, regression and predictive analytics, as well as the highly skilled team needed to support this function.
Leading education in the digital era
Week 08
Realise leadership in the context of the digital, exponential economy. Address challenges related to the accelerating pace of change, an increasingly complex, multicultural workforce, social media and a disaggregated team of employees often geographically dispersed.
Introspect, debate and blend contemporary practices from global thought leaders to accelerate your potential.

Nano-capstone
CONNECTed’s Disruption Readiness & Propensity Matrix is a management framework enabling Higher Education Institutions (HEI’s) to evaluate their susceptibility to disruption, or likelihood of disrupting the Higher Education marketplace. The matrix is divided into four quadrants, each characterised by a specific set of core and antecedent attributes which inform the institutions ‘disruption quotient’.
The four quadrants are described as: Reactive Disruptee’s; Aspirant Defender’s; Reluctant Responders & Potential Disruptors. By ascribing a HEI to one of these categories, leadership is then able to determine both their institutes readiness and propensity to tackle or drive marketplace disruption.
The Disruption Readiness & Propensity Matrix is predicated on the logic that an institutions long term survival, scalability and sustainability correlates directly with its ability to withstand and or drive innovation and disruption. To quote Charles Darwin: “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent; it is the one most adaptable to change.”
Institutions that are adequately prepared for disruption and that display an appetite to drive innovation and thus disruption are likely to dominate existing markets and more importantly capture new blue ocean marketplaces. This market leadership creates a self-reinforcing virtuous cycle whereby dominant institutions realise increased returns on investment, reduced cost of acquisition of students, improved operational optimisation as well as enjoying strong brand equity and brand salience.
Upon successful completion of the course, you’ll be ready to:
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Summarise and clearly articulate several of the challenges Higher Education faces globally.
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Generate a strategy within an accepted framework either to mitigate a risk or seize an opportunity, and/or meaningfully contribute to an existing body of knowledge.
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Demonstrate empathy and the enterprise skills required to adapt to a changing workforce and the interconnectedness of things.
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Identify the leadership challenges and opportunities in education associated with the changing nature of work and pressing global issues.
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Critique current educational product development and explore alternative innovative, responsive and adaptable models suited to the digital age.

Facilitation team
In addition to a range of experts availing themselves to support participants learning throughout the course, the following team members enrich your learning experience across the program.
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Rob Westervelt
Vice President for Strategy & Innovation, Lindenwood University

Yvonne Breyer
Deputy Dean, Education & Employability, Macquarie University
Frequently Asked Questions
Will the course adjust to my schedule?
CONNECTed's courses are modular release, cohort-led and offer a hyflex model with both synchronous (optional) and asynchronous elements that collectively provide an unrivalled learning experience.
While best enjoyed 'with the pack', the course flexes to your schedule and occasional absence from the program shouldn't substantively impact the outcome.
Why is there a waitlist, why can't I start now?
We believe in the power of community. You join this program with domain experience, competencies and skills that compliment the learning experience for others and vice versa.
While expert facilitators are there to guide the conversation, share insights and encourage debate, it's through discourse, encouragement and interrogating others points of view where true learning takes place.
We'll notify you when we reach 25 participants. From there we'll endeavour to start the program within 10 days. This threshold will ensure a memorable experience for all.
I want to enrol in this course but Covid has been brutally unkind - do you offer discounts?
Our courses are well priced commensurate with value. That said, we recognise that situations arise from time-to-time in our lives that see us needing to prioritise lower-order needs through sheer neccesity.
If your circumstances are such that you cannot afford the course fee as it stands, please send us a note and we will send you a discount code relative to what you can afford, no questions asked.
Fees must not be an obstacle to you joining our community intent on bringing about meaningful and sustainable reform in our sector.
Who is your typical participant?
We've enjoyed the company of former VC's/Presidents to current serving Provosts, Managing Directors, SVP's and a raft of talented EdTech leadership from every continent.
Our participants are 60:40 traditional University & College, mid-senior management versus 40% coming fromOPM/OPX and Venture Capital.
Prominent Universities including Stanford, HarvardX, LSE, UCI, National University System and large EdTech companies like 2U, Academic Partnerships, Keypath, iDesign, InStride among many others have trusted us with the professional development of their people.
Secure your spot
Course starts early April
Payment instructions will be sent to you via email.