Synergis Market and Program Demand Analysis FINAL 10.4.17 (002) (002)

2017 Analysis of Market and Program Demand PREPARED FOR FAIRMONT UNIVERSITY SEPTEMBER 2017 Table of Contents Overview Objective Research Data Sources Summary Findings .3 West Virginia Location Analysis Reputation and Brand Awareness Educational Programs Overview of Market and Occupational Demand .8 Competition 11 MAT and M.Ed Program Summary Findings 11 Technology Programs 13 Cybersecurity Overview of Market and Occupational Demand 13 Computer Science Overview of Market and Occupational Demand 15 Computer Engineering Overview of Market and Occupational Demand 17 Competition 21 Technology Programs Summary Findings 21 Master of Business Administration (MBA) 21 Overview of Market and Occupational Demand 21 Competition 24 MBA Program Summary 24 Master of Architecture 25 Overview of Market and Occupational Demand 25 Competition 26 Master of Architecture Program Summary 27 Master of Criminal Justice 27 Overview of Market and Occupational Demand 27 Competition 29 Master of Criminal Justice Program Summary 29 Appendix 30 Data Sources 30 Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 OVERVIEW OBJECTIVE Synergis Education analyzed the viability of eight graduate programs, listed below, for Fairmont State University (FSU) for the purpose of assessing the feasibility of a shared revenue partnership Programs Currently Offered: New Program Offerings:  Master of Architecture  MS in Computer Engineering  Master of Business Administration  MS in Computer Science  Master of Education  MS in Cybersecurity  Master of Arts in Teaching  Master of Science – Criminal Justice RESEARCH DATA SOURCES The research conducted utilized a combination of data sources including, but not limited to, Google Analytics, school websites and Emsi Data Emsi data is a hybrid dataset derived from official government sources such as the US Census Bureau, Bureau of Economic Analysis, and Bureau of Labor Statistics Leveraging the unique strengths of each source, the data modeling team creates an authoritative dataset that captures more than 99% of all workers in the United States This core offering is then enriched with data from online social profiles, resumes, and job postings that provides a complete view of the workforce Emsi data is frequently cited in major publications such as The Atlantic, Forbes, Harvard Business Review, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and USA Today Please refer to the Appendix for specific references SUMMARY FINDINGS Programs that showed promise based on employment gaps, search demand, and program growth potential included the Master of Education, Master of Arts in Teaching, and Master of Science in Computer Science The projected growth of these programs would be incremental and therefore, from a financial standpoint, a revenue share would not be in the best interest of the University However, Synergis Education Academic Services Team could assist the Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 University in moving their curriculum to a modality that would make them more competitive Additionally, it is recommended that FSU consider working with Synergis Education in developing current in-demand programs with national appeal to attract students outside of its current geo-specific area WEST VIRGINIA LOCATION ANALYSIS Located at the north-central tip of West Virginia, the university is close to several metropolitan areas including Pittsburgh, Youngstown, Washington D.C., and Baltimore With well-known institutions in several of these areas, FSU will rely largely on the population of West Virginia for program enrollments West Virginia’s lagging economy and low education attainment levels will drive low enrollment numbers for graduate programs Ranking 47th or 48th nationally in education rankings, only 11.5% of West Virginia residents possess a Bachelor Degree (6.8% below the national average), and 6.4% hold an Associate Degree (1.5% below the national average) Table 1: West Virginia Educational Attainment By 2020, 51% of all jobs in West Virginia will require some training after high school; however, only 11% of jobs in the state will require a master’s degree As evidenced below, the top growing industries and occupations in West Virginia between 2011 and 2016 were as follows: Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 Table 2: Top Growing Industries Table 3: Top Growing Industries Detail Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 Table 4: Top Growing Occupations Table 5: Top Growing Occupations Detail In summary, as West Virginia tries to revamp its economy and improve their education levels, the State’s focus will be on increasing vocational and technical training Therefore, while search trends are positive and Cost-per-Clicks are competitive, without a strong need for a master’s degree in this market, driving a significant student population will be difficult However, as these students reach career ceilings, it is probable that the demand for higher education could increase Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 REPUTATION AND BRAND AWARENESS Across West Virginia, search trends for the school’s brand name “Fairmont State University” index higher than most of their WV competitors FSU did see a significant increase in search trends in March of 2017 with their second-place finish in the NCAA Division II Basketball Tournament Only West Virginia State University and Marshall University surpass FSU in search demand in West Virginia and FSU is best known in Clarksburg-Weston, WV Awareness of FSU is minimal across the US, but the school has gained some recognition in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Washington D.C., and Ohio Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 FSU has mixed critiques from various student review sites, and rather than being a variation of good and bad, opinions vary from one extreme to the other For undergraduate programs, some students love the small size, faculty, and location, while at the opposite end, students think the education is poor, overpriced, and, according to studentreviews.com, 55% of individuals would not return There are very limited reviews on the graduate programs One recent complaint referred to the MBA program, and one site indicated 80% (survey of students) thought highly of the programs Clearly, FSU is in a position to build upon its growing reputation and brand towards national recognition Additionally, as FSU ranks second in terms of brand traffic among its competitors with strong awareness in the market bidding on brand terms will help optimize the overall paid search costs, once programmatic marketing commences EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS OVERVIEW OF MARKET AND OCCUPATIONAL DEMAND West Virginia had 33 regional institutions that had completions in educational degree programs over the last 14 years In 2016, there were 2,235 regional program completions against a total of 4,150 annual job openings Of the 2,235 completions, 49.3% were at a master’s level, and 35.3% were at a bachelor’s level Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 At a master’s level, there were 13 regional institutions that had completions in the last 14 years In 2016, there were 1,102 regional program completions against total annual job openings of 1,409 Regional completions by institution in 2016 were as follows: Institution West Virginia University 2016 Completions 371 Marshall University American Public University System 337 138 Fairmont State University 55 Concord University Shepherd University West Liberty University Wheeling Jesuit University Salem International University Ohio Valley University West Virginia Wesleyan College Bethany College Strayer University-West Virginia 46 39 36 25 17 15 15 Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 The occupational market demand for educators holding a master’s degree in West Virginia is projected at a negative -6.6% while at a national level, the anticipated growth is +9.1% The table below details the target occupations that are projected to grow between 2017-2027 Occupation 2017 Jobs Annual Openings 2,680 234 Median Hourly Earnings $27.29 232 23 $13.33 +1.72% 206 26 $15.49 +9.71% 161 19 $17.03 +6.21% Postsecondary Teachers Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education Self-Enrichment Education Teachers Teachers and Instructors, All Other Growth (2017-2027) +5.34% Top 10 Employers The employers posting the highest number of jobs provides the institution with an opportunity to reach out to the community to gain input when developing or refreshing programs or working to place interns and graduates For this particular degree of the 10 are competitors, however, they are: West Virginia University Workforce West Virginia ITT Technical Institute American Public University System, Inc Kaplan, Inc Blueridge Community & Technical College Liberty West University New River Community and Technical College Fairmont State University 10 Marshall University Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 CIP Code 52.0201 52.0201 52.0201 52.0201 52.0201 52.0201 52.0201 Title Institution Business Administration and Management, General Business Administration and Management, General Business Administration and Management, General Business Administration and Management, General Business Administration and Management, General Business Administration and Management, General Business Administration and Management, General American Public University System Salem International University Shepherd University Wheeling Jesuit University Fairmont State University Strayer UniversityWest Virginia University of Charleston Award Level Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Completions (2016) 698 58 24 12 There were five similar programs at a master’s level that graduated an additional 330 students in 2016 They are as follows: CIP Code Title Institution Award Level Completions (2016) 52.0101 Business/Commerce, General Business/Commerce, General 52.0101 Business/Commerce, General 52.0101 Business/Commerce, General 52.0213 Organizational Leadership 52.0213 Organizational Leadership 52.0213 Organizational Leadership 52.0299 Business Administration, Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s 101 52.0101 West Virginia University Marshall University University of Charleston West Virginia Wesleyan College West Liberty University Wheeling Jesuit University Strayer UniversityWest Virginia West Virginia Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 84 36 12 26 23 CIP Code 52.0701 52.9999 Title Institution Award Level Management and Operations, Other Entrepreneurship/Entrepreneuri al Studies Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services, Other University degree American Public University System University of Charleston Master’s degree Master’s degree Completions (2016) 36 The occupational market demand for professionals holding an MBA in West Virginia is projected to grow 4.5% while at a national level the anticipated growth is 10.2% The table below details the target occupations that are projected to grow greater than 5% between 2017-2027 Postsecondary Teachers 2680 234 Median Hourly Earnings $27.29 Management Analysts 696 67 $36.03 +8.05% Managers, All Other 492 43 $20.32 +15.85% Computer and Information Systems Managers Social and Community Service Managers Sales Managers 204 19 $54.75 +13.73% 168 17 $23.35 +11.31% 142 14 $40.73 +9.15% Natural Sciences Managers 48 $51.43 +8.33% Occupation 2017 Jobs Annual Openings Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 Growth (2017-2027) +5.34% Top 10 Employers The top 10 employers posting the highest number of jobs are as follows: Workforce West Virginia West Virginia University ITT Technical Institute International Business Machines Corporation Mylan N.V Mylan Laboratories Limited Blueridge Community and Technical College Amazon.Com, Inc American Express Company 10 Kaplan, Inc COMPETITION School Format Master of Business Administration Fairmont State University West Liberty University American Public University Marshall University Frostburg State University West Virginia Wesleyan College Shepherd University California University of Pennsylvania Point Park University West Virginia University Waynesburg University University of Charleston Robert Morris University Duquesne University Ground Online Online Ground Online Ground Hybrid Online Online or Ground Hybrid (4 ground classes) Online or Ground Online or Ground Online or Ground Hybrid Credits Per Credit Cost Tuition School Location 36 30 39 36 36 36 36 36 36 $367.00 $450.00 $350.00 $383.75 $413.00 $425.00 $445.00 $500.00 $595.00 $13,212.00 $13,500.00 $13,650.00 $13,815.00 $14,868.00 $15,300.00 $16,020.00 $18,000.00 $21,420.00 Fairmont, WV West Liberty, VA Charles Town, WV Huntington, WV Frostburg, MD Buckhannon, WV Shepherdstown, WV California, PA Pittsburgh, PA 48 $453.00 $21,744.00 Morgantown, WV 36 32 30 36 $660.00 $781.25 $925.00 $898.00 $23,760.00 $25,000.00 $27,750.00 $32,328.00 Waynesburg, PA Charleston, WV Moon, PA Pittsburgh, PA All Schools Assume In-State Tuition Fees MBA PROGRAM SUMMARY Overall, small schools in comparison to larger institutions across the U.S struggle to generate leads for MBA programs Costs will be high and volume expectations would be low -especially in West Virginia where interest for an MBA ranks 48th among all states Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 Surrounding regional areas rank much higher and larger institutions offer well-known MBA programs within the state D.C ranks 2nd, Maryland 7th, and Pennsylvania 11th MASTER OF ARCHITECTURE OVERVIEW OF MARKET AND OCCUPATIONAL DEMAND Fairmont State University was the only institution that conferred degree in 2016 at a master’s level in West Virginia There were 10 similar program completions; each focused on some form of Engineering In 2016, these programs graduated an additional 127 students at a master’s level They are as follows: CIP Code 14.0101 Title Institution Engineering, General Marshall University 14.0101 Engineering, General 14.0201 14.0701 Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical/Space Engineering Chemical Engineering 14.0801 Civil Engineering, General 14.1001 Electrical and Electronics Engineering Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering Mechanical Engineering West Virginia University West Virginia University West Virginia University West Virginia University West Virginia University West Virginia University West Virginia University West Virginia University West Virginia University West Virginia University 14.1401 14.1901 14.2101 14.2501 Mining and Mineral Engineering Petroleum Engineering 14.3501 Industrial Engineering Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 Award Level Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Completions (2016) 18 18 27 26 The occupational market demand for professionals holding an Masters as an Architect is projected to grow 5.9%, equal to the national growth rate, between 2017 and 2027 The table below details the target occupations that are projected to grow between 2017-2027 125 10 Median Hourly Earnings $61.61 80 #30.76 2017 Jobs Occupation Architectural and Engineering Managers Architects, Except Landscape and Naval Top 10 Employers Annual Openings Growth (2017-2027) +4.80% +8.75% The top 10 employers posting the highest number of jobs are as follows: Workforce West Virginia Lockheed Martin Corporation Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc Battelle Memorial Institute Leidos Holdings, Inc Hamilton Sundstrand Corporation ICF International, Inc Teksystems, Inc UTC Aerospace Systems 10 Engineering consulting Services, Ltd COMPETITION School Format Master in Architecture Fairmont State University West Virginia University Ground Ground Credits 42 38 Per Credit Cost $411.00 $453.00 Tuition School Location $17,262.00 Fairmont, WV $17,214.00 Morgantown, WV All Schools Assume In-State Tuition Fees Please note that these are the only two schools offering any degree program in the area of Architecture Although WVU is focused on landscape and is not in direct competition with FSU's program, from a search perspective WVU will be competing with FSU on these same search terms For example, in an organic search, for architectural degrees in West Virginia, WVU ranks above FSU This is related to key word search content that WVU has strategically secured placing them higher on industry relevant sites Therefore, format, credits and tuition become important market factors Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 Master of Architecture PROGRAM SUMMARY NAAB accredited Architectural programs well at larger universities However, by 2020 target jobs are expected to decline by 1% Therefore, there is very limited growth potential for this degree program MASTER OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE OVERVIEW OF MARKET AND OCCUPATIONAL DEMAND There were institutions who had completions in the last 14 years In 2016, of those institutions graduated 252 students against 540 annual job openings American Public University System graduated 81% of the 252 regional completions The 2016 completions by institution are as follows: Institution 2016 Completions American Public University System 206 Marshall University 21 Fairmont State University 12 West Virginia State University West Virginia University There were similar programs at a master’s level that graduated an additional 529 students in 2016 They are as follows: CIP Code Title Institution Award Level 43.0103 Criminal Justice/Law Enforcement Administration Criminal Justice/Safety Studies Criminal Justice/Safety Studies Criminal Justice/Safety Studies West Virginia State University American Public University System Fairmont State University Marshall University Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree 43.0104 43.0104 43.0104 Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 Completions (2016) 143 12 CIP Code Title Institution Award Level 43.0106 Forensic Science and Technology Forensic Science and Technology Securities Services Administration/Management Marshall University 16 West Virginia University American Public University System Master’s degree Master’s degree Master’s degree 43.0301 Homeland Security Crisis/Emergency/Disaster Management Master’s degree Master’s degree 150 43.0302 American Public University System American Public University System 43.0106 43.0112 Completions (2016) 63 127 The occupational market demand for professionals holding a master’s level degree in Criminal Justice is projected to grow 6.7% which is below the national growth rate of 11.2% The table below details the target occupations that are projected to grow between 2017-2027 Occupation Postsecondary Teachers Police and Sheriff’s Patrol Officers Correctional Officers and Jailers First-Line Supervisors of Police and Detectives Detectives and Criminal Investigators Emergency Management Directors Forensic Science Technicians 2,680 234 Median Hourly Earnings $27.29 192 15 $20.26 +8.85% 73 $13.99 +2.74% 29 $27.55 +13.79% 26 $42.67 +15.38% 17 $32.73 +11.76% 13 $27.20 +23.08% 2017 Jobs Annual Openings Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 Growth (2017-2027) +5.34% Top 10 Employers The top 10 employers posting the highest number of jobs are as follows: Workforce West Virginia West Virginia University ITT Technical Institute International Business Machines Corporation Blueridge Community and Technical College Mylan N.V KVC Health Systems, Inc Kaplan, Inc American Public University System, Inc 10 United States Government COMPETITION School Format Master in Criminal Justice Fairmont State University Marshall University West Virginia University California University of Pennsylvania Online Hybrid (4 ground classes) Online Online Credits Per Credit Cost Tuition School Location 30 $384.00 $11,520.00 Fairmont, WV 30 $368.31 $11,049.30 Huntington, WV 36 36 $453.00 $500.00 $16,308.00 Morgantown, WV $18,000.00 California, PA All Schools Assume In-State Tuition Fees MASTER OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE PROGRAM SUMMARY Criminal Justice keywords generate significant search demand, but usually due to interest at the bachelor’s level rather than the master’s level In addition, FSU’s competition with Marshall University’s top ranked Master in Criminal Justice will hinder program growth Looking at trends of the Criminal Justice degree by state, West Virginia ranks 10th, Maryland 16th, Pennsylvania 18th, and D.C 25th However, this is driven by specialty and not by the level of educational attainment Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 APPENDIX DATA SOURCES Completers and Institution Data The completers and institution data in this report is taken directly from the national IPEDS database published by the U.S Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics CareerBuilder/Emsi Job Postings Data Job postings are collected from various sources and processed/enriched by CareerBuilder data to provide information such as standardized company name, occupation, skills, and geography Occupation Data Emsi occupation employment data are based on industry data and final staffing patterns Wage estimates are based on Occupational Employment Statistics and the American Community Survey Occupation wage estimates also affected by county-level earnings by industry State Data Sources This report uses state data from the following agencies: West Virginia Bureau of Employment Programs, Research Information & Analysis Division Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 Google Trend References Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 Master of Education Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 Special Education MAT MS Computer Science Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 MS Cybersecurity MS Computer Engineering Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 Master of Business Administration (MBA) MS ARCHITECTURE Master of Criminal Justice Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 Competition Synergis Education – Proprietary and Confidential ©2017 ... in the market bidding on brand terms will help optimize the overall paid search costs, once programmatic marketing commences EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS OVERVIEW OF MARKET AND OCCUPATIONAL DEMAND West... MAT and M.Ed Program Summary Findings 11 Technology Programs 13 Cybersecurity Overview of Market and Occupational Demand 13 Computer Science Overview of Market. .. Overview of Market and Occupational Demand 15 Computer Engineering Overview of Market and Occupational Demand 17 Competition 21 Technology Programs Summary Findings