Higher Education
Ask the Expert: Rowan College of South Jersey
Learning for Tomorrow
As colleges and universities across the country aim to help best prepare their students to enter into the workforce, they are doing so by incorporating career readiness into several areas of the college experience. By forming partnerships with area companies and industry experts, these schools are identifying crucial employer needs to help better prepare students for jobs of the future.
We spoke to Brenden Rickards, Ph.D., who was recently named the second president of Rowan College of South Jersey (RCSJ), to learn more about education’s role in career preparation.
Preparing students for the future…
I believe that career preparation and education should always go hand in hand. However, that has not always been the case with academia and industry. Education must play a role in training each and every individual for their future careers. Besides earning a degree, this includes short-term credentials, emerging technologies, soft skill development, transfer preparation and critical thinking. At RCSJ we are proud to be adaptable to the workforce demands for trainings. We have been partnering with the local workforce development boards; premier industry partners Inspira Health, Acenda Integrated Health and Rastelli Foods Group to develop trainings that meet industry demands. Partnerships between academia and industry allow RCSJ to develop workforce driven programs that meet industry demand.
Aligning academic programs with workforce needs…
RCSJ has numerous advisory boards throughout the fields in STEM, nursing and health professions and business. These advisory boards provide an avenue for direct communication and collaboration between business partners in the region and the academic community at RCSJ. This ensures that the contemporary curriculum offered at the college meets the needs of the industries in which it supports. Additionally, the premier industry partnerships mentioned previously partner with RCSJ to provide real-life work experiences for selected students and allow them to experience their future careers first-hand while still in school. These opportunities are invaluable to our students at RCSJ as they gain experience while in their first few years of higher education.
How the increased presence of AI is shifting the approach…
The presence and use of AI is shifting how we all approach everything in our lives. The students coming to us now are so used to technology and AI that at times, we, faculty and staff, are at a disadvantage because for us it is change but for the current students, it’s what they expect. Technology in the workplace has endured many shifts. I remember setting up my first email account in college and how long it took me to accomplish that small task. Today’s students will have similar stories about the advances and advantages AI provides. Our job as educators is to embrace AI, define examples of AI in use, understand it is a tool, learn how to leverage it, address ethical and proper ways to use it, and pass this philosophy on to the students all to allow the human mind the time and space to do the creative and critical thinking. Employers want to see the use and leveraging of AI as a skill on resumes. This will be different for each student since AI is so much more than using ChatGPT to answer a question. They will need to link the use of AI to critical thinking at the end. For example, developed the prompts to run a predictive model then analyzed the output results to write a plan of action. When we break down AI as a tool, the future becomes less intimidating.
Addressing the needs of non-traditional students…
RCSJ is very proud to be able to support trainings for everyone in the local community. We are nimble enough to provide both short term trainings as well as academic certificates and full degree programs for individuals looking to advance themselves or completely change careers. This approach allows us to be able to train individuals, regardless of their age and background. Additionally, we are able to work with our students on Prior Learning Assessments, where individuals who have been in the workforce can earn credits based on their work experiences. This approach allows these non-traditional students to accelerate their progress towards a degree or training program by not duplicating work or trainings that they would have received while in the workforce. This allows them to progress more rapidly through their programs of study for upskilling.
At RCSJ, 21% of the student body is 25 or older and we want to see that number grow. To facilitate that growth, we must continue to offer flexible schedules, short-term credentials and in-demand careers. By partnering with the workforce development board as well as leaning in on our industry partners, we keep our offerings relevant. An exciting development for us is that we are on track to open our building expansion for the trades on the Gloucester campus that will house five new certificates: HVAC, plumbing, welding, electric and carpentry. Students will be able to enroll for these certificates for the Fall 2026 academic year. In this way, RCSJ is the education and training choice for the community regardless of their next steps.
Rowan College of South Jersey
Gloucester Campus | (856) 468-5000
Burlington Campus | (856) 691-8600
