It has been reported, both in the past and recently, that government agencies have been turning to outsourcing for assistance in their processes. Outsourcing companies have already established their presence and importance especially in helping out not only both privately held and public companies, but also government agencies as well. For government agencies, the solutions being tapped are quite diverse; there is the outsourcing of public services, accounting processes and IT support.
Outsourcing may have already made its way through the core of companies and institutions because aside from government agencies turning to outsourcing, universities now have already started to see the benefits of outsourcing some of their processes to a preferred and trusted partner. They have started in seeking the assistance of outsourcing companies for their examinations processes and financial aid processing; even instructors and professors have been outsourced.
The outsourcing industry have now tapped the key players in higher education as United States-based outsourcing firm Cognizant Technology Solutions (NASDAQ: CTSH) signed as an outsourcing partner to Cambridge Assessment, a non-profit organization group owned by Cambridge University. The outsourcing contract would allow Cognizant Technology Solutions to provide Cambridge Assessment assistance in the latter’s portfolio of applications and support services while it improves the management and processing of examinations for Oxford Cambridge and RSA, University of Cambridge International Examinations, and University of Cambridge English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) Examinations.
After taking the examinations and enrolling in classes and subjects, it is now the tasks of students to attend the classes and hear lectures from professors. Recently, there seems to be a burgeoning branch under the outsourcing tree, which is instructional outsourcing since it is now gaining recognition from campuses in the United States.
Three months back, it has been reported that students taking journalism classes in Missouri State University will be getting lessons from professors and teachers from a non-profit journalism training group based in St. Petersburg. The state university has decided to outsource their instructors, choosing Poynter Institute to be their resource provider, as there has been a significant change in the budget being allocated by the state for public education while there are expectations to keep up with.
Another area where outsourcing is being deemed important in higher education processes is the accounting and financial aid aspect. Campus Management Corp. made an announcement last August 16 that it has entered into a partnership with CampusLogic. The former is a provider of software products and services that helps universities and colleges with their academic delivery and administrative management tasks, while the latter is a provider of financial aid services. It does makes sense to see them collaborating so as to provide a wider array of services and for them to meet the growing demand for financial aid automation.
Even if the key players in the outsourcing industry does not engage with each other as to whom their clients would be, it seems that their approach in handling the education sector, as an industry in general, could be considered strategic. It can be seen now that the outsourcing industry is gradually learning how to tap the higher education sector.
Author: Jamee C.
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