{"id":29996,"date":"2021-04-15T07:34:49","date_gmt":"2021-04-15T14:34:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/?p=29996"},"modified":"2021-10-16T01:44:59","modified_gmt":"2021-10-16T08:44:59","slug":"deep-dive-getsmarter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/careerkarma.com\/blog\/deep-dive-getsmarter\/","title":{"rendered":"A Deep Dive Into GetSmarter: Learning and Development Made Relevant"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Careers used to be simple. Earn your bachelor\u2019s degree, land a well-paying job, and work away until retirement. Over time, that simple model has gotten more complicated. Starting and maintaining a career is no longer a one-and-done deal but a game of upskilling and reskilling to remain relevant in the workplace. Enter GetSmarter<\/a>, a 2U, Inc. brand.
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In recent years, we\u2019ve seen an increasingly volatile and changing job market that has prompted multiple career reinventions. Throw in a pandemic-induced recession and accelerated automation, and we\u2019re looking at what the World Economic Forum referred to as a \u201cdouble-disruption\u201d scenario<\/a>. 
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Caught in between these changes are workers who have either been rendered unemployed or stand at the precipice of it. To stay relevant, workers have turned to upskilling, spurred by the belief that new skills attract new opportunities. 
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The bad news is that going back to school almost always comes with a demanding schedule and a long time to completion. The good news? You can avoid both and still unlock higher-value careers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2U and GetSmarter: A Strong Partnership<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In 2008, 2U established its presence in the United States as an online education solution provider that offers fully-fledged online degree programs. Its mission was simple: to eliminate the back row in higher education. By utilizing the digital space, students who once sat in the dark corners of the classroom can finally sit front and center on the screen.
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was this philosophy that caught the attention of many. Four years after its inception, Forbes named 2U one of the \u201c10 startups changing the world.\u201d<\/a> In 2016, Inc Magazine listed 2U as among the \u201c10 tech companies helping humanity.\u201d<\/a> Amid such recognition, 2U identified an opportunity to tap professionals who needed to upskill but didn\u2019t necessarily have the time to earn a degree.
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GetSmarter, a South African-based startup that delivers a portfolio of short-term online courses, caught their attention. Its guiding mission: to improve a million lives by 2030 through expert online education. Although GetSmarter offered a different learning product, it was similar to 2U in many ways. 
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For one, both operated on a similar strategy: forging ties with top-tier universities and providing instruction that\u2019s just as competitive as what\u2019s offered in brick-and-mortar institutions. Second, and more importantly, both companies have a shared sense of purpose: to provide quality education to working professionals around the world. 
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With goals that aligned like this, a partnership between the two companies only seemed inevitable. With 2U\u2019s resources and technology, GetSmarter could expand its reach worldwide. In the same vein, through university short courses delivered in collaboration with GetSmarter, 2U could finally provide a comprehensive and accessible suite of professional development services. 
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And so in 2017, after nearly a decade of coexisting, 2U acquired GetSmarter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How GetSmarter Disrupts Learning and Development Trends<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In 2019, the Harvard Business Review published an article titled \u201cWhen Companies Go Wrong with Learning and Development.\u201d<\/a> The title itself is telling, but the details are damning. According to the report, 75 percent of managers are dissatisfied with their Learning and Development function. 
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meeting them are the 88 percent of employees who were unable to apply the skills they learned from the L&D programs to do their jobs. The disconnect stemmed from a range of factors, including learning the wrong things, for the wrong reasons, and at the wrong time. 
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GetSmarter turns the tide by tackling these flaws head-on. Since its inception, GetSmarter has tailored its services to supporting career builders. And it\u2019s precisely because of this responsibility that quality remains top of mind for GetSmarter from selection to delivery of university short courses. So, how does it keep quality learning in check?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. University Partners<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

GetSmarter separates itself from other online learning platforms by delivering short courses developed in collaboration with premier universities. How premier, you ask? Just recently, Times Higher Education<\/a> published its annual ranking of the top universities worldwide, as measured by their teaching, research, knowledge transfer, and international outlook. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of the top eight universities identified, seven have partnered with GetSmarter. Among these are Stanford University, Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and Yale University. From the first step, GetSmarter makes sure that its university partners have tried and tested expertise in delivering quality education. It doesn\u2019t stop there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Data-Driven Course Selection<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

GetSmarter never goes in blindly. Knowing the role that one\u2019s education plays in the job market, GetSmarter ensures that the University online short courses it delivers are never out of touch with what the employers need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Its process is simple. Leveraging its team of market researchers and data analysts, the GetSmarter team studies the \u201cfuture of work\u201d trends, industry growth, and the jobs and skills landscapes before jumping into the course selection process. This eliminates the guesswork that goes into wondering whether a course has value beyond the classroom or not. With GetSmarter, it always does.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Outcomes-Based Design<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Harvard Business Review identified learning for the wrong reasons as one of the culprits behind ineffective L&D programs, it meant that the onus of career growth is placed on the credits earned, not the skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GetSmarter flips the order of priority by using a range of instructional efforts that direct participants toward the desired outcome\u2014that is, gaining market-led skills. In other words, every lesson and activity you take\u2014from the weekly content and activities to the live sessions\u2014is intentional.

As for keeping score, completion of a University online short course will earn you a certificate awarded by GetSmarter\u2019s university partner. Put simply, you don\u2019t just take home a bag of new skills, you also get to demonstrate your commitment to continuously learn and grow. That\u2019s something that\u2019s not taken lightly by employers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. People-Mediated Delivery<\/strong>

Because GetSmarter is, in and of itself, an education partner for working adults, two things guide its delivery of online short courses in collaboration with its university partners. First is the understanding that you can\u2019t be in front of your screen 24\/7. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is why their online short courses are self-paced and broken down into bite-sized modules. This format gives you the freedom of learning without being tethered to your screen. 
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite that, accountability is never off the table. That\u2019s to say that the modules and activities come with incremental deadlines and corresponding grades. So while you\u2019re free to learn at your pace, you\u2019re never so free as to neglect your studies.

Second is the understanding that students learn best within an engaging environment. GetSmarter makes the impersonal personal by leveraging both peer and guided learning. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Upon enrollment, you gain access to a team of Success Advisers who will be there to guide you through your chosen online short course. Subject-matter experts engage with participants through discussion boards as well as provide feedback to participants on their weekly assignments. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the peer-learning side is a global cohort of other working professionals. This allows you to share insights and experiences with individuals who are on the same journey toward career advancement as you are. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Put these all together, and you get learning and development programs that bank on relevance. Put simply, GetSmarter works toward ensuring that whatever you learn and however you learn is aligned with the state of the job market. Every step GetSmarter takes is informed, from the moment it collaborates with its university partners to the moment the University online short courses are rolled out into the market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GetSmarter: Top University Online Short Courses<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A quick look at GetSmarter\u2019s website will show you nearly 200 short courses developed in collaboration with 18 universities. Below are a selection of courses that are designed to meet some of the most in-demand skills required for today\u2019s workplace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. University of Cambridge: Communicating for Influence and Impact<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n