Being an education consultant can be extremely fulfilling, especially because through education counseling you’ll be able to reach out and help students in need but it also has its fair share of challenges. Education consultancy is aimed at enhancing both professional and personal growth of a student but even so, both domestic and international education consultants may often falter when it comes to education consulting client management. Some of the most notorious education consultant industry challenges are as follows:
1. Lack of a brand:
Education industry is a vast industry that is ever-evolving and student retention in such an industry is dependent on the brand value of a consultant. Thus, the biggest challenge that an education consultant faces today is creating a credible brand that can reach out to a target client base. There are several education consultancy services that make multiple offers to students and to compete with them, education consultants must focus on providing top-notch, customized services to strengthen their brand and get good references or recommendations in the future.
2. Juggling evolving industry culture:
Be it domestic or international education consultants, the work that they do is hardly ever linear. Some may be attached to consultancy firms, some may work independently, some may be involved in colleges and universities, some might cater to exclusive clients while some may be involved in education policy making. The fast-evolving nature of the education industry dictates the nature of work that an education consultant often has to do and this can be challenging for them as they need to juggle different tasks, various profiles, and volatile organizational cultures.
3. Inadequate networking:
To deal with education consulting competition, consultants must invest heavily in networking. Working with different clients, universities and organizations adds to the portfolio of an education consultant but the real challenge they face is turning these associations into networking leads. According to education consulting industry trends, consultants who can network better among peers can effectively double their visibility and reach, both online and offline.
4. Adjusting to work cycles:
Adjusting and adapting to versatile work cycles can contribute heavily to education consulting stress. International education consultants often have to deal and engage with clients that live in a different time-zone than them. This may lead to unrealistic working hours and may be detrimental to the work-life balance of an education consultant. When a consultant deals with both domestic and international clients, jumping from one work cycle to another can be very taxing.
Being an education consultant is far from easy. The value of your work will vary and you’ll need time and patience to build up a consistent and loyal client base. Nevertheless, an education consultant revels in the fact that they strive for excellence everyday so that their clients can achieve their academic dreams.