A Socioeconomic Impact (SEIM) report by EMSI has shown that West Cheshire College brings £117m in benefits to its local economy. In addition, learners at the college will on average see a gain of £931 in annual income for each qualification earned.

From the Chester Chronicle:

Economists assume a 4% rate of return on government investments, but when EMSI looked at West Cheshire College, which has campuses in Chester and Ellesmere Port, the rate of return was an impressive 17%.

The outcomes of the report break down the impact West Cheshire College has on learners, businesses, taxpayers and society in general.

. . . .

Principal, Sara Mogel, said: “Further Education Colleges make a tremendous contribution to society and its economy. At West Cheshire College we recognised this, but even we have been amazed at the size of our own contribution. We won’t be resting on our laurels, but will continue to work hard to make West Cheshire a stronger economy and society.”

The college has posted a press release as well as the full results of the study.

Update (4/25/08): The York study is being covered again here. This article also mentions that EMSI’s model is being studied by the Learning and Skills Council to potentially become part of the standard evaluation of UK institutions.

Update 2 (4/28): Another article can be found here.

A recent socioeconomic impact (SEIM) report by Economic Modeling Specialists has shown that York College is vital to the regional economy in the counties of York and North Yorkshire, England. The study is one of the first that EMSI has conducted in the United Kingdom since the adaptation of its highly successful North American impact model that has been applied to over 500 community and technical colleges on this side of the Atlantic.

An excerpt from the article in the York Press:

It is estimated that the present -day York and North Yorkshire workforce embodies approximately 58,600 qualifications gained by past and present York College learners.

These added skills promote business productivity and increase regional income. The report adds that once current learners become active in the workforce they contribute millions to the local economy by promoting business output, raising consumer spending and increase property income in the UK.

Principal Alison Birkinshaw said: “This report confirms how important York College is to both the local and regional economy and how successful the college is in addressing the needs of local and regional businesses. Learners enjoy higher earnings after receiving education from York College, thereby expanding the economic base and reducing the burden on taxpayers.”

A free information seminar is being co-hosted by EMSI and Warwickshire College on 23 April in at Warwickshire College’s Henley-in-Arden Centre. The seminar, intended for FE college principals or their representatives, will provide an overview of the Socioeconomic Impact (SEIM) Study, including the underlying approach, types of information and analysis included, its benefits for colleges, its relationship to the Foster Report, and the kinds of data that college must furnish to EMSI in order to complete the study. In addition, EMSI will provide a prototype demonstration of its labour market analysis tools for FE colleges. A complimentary lunch will be served.

Please fill out the form on this page to reserve your place and receive more information.

The introductory pricing period for EMSI’s Socioeconomic Impact (SEIM) study is approaching its end. The special pricing of £7500 has been available since autumn 2007 following the successful pilot study conducted by Warwickshire College. In the meantime, some 40 FE colleges in the UK have taken advantage of this introductory rate to commission SEIM studies of their own.

Any FE college that signs a contract for the SEIM before 31 May 2008 will receive the lower rate, but after that date the price will increase to the standard rate of £8500.

For more information about SEIM pricing, please contact EMSI.

An article in the Guardian covers the excitement that is building among English colleges regarding the new UK-specific SEIM model created by EMSI/CCbenefits. Following a very successful pilot study conducted for Warwickshire College, some 50 more colleges have commissioned similar studies.

The company started work on data provided by the college in December last year. In May, the results were made public and were impressive, Morgan says. “My college was found to put £125m each year into the Warwickshire economy.”

This was based on the earning capacities over a working lifetime of 30 years of the colleges’ graduates who had gained qualifications there. The college was also assessed as yielding a return rate of 6% on every tax pound invested in it.

These were the key economic impacts. In addition were the savings made in healthcare and judicial costs by the colleges’ graduates because educated people tend to be fitter and commit less crime, Morgan says.

Read the full article.

EMSI/CCbenefits will be in the U.K. on September 10th to conduct its first-ever data input seminar for the U.K. version of its flagship Socioeconomic Impact (SEIM) study for colleges. Also presenting was Ms. Rachel Jones, Vice Principal of Warwickshire College, which participated in the initial pilot phase of the U.K. SEIM study.

King’s College in London hosted the seminar to launch the second phase of the pilot SEIM study for Further Education (FE) colleges in the U.K. More than 15 different FE colleges from across the UK were represented, and EMSI/CCbenefits expects a total of some 30 colleges to order the SEIM before the end of the year. The purpose of the seminar was to introduce the SEIM Starter Kit to participating colleges and provide context and explanation for the data requested.

The EMSI/CCbenefits SEIM study is a unique college impact study that measures the cost/benefit and return on investment of higher education from the perspectives of both taxpayers and the general public. About 800 SEIM studies have been conducted for community and technical colleges in the U.S. and Canada.

EMSI / CCbenefits has successfully completed its first SEIM study in the United Kingdom. The pilot, which required extensive adaptation of CCbenefits’ well-known U.S. model, was conducted for Warwickshire College. The college, which belongs to the influential 157 Group of largest further education institutions in the UK, expects that its leadership will pave the way for dozens more colleges to commission similar studies. Ioan Morgan, the college’s principal, first learned about CCbenefits while on a fact-finding trip to study the community/technical college system in the U.S.

Click here to read coverage of the study in the Guardian. 

The study showed that Warwickshire College provides a sevenfold return on taxpayers’ investments in it, and generates nearly £126 million of economic activity in its community — not only from college operational spending and payroll, but also by imparting income-raising skills and knowledge to learners, many of whom hail from the Warwickshire area and remain there after they graduate.