If we were to record a time-lapse for the role of payments in higher education spanning three decades, it would reveal a dynamic, evolutionary process. Originating as a simple tool for transfer, payments technology has been implemented by colleges and universities to resolve matters of security, governance, and reconciliation.
However, the future promises much more. Powered by the advent of big data and predictive analytics, seemingly insignificant information is being converted into actionable insight at unprecedented rates. Anonymized payment data should be no different, as it can be leveraged to understand pain points for students and merchants, unlock business opportunities in real-time, and ultimately deliver bottom-line profits. Follow along as we forecast the upcoming role of payments in higher education and outline what it will take to stay on the cutting edge.
There’s no time like the present
The concept of predictive analytics in higher education is not new. As we speak, universities and colleges throughout America are investigating historical patterns across campus in an effort to optimize future student experiences, financial aid, curriculum planning, and much more.
Georgia State University, an early adopter of predictive analytics, has monitored over 140,000 student records and 2.5M grades to pinpoint triggers for student dropouts. This information was operationalized into an early warning system for student intervention, resulting in a 22% lift in graduation rates over a decade.
Shifting our focus to the Northeast, Dartmouth College created the SmartGPA app in 2015 to automatically predict student grade point averages based on behavioral habits such as sleeping, studying, partying, and more. Instead of requiring user input, the application relied on machine learning algorithms to understand indicators that positively correlated with GPA.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained
It’s safe to say that such case studies are just the beginning. Anonymized payment data represents an increasingly valuable piece of the puzzle, as the ecosystem for students and merchants becomes more divergent and ambiguous.
By understanding the ‘how and why’ behind payment behaviors on campus, student and employee experiences become hyper-personalized, trends are capitalized on, fraud is mitigated, and the future can be secured.
Degrees of progression
Building a robust predictive analytics platform that draws from data-rich sources across campus is no easy task, especially when it comes to payments. Due to the highly sensitive nature of transaction data, encryption and anonymization is required at all stages. That’s where our team comes in.
With a proven track record of securing payment data and removing it from PCI scope, we can prepare your university for innovation. By leveraging our expertise and reporting solutions, you can create systems for data collection that support organization-wide payments visibility and financial oversight. The end-result? Better experiences, improved efficiencies, and enduring profits:
