Equipping students for the jobs of today and tomorrow

Waukesha County Technical College (WCTC) is a leader in workforce development in Wisconsin, offering more than 150 areas of study, including associate degree, technical diploma, apprenticeship, and short-term certificate programs. The college’s guiding light is “Hands-on Higher Ed,” reflecting its commitment to offering hands-on training that can be applied immediately in the labor market.

That commitment is evident in WCTC’s Associate of Applied Science Degree in Computer Support Specialist, a two-year program designed to equip students with the skills they need to work in IT helpdesk environments. And what platform powers the student experience throughout the program? ServiceNow.

Real-world skills

Dr. Cyndi Kaye Lambach, who teaches the associate degree at the college, explains, “It’s important for us to give students skills that they can put to use in the real world, and that means giving them practical, hands-on experience. When I took over the program as the associate dean in 2016, we were using other IT service management software, but it wasn’t widely adopted in the industry. I had previous experience with implementing ServiceNow and saw a fantastic opportunity to open career opportunities for students by using the same ITSM platform that employers use.”

Dr. Lambach continues, “Students love it. When you see them on the system, they’re excited and engaged. And it really helps them understand how things work. When you just talk about incidents and problems, students nod and say it makes sense, but when they see it in action, the light bulbs really go on. We also have a number of neurodiverse students who sometimes struggle with academic learning, but as soon as they get their hands on the platform, they’re off and running. WCTC provides hands-on education, and this is what really sets our students apart from other applicants in interviews and on the job.”

Building confidence

The partnership between WCTC and ServiceNow is delivering real results for students—and the market. According to Dr. Lambach, “So many students have told me how confident they feel in job interviews after graduation. Our hands-on approach with ServiceNow gives them a vocabulary they can use in interviews. It lets them tell stories that show they know what they’re doing in the application and in the industry. And they say it’s really cool to use what they’ve learned in class to get their first job.”

“For example, one of our students is now working as a Computer Support Specialist, and she says the hands-on experience made it easy to engage in her interview and explain incident information flows. Another who’s working now as a Network Administrator echoes the point about having the right vocabulary in the interview and was able to go into the importance of prioritizing incidents. It’s these sorts of successes that make my job worthwhile.”

Momentum continues to grow

And what about the future? Dr. Lambach is enthusiastic. “We want to get even more students involved in the program. For example, computer support is a perfect fit for mothers returning to work—it’s something they can do at home and leverages the patience they’ve developed as a parent. Our best students are those that have a desire to help others and often find themselves as the family technical support contact. There’s huge demand in the market, and we are setting them up for success.”