The SERU Consortium successfully hosted its 2025 Business Meeting and Symposium at UC Berkeley on October 22-23. Over 60 participants from 18 universities and institutions across 3 countries attended. Topics covered include student experience in the age of AI, political uncertainties in higher education, career readiness and employment pathways, survey governance and administration, and experiences of student subpopulations.
Key takeaways include increasing internships for students, based on evidence that they act as "The Great Equalizer" in employment outcomes. Strategies for success involve dedicating resources to involve more campus stakeholders in survey administration and governance. Additionally, the symposium emphasized experimenting with AI in survey data analysis to efficiently process open-text responses, and prioritizing presenting data effectively—not just to campus leadership, but also back to the students themselves to promote transparency and engagement.