A fistful of Dollars: How to Win More Funding for Student Equipment

Equipment lending services offer essential resources for students’ use, so it’s vital they are well funded. The reality is though that funding may be hard to come by. Service managers can find it a challenge to keep equipment up to date and available in adequate quantities. Needless to say, it’s an issue worth highlighting and resolving.

At this year’s BEA (Broadcast Education Association) Convention, a session named Hey Big Spender: The Apex and Abyss of Equipment Needs in Student Media put this issue into focus. Here we’re sharing some insightful points and advice given during this session for getting the budget you need. We’ll also share how our Connect2 customer universities approach this challenge with help from their system’s analytics. 

Hey Big Spender session – advice on getting the funding you need

Here’s a summary of the points made by the BEA speakers from University of North Carolina Greensboro, Rider University, University of Arkansas and University of West Georgia:

• Start requesting funds early to reduce likelihood of delays – even though this might require beginning years before the equipment reaches the end of its lifecycle
• Fixed equipment and studios might be benefiting from a shorter replacement cycle. Make sure loanable equipment is given the same consideration
• Retire old kit fast, empty shelves demonstrate you need more!
• Remember to price in inflation and not to assume discounts will be available if previously obtained
• If there are technology coordinators working across departments, make sure they are advocating for your area (see more details below on data to support your case available within Connect2 analytics)
• Stress the importance and benefits of having up to date kit, not least in attracting higher enrolments – prospective students and their parents will often be comparing your media resources with other schools they visit
• Don’t expect to win every time, but keep making requests as persistence pays off
• There are often big budgets for university broadcast and other video needs, e.g. graduation ceremonies. Seize the opportunity and get both your kit and team involved rather than see this money go elsewhere
• Weigh up what resources are giving most ROI to your department, e.g. laptop loans may be more cost effective than running a computer lab
• Consider what new equipment can raise your department’s profile while still being relatively affordable, e.g. interactive media equipment such as 360 degree cameras and VR headsets help attract new students. As with other areas, you can start with lower cost options and upgrade later when successful
• Make sure you’re benefiting as many students as possible to justify your funding applications (Connect2 can help with understanding current user numbers and also with service promotion – see more below!). As part of this aim, look at supporting the creation of more classes with kit that applies to multiple disciplines
• Cover all bases when looking for funding, both internal and external grants may be available; look ahead and be prepared for when opportunities arise; local corporates may be a source, especially those wanting to attract students upon graduating

And remember, be creative and persistent in arguing your case, as we quote from the session: ‘the best thing you can do for your campus is to be a badass!’

Support your business case with Connect2 analytics

Connect2 equipment booking software provides essential resource utilisation intelligence. With this data at your fingertips, it gives you much greater opportunity to argue your case when new kit is needed and create a tight business case.

So how do institutions use this valuable data to get better funding? Here are some examples shared by Connect2 university customers:

• If a media store is finding there is not always sufficient capacity of equipment to meet student need, Connect2 can demonstrate how often it is falling short, identifying which equipment items are used at full capacity and potentially leaving some students without
• Specifically, Connect2 shows how many times an item or category of equipment has been used in a given time frame, and the number of student users involved. This data can be extracted and presented right away as needed
• Some media stores analyse reservation data by department, class or module. They report on how many times allocated resources have been used and the number of students benefiting in each case
• Connect2 university customers publicise when their high-end equipment items are helping to win awards for their institution or contributing towards improving student grades, highlighting the number of times they are being used within a class or program. Noting here that BEA itself offers a number of awards each year – it’s well worth getting involved for that extra validation of your department’s achievements
• Some institutions convert the number of reservations for items during a semester into typical commercial hire costs for the types of equipment in question. This calculates a value for the resources provided which can be shared with senior managers. The data can also be used as part of a service review to calculate ROI for new kit purchased: money spent on new kit vs value to students

Also of relevance here: Connect2 universities make efforts to promote their equipment lending services and ensure students are aware of all on offer. As well as supporting their students, it helps maximise service use and reach which in turn helps justify their budgets and extra funding requests – a point that was highlighted in the BEA session. Read more here for advice and ideas on service promotion.

It’s detrimental to students and so to the institution as a whole if equipment isn’t up to scratch or available in sufficient numbers. We hope you have found this information helpful and wish you all the best with your funding requests and new purchases.

For further information on our software and its supporting analytics for your services, get in touch with Connect2 here.