Four Ways to Get Started With AWS Cloud for Higher Education

Though pop culture may still depict the typical college experience as strolls through a quad with textbooks tucked under a student's arm, in reality the many ways that students can attend colleges and universities has grown increasingly more digital thanks to the cloud for higher education. Whether enrolled in a traditional, hybrid, or online program, students expect digital experiences.

Within Higher Education, colleges and universities continually seek to leverage the cloud to gain higher student enrollment, enriched student engagements, and to foster better student outcomes, so administrators, and IT departments must continue to drive digital transformation through cloud modernization to remain relevant and competitive.

Aim for Success by Focusing on Impact With Digital Transformation

With more than 3,000 new Amazon Web Services (AWS) and features launched in 2022, it can be difficult to decide where, when, and how to best utilize the cloud for Higher Education. Rather than die in the trenches of analysis paralysis, there are four recommended courses of action to drive true digital transformation through critical components of cloud infrastructure and cloud modernization. Within these frameworks, AWS Advanced Consulting Partners like ERPA can help K-12, Higher Education, and Education Technology (EdTech) organizations re-examine how they embrace the future of education today.

1. Cloud Modernization to Secure the Academy

Modernizing and securing your campus establishes the foundation upon which digital transformation can be enabled for all aspects of the organization. The good news is this isn't an “all or nothing” proposition. Not sure what cloud modernization would look like or its downstream impacts on security? ERPA is helping colleges and universities develop a systematic approach to digital transformation with an emphasis on cost-effective, scalable, secure, and flexible AWS Cloud infrastructure. Outcomes include reducing total cost of ownership (TCO) by as much as 30% – with increased agility (the ability to scale resources up/down as needed in near real-time), improved data security and compliance posture, and robust disaster recovery/business continuity.

2. Leveraging Data Optimization for Insight

Data is everywhere and growing exponentially. One of the newest and most valuable attributes of cloud modernization is the ability to access and synthesize data for valuable insights. For example, these insights can help more students succeed in their classes by tailoring curriculum and support resources to their learning needs, provide educators with insightful, relevant material for engaged classrooms, and provide insights into boosting alumni engagement. With a focus on data optimization, ERPA can help you understand why a Data Lake (vs. Data Warehouse) might be the key to unlocking valuable insights for your organization.

3. Enrich the Student Experience

We live in a culture that has come to expect personalized digital experiences and 24/7 access to everything from anywhere at any time and the student experience is no exception. Leading Higher Education organizations are leveraging data insights to create new ways to communicate and personalize student engagement in a number of ways, for example; innovative organizations are providing access to applications and desktops 24/7, virtual computer labs, intelligent digital assistants, innovative voice technologies, and extended reality environments. The result is personalized interaction and the highest possible propensity for success – the ultimate goal.

4. Cloud Infrastructure that Empowers Researchers and Accelerates Research

Enable researchers to spend less time requesting, or even worse, building infrastructure, and more time on science by building cloud infrastructure that can support these demands. With cost-effective, scalable, and secure compute, storage, and database capabilities, the AWS cloud enables researchers to easily launch secure, complex compute resources within minutes – all within predetermined parameters of the organization. Contact ERPA to discover how Research and Technical Computing on AWS can accelerate time to science.

Cloud for Higher Education is at Hand with ERPA + AWS

ERPA understands the complexities facing colleges and universities today. We have partnered with a myriad of higher education institutions as they pursue cloud modernization. If you and your organization are searching for answers on how to make the most out of AWS, contact ERPA today to speak to one of our AWS for Education experts.