Never before have I been asked more regularly by colleagues, clients, and the media to weigh in on the state of business for educational consultants in the Boston area.
In many ways our profession as a whole mirrors the real estate trend here. While other regions and their cities may experience more volatility in times of downturn, the fundamentals of the Boston metro area are sound. Real estate values have sustained and educational consultants remain busy.
But what's driving the market for educational consultants in Boston? Here are my thoughts:
1. Boston has one of the highest concentrations of educational consultants among metropolitan statistical areas in the US. More families are aware of the value consultants provide here.
2. Boston is a true word-of-mouth hub; people talk around town like few other places.
3. Education is the culture, period. All that hype about Boston as the "Athens of America" is true, no matter how cliché.
4. Boston is also viewed by foreign nationals as an (if not the) ideal destination for entry into the higher education system offering the most stable global education currency.
5. Boston's leading industries - life sciences, high tech, business services, investment management - all fuel multigenerational education pressures.
6. Many of the school districts in Metro-Boston were first-movers in the race to embrace and support special education. The ironic implication of this ‘gold rush' has been the eventual budget strains for those very schools.
7. Despite its world class teaching hospitals and leading research initiatives, demand outstrips supply for specialized schools and residential treatment centers in the Boston area. Thus, many do not know where to go for available help.
8. Boston is consistently rated one of the best places to live and work in the US, so industry is healthy and incomes have more staying power.
Now, this is not to say that these drivers are all unique to Boston. We have offices in New York, Connecticut and Vermont and see some of the same dynamics in those markets. Yet, there is something different underneath it all in Boston and that's why I'm relieved to call it home during times like these.
Please feel free to leave a comment from your own vantage point...
