Why Social Capital Is Higher Education's Next Core Outcome

By Katy Kappler, Co-Founder and CEO of InScribe

With things finally settling down after a particularly busy spring, I've had a chance to reflect on what I heard, learned, and contributed at two of higher education's largest conferences: ASU+GSV and UPCEA.

Held during the same week on opposite sides of the country, the conferences attracted many of the same leaders, innovators, and institutions. And while the settings were different, the conversations were consistent.

The message was impossible to miss: higher education is at an inflection point.

As AI transforms access to knowledge and reshapes the future of work, institutions are being forced to grapple with a fundamental question: What is the unique value of the college degree?

For decades, the answer was relatively straightforward. A degree provided knowledge, credentials, and access to career opportunities. These things are still true, but are they enough to differentiate the value of the educational experience?

The challenge isn't simply that AI is changing how students learn. It's that knowledge itself is becoming increasingly accessible. Knowledge that required years of study can now be found, summarized, and applied in seconds. At the same time, alternative credentials, accelerated degrees, and employer-driven pathways continue to expand.

As a result, institutions are being challenged to articulate a different kind of value—one that cannot be downloaded, automated, or replicated by AI.

Across dozens of conversations, one answer kept surfacing: connection.

Not just engagement. Not just networking. Meaningful relationships that help students navigate college, build confidence, access opportunity, and create a sense of belonging.

In other words: social capital.

And I believe social capital may become one of the most important outcomes higher education delivers over the next decade.

From Belonging to Social Capital

Belonging and social capital are often discussed as separate concepts, but research suggests they are deeply connected. Students who feel they belong are more likely to engage with their institution, seek support, and build meaningful relationships with peers, faculty, and staff. Those relationships become the basis for something even more powerful: social capital—the networks of trust, support, and opportunity that help students succeed both during and after college. (Strayhorn, 2018; Ahn & Davis, 2020)

Belonging creates the foundation on which social capital can thrive.

For generations, residential campuses created social capital almost by accident. Students built friendships, found mentors, joined communities, and expanded their networks through everyday interactions.

The challenge is that higher education's model for creating social capital was built around proximity. By living together and sharing experiences of all types, students naturally found durable connections with each other. But today's learners are increasingly online, part-time, working, and balancing complex lives. They don’t have the luxury of being on campus for years. If social capital remains tied to physical presence, many students will continue to be excluded from one of the most valuable outcomes postsecondary education provides.

Social capital isn’t becoming less important. It's that access to it has become increasingly uneven.

The New Responsibility of Higher Education

If I could put one question in front of every higher education leader right now, it would be this:

Is your institution treating social capital as a core outcome, or is it still treating it as a byproduct?

Not every student arrives with a network, but every student deserves to leave with one.

That's particularly true for the students many of us serve today: adult learners, first-generation students, online learners, career changers, military-connected students, and others who may not have access to the same professional and personal networks as their on-campus peers.

For these students, social capital is not simply a nice-to-have. It is often the difference between opportunity and missed opportunity.

The institutions that recognize this are beginning to rethink the student experience entirely. They're moving beyond isolated interventions and asking how connection can be intentionally woven throughout the learner journey—from enrollment, through graduation, and as an alum.

They're creating environments where students can easily connect with peers facing similar challenges, build relationships with mentors, engage with alumni, and access communities that continue creating value long after graduation.

The ROI Conversation Is Changing

This shift comes at a particularly important moment.

As tuition costs rise and public scrutiny of higher education increases, institutions are facing growing pressure to demonstrate return on investment.

Traditionally, ROI conversations have focused on salaries, employment outcomes, and graduation rates. Those metrics matter. But they tell only part of the story.

A degree that comes with a lifelong professional network, access to mentors, a supportive alumni community, and meaningful relationships carries value that extends far beyond graduation day.

In many ways, higher education's greatest untapped asset is not its content. It's its people.

The institutions that learn how to activate those relationships at scale will create a value proposition that is increasingly difficult to replicate.

What I Keep Coming Back To

After two conferences and countless conversations, I keep coming back to a simple conclusion:

The institutions that will serve students best in the years ahead are the ones that treat social capital with the same intentionality they bring to curriculum design, student success, and academic outcomes.

A degree alone used to open doors, but increasingly, doors are opened by people.

By mentors who make introductions.

By peers who share opportunities.

By alumni who advocate for the next generation.

By communities that continue creating value long after graduation.

The future of higher education isn't just about what students know. It's about who they know, who knows them, and the communities that help them thrive long after they graduate.

About the Author

Katy is an impact-driven CEO who has spent 25 years creating solutions that extend access to high-quality education for every student. She is the co-founder and CEO of InScribe, an innovative digital community platform that is proven to improve student outcomes, increase sense of belonging, and scale support for non-traditional and underserved student populations. Leveraging her experience and strategic abilities, Katy specializes in ed-tech innovations, student success, and communities of belonging.

Katy’s work has received multiple CODiE Awards and was recognized in Fast Company’s list of Top 10 Most Innovative Education Companies. Katy graduated from Brown University and has an MBA from the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California. Connect with Katy on LinkedIn