Every great learning experience starts with a well-run administrative engine. Whether in a traditional university setting or online through digital platforms, admin functions are critical to student success. Areas like admissions processing, enrollment support, billing, program management, and the like all require dedicated admin staff to support the needs of the students. As modern education and Edtech grows more complex, education platforms are turning to education administration outsourcing as a way to scale and stay ahead of the curve, reducing workload for internal staff and increasing efficiency.
In fact, global education institutions now spend billions annually on outsourced admissions processing services like admissions support, bookkeeping, and online program management. In the U.S. alone, spending on the management of online programs is projected to more than double from $4 billion to $10 billion by 2025.
Outsourcing in Higher Education and E-Learning
Contrary to what you might think, outsourcing isn’t about giving up control. In fact, it’s about working smarter: adopting a clear division of labor, delegating certain tasks, and trusting specialized partners to handle that work.
In the education industry, there’s a lot of tasks that can be delegated, such as back-office functions; and things that can’t, such as curriculum and instruction. As you outsource education administration, the key is knowing which functions make sense to keep in-house and what education tasks should be outsourced for efficiency. Let’s explore that in this blog:
What to Keep In-House
Some responsibilities are tightly woven into your institutional identity. These responsibilities need hands-on management by internal teams who are integral to the curriculum, instruction, and leadership of your educational program.
1. Curriculum Development and Instructional Design
Content creation shapes your academic brand. Whether you’re building degree programs in a university or developing short-form e-learning modules, it’s best led by experienced educators who understand your goals and learners’ needs.
2. Strategic Planning and Leadership
Major decisions about your programs, partnerships, and long-term growth require deep context. These should remain within your leadership and executive teams.
3. Student Success and Academic Advising
Personalized academic guidance helps students stay on track. Advising that’s rooted in your institution’s structure, policies, and culture is best handled in-house.
What to Outsource
On the other hand, other tasks — especially those that are process-driven, time-consuming, or tech-heavy — are better suited to a business process outsourcing (BPO) or customer service partner company. Although these services don’t define your educational model, they play a big role in keeping things running efficiently and supporting your core staff.
1. Customer Service and Help Desk Support
Today’s students expect fast, reliable support, even at the most random times of day. Whether it’s login issues or course access questions, outsourced support teams can deliver 24/7 omni-channel support without having to trouble your internal staff. This is one of the top benefits of customer service outsourcing. Technical inquiries can be handed off to specialized staff, reducing time spent on basic troubleshooting and assistance.
Did you know? Customer service outsourcing benefits organizations in key operational areas.
Outsourcing tech support and learning management system (LMS) admin can lead to an estimated 30% increase in operational efficiency and 25% improvement in student engagement. Furthermore, institutions that partner with dedicated support firms rate their overall satisfaction at 90%.
2. Enrollment and Admissions Support
Enrollment and admissions can be an extremely busy area for only a small team of internal staff. Processing, reviewing, and following up on student documents can quickly overwhelm these teams, especially during peak enrollment season. By outsourcing enrollment support for colleges, tasks like these can be easily tracked and handled by an offshore team.
3. Accounting and Payroll
Outsourcing tuition processing, vendor payments, and payroll functions allow for better accuracy, lower overhead, and ensures compliance — especially as your educational platform expands globally.
4. Data Entry and Records Management
Accurate records and documents are vital for smooth education operations. This includes student records, transcripts, and compliance documents. These tasks are highly repetitive and detail-focused, making them ideal for specialized external teams. Institutions using outsourced support for data entry often see higher accuracy and faster turnaround times, especially during audits or accreditation processes.
5. Learning Management System (LMS) Support
Managing user accounts, uploading content, and troubleshooting LMS issues is time-intensive. Custom outsourcing solutions to address these technical admin tasks can free up your IT team while ensuring timely support for both educators and students.
Modern Education and Outsourcing Work Together
Outsourcing isn’t new, but it’s one that works effectively in the EdTech industry. As the education industry evolves and adopts e-learning, it becomes a viable strategy for businesses and institutions to implement. Rather than fully replacing internal departments, many schools and platforms are adopting education administration outsourcing to improve flexibility and ROI. In fact, studies show that outsourcing back-office tasks can help organizations save 15–30% on operating costs, which is a testament to the effectiveness of the strategy.
Final Thoughts
Traditional universities and online learning platforms have different standards, but both can benefit from building a modern, balanced admin stack. Identifying which internal functions are critical and process-driven are key. From there, education administration outsourcing partnerships that complement your team and goals can be explored. Done right, outsourcing helps you do more with less, without compromising the quality of education or support.
Looking for a partner in education administration outsourcing? FGC+ is a trusted company delivering Philippine outsourcing solutions for the modern age. Learn about our all-inclusive end-to-end solutions for EdTech and other industries at www.fgcplus.com.