Abstract: The success of any educational innovation depends not only on the type of strategy that we may put into action, or its intrinsic advantages; it must also be conditioned by the extent to which said innovations produce appropriate results for its intended subjects. Along these lines, a key precondition for any innovative program or proposal is an in-depth analysis of the universe of individuals with which we will be working; only by recognizing their characteristics we will be in a position to validate certain strategies while discarding others, leading to greater effectiveness when opting for specific strategies. The focus of this effort is oriented toward reconstructing the profile of incoming students entering the School of Economic, Legal and Social Sciences of the National University of Salta for the 2016 academic year, students who, in line with the course work laid out in our Study Plan, are currently in the third year of their respective degree programs. Identifying the most relevant characteristics of this group of students was the launching point for the subsequent development of a concrete proposal for innovation to boost the likelihood of academic success. We see how issues related to students’ actual motivations, their prior development of specific skills, or socio-economic situations possess a significant weight as factors that shape their profile; they also exert an influence on any attempt to put innovative strategies into practice. Shedding light on these issues is a necessary condition for carrying out scientifically serious work in this field of activity.

Key words: educational innovation; strategies and subjects; initial conditions

JEL code: A220