Speculating the Future of Higher Education
As interest in degrees slips, it only makes sense to deprioritize credentialism and disempower the chokehold that elite institutions and college rankings have on society’s misunderstanding of merit.
My collaborative essay “Colleges Are Dying, Long Live Higher Education” was published today. Authored by me and Matt Klein, Head of Global Foresight at Reddit, who also writes the Substack newsletter ZINE which highlights overlooked cultural trends, the six-thousand-word article examines several issues concerning the history and future of postsecondary education, including but not limited to the crisis of student debt, the tyranny of college rankings, and the decline of undergraduate enrollment. After assessing the impact of innovations like AI and virtual classrooms on student-learning outcomes as well as paradigm shifts like degree deflation, we highlight 5 solution spaces to consider.
Reevaluate Employment Qualifications
New Environments & Teachers
HEAL ≥ STEM
With, Not Against AI
Growth & Identity
In April, I reached out to Matt via email because I wanted to work with him in some capacity. I love the cultural analysis he provides in ZINE, so I messaged him to see if he might be searching for an editor or research assistant. He wasn’t. But, as it turned out, both of us were questioning how universities have been slow to react to the evolving challenges encircling academic institutions.
Decades from now, what will come to define the college experience? What should be changed about the status quo to meet the needs of future learners and society at large?
I had an absolute blast teaming up with Matt on this one. And now is as good a time as any for these types of conversations, especially given recent events with SCOTUS banning race-conscious affirmative action and blocking President Biden’s plan to forgive a fixed amount of student debt for millions of borrowers. We briefly contextualize these moments within our larger commentary on where higher education goes from here.
See below for an excerpt.
Colleges Are Dying, Long Live Higher Education
How the death of institutions shouldn’t mean the demise of personal development
To forecast our future, we have to identify patterns of change early. But rather than only seeking out collections of signals representing growth, it behooves us to simultaneously study what’s crumbling – signals of decay.
After all, growth stems from deep fractures.
One of today’s most glaring fractures worthy of our attention is higher education. The changing landscape of higher education is ground zero for radical social change and required innovation.
Good news!
TVs, toys and software have never been cheaper in human history.
Bad news: College tuition and textbooks have never been more expensive.
This is according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics which has been tracking the prices of consumer goods and services relative to inflation for the last two decades.
College tuition — second to healthcare — is the most “increasingly expensive” buy in America.
How coincidental that these are two of the most important purchases one can obtain, and certainly the sort which more should have access to, not less?
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, in the 1968 academic year, it cost $1,545 to attend a public, four-year institution (including tuition, fees, room and board).
In 2020, it was $29,033.
For the fifth of college students attending private schools, that figure is significantly higher.
Noteworthy as the cost of education and textbooks have not risen at the same rate.
Is it any more expensive to “produce” education today?
This is perhaps why NYU, among many schools across the country, are developing “Schools for Professional Studies” — certificate program alternatives dedicated to furthering education during a moment when traditional degrees are slipping.