U.S. colleges and universities are out of reach for many students. What’s more, numerous qualified educators are underpaid and/or underemployed.
Meanwhile, these institutions of higher education hold an inordinate amount of power over students and educators. These institutions control the terms, cost, offerings, schedule, records, location, etc. These are all designed for the convenience and maintenance of the institution. Don’t get me wrong — I’m a big fan of many U.S. colleges and universities. I just think their pricing structure and neglect to account for different routes to degree learning is a bit out of whack.
As a student, if you can’t afford or access one of these institutions, or you can’t meet all their terms, you can’t get a U.S. degree. As an educator, if you aren’t hired by one, your options for teaching or developing curriculum at the college level are very limited.
Among the important consequences of this imbalance of power is a paradox of higher education. While college degree-level information is increasingly freely available, the price of college has continued to climb. Today, everything you need to know to earn a college degree is available online for free. what’s more, exciting whole movements and industries, such as MOOCs, open educational resources, and edtech have exploded in recent years offering college-level learning at a fraction of the cost.
So why are college degrees in the U.S. so expensive?
I’ll share my perspective on this tomorrow. But I’d love to hear yours. Or maybe I’ve missed something important? Please let me know in the comments. Or connect with me on Twitter, My site, LinkedIn, or reach me at: ben@teachur.co.
image from: https://www.flickr.com/photos/76657755@N04/6881499716/in/photostream/
