21st Century Scholar

Yesterday I discussed the current role of teaching and its impact on student / professor relationships at research universities. Today I discuss the future of graduate-level programs at research universities.

The Future

The future of the graduate-level university is one of destabilization and changing power dynamics. Two areas, privatization and technology, will guide change. Both are interrelated.

Graduate students’ demands are increasing, and universities are no longer the sole bastions of knowledge. AcademHack recently posted an interesting lecture about the future of universities. He poses the question “If the printing press is to the university, the network is to the __________?” He cites Tom Pettitt’s term “The Gutenberg Parenthesis,” the belief that we are exiting a paper-based society era. Put simply, what we think about knowledge and how we create and disseminate it is up for grabs.

The power-brokers are shifting. If I want to listen to a lecture by a Princeton professor, I can download a podcast. I don’t need Princeton or the professor. You may at this point argue that podcasts are only available at the behest of the professor and downloads don’t confer credentials, which is one of the primary reasons people attend grad school. But, now we have YouTube and competition. Professors may choose to clutch tightly to those priceless, meticulously crafted lecture notes, but they will quickly find themselves left behind. Hoarding information is out; sharing info is in.

In the past, if I wanted to become a teacher, I enrolled at a nearby university. If USC wanted to charge me a bundle of money for two years and a credential, they could. Now I can choose. University of Phoenix probably has the same degree for less money and a faster completion period. Oh, and it is online.

Sure, some universities are safe. Harvard will probably survive the first couple waves of change. But, overall, the changing dynamics of teaching and learning and its implications for student/professor interactions are vast. No longer will the student serve the professor. Knowledge production and exchange will no longer be the domain of the professor. We will no longer be bound by location. Certainly, the future is bright.

Randy Clemens