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Higher education is under siege. It needs to reinvent itself
Universities need to develop their students more holistically, cultivate resilience and facilitate employability over a lifetime.
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The challenge is no longer just to educate students for existing industries but to prepare them for a labour market in flux.
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION: UNSPLASH
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In a recent late-night Zoom call, I spoke with a leading professor from one of the best universities in the United States. The conversation turned to whether the current turmoil in US higher education would, in her view, pass, if we waited patiently two to three years. The response was chilling. “After Trump, we can’t go back. Trump took away one thing that was great in America. It took so long for America to be the chosen destination for students and their parents, and for the best brains looking to undertake their research in a stimulating environment. This will no longer return.”
In a post-colonial twist, she then mused that “perhaps it’s not a bad thing… (for) the last vestiges of empire (to fall)”. The hope she held out was for universities in Asia – and South-east Asia, in particular – to become sources of light in a darkening world.
