The barbarians are at the gate! Of universities, moats and disruption!
In my last post, I attempted to break down the bundled product that comprises a college education into its component parts, and closed by arguing that the future of universities rests on their ability to preserve the competitive advantages that have allowed them to get premium prices for these bundles and that of online education entrepreneurs on their capacity to find chinks in the university armor.
Bundled item |
The
“University” Moat is deepest at |
The Online Challenge
|
Screening
|
More
selective” schools that have reputations based on long histories and tradition. It is also self-perpetuating, since your selectivity allows them to attract the best students who burnish their reputations further.
In softer disciplines, where it is difficult, if not impossible, for an outsider to observe output or make judgments on quality.
|
Online
entities have a "chicken & egg" problem, since they need good reputations to be selective and need to be selective to generate those reputations. However, they may have a much better chance of breaking through
(a) if they can team up with an entity that has a reputation (a university like Stanford/MIT or a pure screener like the College Board) or
(b) in areas where the
skill sets of graduates are measurable and observable. (Engineering, software coding etc.)
(c) in disciplines where there is a common certification exam (accounting, law).
|
Structuring
|
Colleges
that help students create customized study or degree programs, built around their interests and objectives. |
Online education is currently chaotic when it comes to structuring. While course offerings proliferate, guidance for novices on structuring & sequencing these courses is limited or non-existent.
|
Classes
|
Colleges
that offer classes that are well taught by “star” faculty and built around interaction, group learning, individualized feedback and informative grading systems (that measure learning and not attendance/memorization) have an edge. |
Online classes are often too passive, focused on delivering content and mechanized testing/grading. Creating more interactive, dynamic online classes as well as hybrid variations, which are online much of the time, but have in-person meeting components, may help bridge the gap.
|
The
Network |
Colleges
that create networks among students that continue long after they graduate, augmented by small group networks such as sororities/ fraternities and campus clubs/activities. |
Fostering
close networks when your interactions are all online is more difficult ( but as Facebook and Linkedin's success show, it is not impossible) and serendipitous contact (like the ones you have on the college green with strangers) is very limited. |
Career
Advice/ Placement |
Colleges
that provide career guidance early in college life, followed by access to good placement services (with exclusive and privileged access to prized employers) . |
Getting
employers to trust your “products” as much as they trust established institutions (colleges & universities) will take time, though it should be easier in professions where the proof of competence can be tested. |
Entertainment
|
Colleges
with strong sports teams and cultural activities on campus. |
Entertainment options online are getting richer but it will be difficult to
match the real thing. Online universities don't have basketball teams or play bowl games. |
Education
|
Colleges
that try to students how to learn & prepare them for life. |
Same
challenge, but magnified because you are restricted to do this online. |
- Worksheet for the University side (on how to make the moat deeper) (Download as pdf file)
- Worksheet for the Online disruptor side (on how to get across the moat) (Download as pdf file)
I believe that change is coming to education but that it will come in stages and be under-the-surface. The first to feel the heat (if they have not already) will be colleges that have loose or non-existent screens, mechanized degree programs, content-heavy but learning-light classes and nonexistent networks. As they fall prey to online or alternative education systems, it is an open question as to how schools further up the food chain will react. I won’t claim to know the mindset of faculty/administrators at the top schools but my interactions with them suggest that many of them will, for the most part, resist change (especially if it inconveniences them) and argue that there is no chance that their civilized citadels will fall to the barbarians. But they are fooling themselves, since the disruptors have the luxury of being able to experiment, with nothing to lose, until they find the weapons that work. It is only a matter of time!
Mod Note: Syndication from Musings on Markets
This is an awesome topic. I look forward to reading some insightful posts. SB
Est et ut eaque illum. Optio provident eligendi doloribus et iste beatae reiciendis. Qui quia aspernatur dignissimos quia consequuntur voluptatum ipsum. Voluptas autem mollitia modi. Dolores soluta eius nemo quidem hic voluptatem. Sunt voluptatem unde eum dignissimos sit illum ullam.
Laudantium quisquam corrupti asperiores asperiores quia. Magnam et illo deleniti. Assumenda explicabo non maxime veniam suscipit.
Iure optio corrupti non qui amet nulla id sequi. Voluptatem illo officiis accusantium nihil in et voluptatem. Ducimus ea natus labore molestiae sed. Vero consequuntur eos officia iste. Labore voluptatem qui dolor ab libero perspiciatis.
Ad labore dolores magnam totam quam non. Enim in dolores nostrum sint dolores officia.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...