Is Higher Education Effective for All?

In the UK we are nearing the 50% target for people attending University and Higher Education. Now whilst I myself am a product of the Higher Education system as well as an advocate for it I can also recognise it has its flaws.

For me it comes down to both the tangible benefits Higher Education has on the individual as well as society. Whether this be apprenticeships, degrees or job related training. Measured against the achievement  and ideal of the institutions around the globe. Alongside this there is a conversation about the system as a whole what it looks like, its flaws and how we grow it. 

In terms of the HE sector pre-covid in the UK we had a mixture of the principally academically focused institutions or those with a particular subject specialism often primarily in cities. These universities the Russell group often featured high on academic league tables for performance. Other common characteristics of Russell group universities is a broad research base whereas the more technical and at times specialised technical institutions like Loughborough for Sports and Harper Adams for Agriculture can still stand out. Both types of universities have their merits and neither type of university can guarantee a positive university experience. 

Now the HE system of lecture and seminar based learning boasts its popularity from the cost of books in the pre-industrial and industrial error of publishing. It was cheaper to provide taught content then to provide text books now this is not the case in the modern day. However, this method of delivery is still the norm the question is post-covid as many universities aim to deliver their courses online is the content of their lessons at the forefront of development. 

Now back to my earlier thoughts about the tangible vs the intangible. One has to firstly realise that the HE system is primarily about getting a sound and rounded academic experience this should include the skills required of the trade as well as the foundation in academic literature to give the student access to higher level thinking. However the other tangible benefits are the job prospects that the Degree and often the institution or professional contacts. Now secondly the intangible benefits of the HE experience are often a chance for students to grow up. Now what I mean by this is it gives the university student the chance to establish what it means to be themselves away from their parents and pressures at home to grow as an individual. now this can occur through a variety of ways sharing a flat with different people working with different people be able to cook and clean and their first taste of networking they get both with their peers as well as lecturer’s. At this point I also want to highlight the benefit of sandwich courses as the year in industry or the travelling which are ingrained into that degree is one of the most beneficial options for the individual as it gives wider experiences. Now outside and agrees with you got a very strong practical learning or machinery need the tangible side of universities can move towards online as this can offer a greater reception from the student sometimes. Now the issue for me is the intangible university experience cannot be easily replicated online as it is off-line the to grow experience and explore ones self is not something that can be easily replaced by online content or activities.

So in terms of what it looks like the question for me is doing move to a generally online delivery system for higher education where you can potentially share the benefits of individuals who are the best in the field with people at various locations around the UK for other countries as well. Or alternatively is this just a temporary development where universities will then go back to their standard form of delivery. Now there is merit in this as a greater access to experts in a field in some subjects this might be individuals who aren’t at universities giving them the opportunity for students to see you then in their general workplace. In some cases such as on-farm, during manufacturing or design this opportunity could be a more rewarding experience for the workplace and student. The post Covid world certainly give the opportunity for disruption in the market where institutions or platforms such as masterclass can provide taught content from experts and who are at the pinnacle of their careers. Yeah while the University system but also we need to see is still some way of having hub like institutions where the student can still get the intangible benefits of university. 

This could be the prime opportunity to tackle some of the issues with higher education for example if you can’t or do not go to areas where they can get the best education could be allowed a greater chance to access it. This could also be the chance for universities to diversify their portfolio by working with industry or local businesses to offer a better service to the local community as well as their residents. main main floor that has developed over recent years it’s to an extent the ability of universities to be a centre for challenge and discussion universities also need to return the form out where they can debate ideas and new experiences thereby allowing the learner to grow and too think critically reflect on topics discussed to challenge the subject through debate.

If universities want to grow they need to think about what service they offer to their customers the student as well as the service to the residents. This is largely due to universities offering a similar package to other institutions whilst working towards a business model rather than a former academic models in most cases. So the solution for universities is to offer a diverse and competitive offering for the consumer whilst also working with other governing to maintain a standard of academic achievement which is fit for the modern day. It must be said that universities cannot solely go with what courses are profitable they simply need to offer diversity because the arts and or other less profitable areas are still highly valuable to society therefore universities need a diverse way of sustaining higher education delivery. The question is do we learn and grow seizing the opportunity or do nothing?