College (Un)bound

We just came back from visiting about 50 colleges in the Midwest (Ohio, Michigan, and a little bit in Indiana) over a 12-day period, and U.S. News issued their 2014 college rankings this week, so this seems like a good time to mention a book I read just before our trip.

Jeffrey J. Selingo, the author of this book, is the Editor at Large of the Chronicle of Higher Education. He knows a lot about the issues in higher education today, and he covers them in this slim volume. His chapters on “How We Got Here” discuss the credentials race, including college marketing and rankings; “the customer is always right,” including colleges as businesses, grade inflation, and resort-like colleges; and “the trillion-dollar problem,” including high tuition, education loans, and unemployment after obtaining that expensive degree. The second section of the book – “The Disruption” – discusses “the five disruptive forces that will change higher education forever,” which are (1) “a sea of red ink” for these institutions, (2) reduced public funding for higher education; (3) declining numbers of students who can pay the sticker price for their education; (4) improved alternatives to traditional colleges; and (5) the growing gap between the cost of higher education and its value, both real and perceived. Part III, which is supposed to cover “the future,” is a continuation of the discussion of the current problems in and alternatives to higher education as it exists today.

In the end, Selingo doesn’t really have a crystal ball and can’t tell us what the future of higher education in this county will be. He does, however, know what the current issues and trends are, and he does a very good job of explaining it all. He also provides a chapter containing a list of “forward-thinking universities to keep an eye on,” and a chapter listing things for the prospective student (and parents of prospective students) to consider when choosing a college.

If you are the parent of a prospective student or are otherwise interested in higher education in the United States, this book will give you a good overview of the subject. If you already know what a discount rate, MOOC, and yield are, this book may seem a little superficial to you, but it will flesh out what you know.