One of my favourite quotes about how universities “do business” in today’s world is:
So, I was very eager to read a new article in the T.H.E today.
Written by Cathy Davidson from Duke University in the US, it captures many of the worries parents, educators and employers have about the future…
Cathy begins…
About 100 years ago, higher education restructured to meet the needs of the industrial age. It has changed little since, even as the internet has transformed life. Another revolution is needed, says Cathy Davidson, to modernise universities and prepare graduates for a 21st-century working environment
Several times each week, well-groomed young men and women parade by my faculty office with a steely-eyed mien as premeditated as their business attire. They are in search of the university career centre, which is up a narrow staircase seemingly invisible to those looking too hard. “Can I help you?” I’ve learned to offer. “Please!” they practically whimper, their carefully planned confidence evaporating into thin air. “I’m lost.”
“Lost” is a good word for the graduate of today. Even at a prestigious institution such as Duke University, where the job placement rate is well above the norm, students feel unprepared for the workplace that awaits them. No wonder. Every survey of employers underscores the fact that higher education no longer prepares students for the changing demands of the contemporary workplace. READ MORE…
As she points out, even the most prestigious universities are struggling to graduate people equipped to “do” the jobs that are required of them…
A great article!
allthingslearning 