{"title":"Merit beyond metrics: Redefining the value of higher education","authors":"William E. Donald","doi":"10.1177/09504222241264506","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"In this provocative opinion piece, I challenge entrenched norms and encourage re-evaluating higher education’s true purpose and impact in today’s complex, volatile, and uncertain world. I argue for a paradigm shift to consider alternative ways to define the value of higher education beyond existing metrics. I propose (i) abandoning degree classifications, (ii) acknowledging that earnings alone fail to capture the full value of a degree, and (iii) ditching league table rankings to boost collaboration. By reconceptualising the value of higher education, we can foster a more inclusive environment and promote a sustainable career ecosystem to benefit all actors.","PeriodicalId":46591,"journal":{"name":"Industry and Higher Education","volume":"25 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9000,"publicationDate":"2024-06-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Industry and Higher Education","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1177/09504222241264506","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"EDUCATION & EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
In this provocative opinion piece, I challenge entrenched norms and encourage re-evaluating higher education’s true purpose and impact in today’s complex, volatile, and uncertain world. I argue for a paradigm shift to consider alternative ways to define the value of higher education beyond existing metrics. I propose (i) abandoning degree classifications, (ii) acknowledging that earnings alone fail to capture the full value of a degree, and (iii) ditching league table rankings to boost collaboration. By reconceptualising the value of higher education, we can foster a more inclusive environment and promote a sustainable career ecosystem to benefit all actors.
期刊介绍:
Industry and Higher Education focuses on the multifaceted and complex relationships between higher education institutions and business and industry. It looks in detail at the processes and enactments of academia-business cooperation as well as examining the significance of that cooperation in wider contexts, such as regional development, entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystems. While emphasizing the practical aspects of academia-business cooperation, IHE also locates practice in theoretical and research contexts, questioning received opinion and developing our understanding of what constitutes truly effective cooperation. Selected key topics Knowledge transfer - processes, mechanisms, successes and failures Research commercialization - from conception to product ''Graduate employability'' - definition, needs and methods Education for entrepreneurship - techniques, measurement and impact The role of the university in economic and social development The third mission and the entrepreneurial university Skills needs and the role of higher education Business-education partnerships for social and economic progress University-industry training and consultancy programmes Innovation networks and their role in furthering university-industry engagement