For-profit?

Today we paid a visit to Steve Gunderson, President and CEO of the Association of Private Sector Colleges and Universities. This provided some new and valuable insights on the topic of public versus private colleges. Especially when this afternoon we listened to the perspective of David Baime Senior Vice President for Government Relations and Research. Private and public education both serve a huge amount of American students but each has their own businessmodel and mission.

The public funded colleges and the private institutions here in the USA seem to be in constant battle. And from a "public funded college point of view": how Does the private sector balance profit for shareholders and educational value, or can ... ultimately benefit society? How can education be "for-profit" if it should be.... for-students?

The profile of the students attending Community Colleges in America can't be compared to the profile of the Associate degree students in the Netherlands. For Community Colleges there is an open enrollment, not regulated by any entry requirements as education is considered to be a basic "right for everyone".  This leads to a large variety of students. A variety in age, developmentlevel, social and financial background,  working or not working. And in the for-profit sector in the USA the profile is even more divers. In the Netherlands the studentprofile in the public higher education is not that diverse.

But the Dutch Associate degree does open up opportunities for the "new student"  to enter higher education in The Netherlands. And the profile of the Associate degree student differs from that of the fulltime Bachelor student we were familiar with.

In the context of demographic and geographic changes as well as the context of the economic crisis, there has been a huge increase of enrollments in Community Colleges in the USA.  Student loandebts are increasing and paint a grim picture. According to Steve Gunderson a dramatic revolution in education is emerging as in the economy based society there is a big demand for skilled workforce and an increased need for education.  The studentprofile has changed radically as has the deliverance of education. And meanwhile... Costs are rising and completion is a groing concern. The for-profit institutions seem to be more able to adapt to new type of students an deliverance of education but struggle as it comes to study cimpletion. But...as completion is also a problem for Community Colleges, the for-profit institution statistics are even worse.  The increasing levels of student loan debt in combination with completion problems can have serious effects on the American economy.

So.. For the Dutch situation: a growing demand in short cycle education, and decreasing in funding of education... it should be logical to combine capacity of both profit and public education. But if the issue of completion is not yet adressed in the for-profit institutions now, and the same issue does have  repercussions in the public institutions...

The positive side of things: I think in the coming years in The Netherlands we have the luxury to learn form the way the educational landscape in the USA has been shaped. We can learn from choices that have been made here, the effects, the harm and benefits. And the public funded institutions have some issues to adress, some questions to answer. 

Especially for the position of the recently formalized Associate degree in the Netherlands. The Associate degree serves a specific targetgroup and not necessarily "the easiest group to handle". 

What is the role the public funded institutions want to play in the educational landscape? Will they provide a warm welcome to these new students in higher education and will they make al serious effort  to giving them the best chance to complete their Associates degree? Will they recognize that this group may need specific attention and new ways to organize teaching and learning?  Can these new students take part in the mission of higher education. Will they be welcomed and challenged to fulfill their potential when they enter higher education?

I'd like to think public institutions, Universities of Applied Science in the Netherlands will really welcome and embrace their Associate degree students and really see them as their new students in higher education. I hope they want to welcome these students in their mission to unleash potential in people and recognizing the fact that these students need to be given the chance to be part of the much needed skilled workforce in our economy based society. 

And... To stretch the Dutch view on "student profile" ....  public funded institutions should not only educate the young students that want to prepare Before entering the labourmarket. But also needs to give new opportunities for potential students already in the workforce. They will need to further develop their knowledge and skills to keep up with growing demands in their jobs as a part of the life-long-learning era we have already entered. 

(Note: nearly half of the 2013 highschool graduates attending community colleges are working!).

Will for-profit and public institutions join forces? In about 10 years you could expect private and public institutions to be working together. The demand for education will increase. Private and public institutions can have enough capacity to handle that. But will we be open to learn from eachother? And personally...... I cant wrap my head afound education "for-profit". Its should always be "for-student".

Have a good night, and maybe.... even study for a while?