In a world where we’ve seen drastic changes in the internet and technology, there have also been changes in higher education. Gone are the days of having to physically hand in a paper to a professor or having to actually go to the library and open a book to do research. Also gone are the days when the majority of students could graduate college with little to no debt.
While the annual income has indeed increased in America, a study done in 2018 by Student Loan Hero using data from College Board, found that from the late 1980s to 2018, the average annual income rose 67 percent while the cost of an undergraduate degree at a public university has risen 213 percent; and that’s accounting for inflation.
There is no denying that change is needed and inevitable with new technologies being developed and the price of college rising year after year. So, the real question is: will new technology and the internet affect on-campus tuition?
“I don’t believe internet and technology use will lower tuition costs,” says Tatiana Suspitsyna, associate professor in the Higher Education and Student Affairs program at the Ohio State University. “Universities today offer many more services and educational opportunities to students than they did ten years ago. Universities all over the country build state-of-the-art libraries, sports facilities, residence halls for living-learning communities, boost their mental health and counseling services, etc. and these programs and innovations add to the cost of tuition.”
While internet and technology may not lower the cost of college tuition for a ‘traditional’ on-campus college experience, it does open doors for a new kind of college experience - one with no campus borders at all.
“Internet and technology use in higher education certainly represents challenge and opportunity for universities,” says Noelle Arnold associate professor and the director of the EdD in Educational Administration program in the Department of Educational Studies at The Ohio State University. “Universities have already responded with online courses at free or reduced rates. Many universities also offer courses remotely at alternative sites regionally or even in other countries.”
American student debt has reached $1.5 trillion - Forbes
One of the effects we can expect to see in the future regarding the student debt crisis is how American society will perceive a bachelor’s degree.
As Suspitsyna explained, the student debt crisis will continue to create a disproportionate gap between students whose families have the money to put them through college and those who do not. Due to this gap, while a college diploma will continue to be of high value because of the knowledge-based economy in the United States, in the future, a college diploma may not be viewed as a sure path to a better financial future.
That other path to a better financial future, according to Arnold, may be seen in the resurgence of apprenticeships.
44.7 million Americans have student loan debt - Forbes
“Universities are also investing in offices to support teaching and course delivery in new ways,” says Arnold. “So, I think that university courses that include more hands-on and practical engagement will be very important.”
While we can expect to see many changes in higher education in the coming years, there is one constant that Suspitsyna hopes to continue to see in the future.
“Despite all those cool gadgets, programs, and technologies that will aid or augment the process of learning, some things will, I hope, remain the same: a critical investigation of phenomena and contestation of ideas, these have been at the core of learning for over 2 thousand years now.”
Sara Dowler is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
