Higher Education - Looking Forward An Educator’s Perspective: A thousand year old industry on the cusp of profound change IUA Symposium, Dublin 29th September.

Higher Education - Looking Forward

An Educator’s Perspective: A thousand year old industry on the cusp of profound change

IUA Symposium, Dublin 29th September 2014

Page 2 Global education sector

Contents

The University of the Future

Drivers for Change

• Democratisation of Knowledge & Access

• Contestability of Market & Funding

• Digital Technologies

• Global Mobility

• Integration with Industry

Evolving University Models

The EY Education team

Our capabilities and service offerings


The EY Education Team

Professor Stephanie Fahey

Oceania, Education Lead Partner

Formerly DVC Global Engagement Monash University, Melbourne

[email protected]

Local EY partner, Dublin

John Higgins

[email protected]

Colm Devine

[email protected]

More than 300 staff globally with education expertise

mailto:[email protected]







► The higher education sector is undergoing a fundamental transformation in terms of its role in society, mode of operation, and economic structure and value.

► What is worrying is that institutions appear to be in denial about the magnitude and the inevitability of the changes ahead

► Our primary hypothesis is that the dominant university model: a broad-based teaching and research institution, supported by a large asset-base and in-house back-office, will prove unviable, in all but a few cases over the next 3 to 5 years (we underestimated the pace of change in our 2012 report). ‘The University of the Future’ (2012)

► What I would like to do today is review some of these challenges with a particular focus on the implications for universities and policy makers in Ireland.


The Drivers of Change


Drivers for Change


Broad Implications

If universities do not choose their niches – the market will effectively “impose” niches upon them - so the message is: choose now.

► create new, leaner centred business models as competition increases for staff, students, funding and partners.

► public institutions will be run like corporations, while maintaining the necessary freedom of inquiry and academic rigour.

► Private institutions will exploit profitable market niches,

► Policy makers will seek to maintain steady growth in access to

university education while inevitably tightening the public purse strings.


Necessary adaptions

► These changes will force universities to adapt in a number of ways:

► Breadth of programs — concentrate resources on a smaller range of programs?

► Target customers — Universities will need to have a clear strategy

around target student segments and their specific needs and preferences.

► Channels to market — Universities will need to rethink the role of digital channels and third party partnerships in recruiting students and delivering teaching and research programs.

► Back office — The asset base and university administration will need to be significantly leaner than it is today.





► The dominant university model in Australia and elsewhere, is a broad-based teaching and research institution, supported by a large asset base

► Significant transformation of university business models in the coming

Three models:► Streamline status quo - broad-based teaching and research

institutions, but will transform the way they deliver their services and administer their organisations

► Niche operators - Chooses particular customer segments to focus on - enabling the targeted development of course offerings, sales channels, and delivery

► Transformers - Private providers and new entrants will carve out new positions in the traditional sector, creating new markets that merge parts of the higher education sector with other sectors.


Evolving Models – The Implications for IrelandThe inevitable evolution of University Models has pushed educators, policy makers and private sector entities to begin to question some of the “scared cows” of the University system in Australia. These include:

► The number of ‘world-class’ universities that a country the size of Australia can realistically continue to support

► The breath of disciplines that a University should focus on and the place for specialisation in education provision

► The role of the academic and the continuing involvement of all academics in teaching/research/content development

► The responsibility of HE sector not only to educate students but also prepare them for the workforce (technical vs university training)

► The traditional ethos surrounding decision making and governance in universities which are not suited to rapidly changing circumstances

Universities in Ireland will not escape these competitive pressures

Higher Education - Looking Forward An Educator’s Perspective: A thousand year old industry on the cusp of profound change IUA Symposium, Dublin 29th September.

Documents

university education

higher education sector

education expertise

future slide

education lead partner

drivers of change slide

university administration

market universities