The Abundant University: Remaking Higher Education for a Digital World
Why our current system of higher education is financially and morally unsustainable and how to address the crisis with the creative implementation of digital technologies.

For too long, our system of higher education has been defined by scarcity: scarcity in enrollment, scarcity in instruction, and scarcity in credentials. In addition to failing students professionally, this system has exacerbated social injustice and socioeconomic stratification across the globe. In The Abundant University, Michael D. Smith argues that the only way to create a financially and morally sustainable higher education system is by embracing digital technologies for enrolling, instructing, and credentialing students—the same technologies that we have seen create abundance in access to resources in industry after industry.

The Abundant University explains how we got our current system, why it’s such an expensive, inefficient mess, and how a system based on exclusivity cannot foster inclusivity. Smith challenges the resistance to digital technologies that we have already seen among numerous institutions, citing the examples of faculty resistance toward digital learning platforms. While acknowledging the understandable self-preservation instinct of our current system of residential education, Smith makes a case for how technology can engender greater educational opportunity and create changes that will benefit students, employers, and society as a whole.
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The Abundant University: Remaking Higher Education for a Digital World
Why our current system of higher education is financially and morally unsustainable and how to address the crisis with the creative implementation of digital technologies.

For too long, our system of higher education has been defined by scarcity: scarcity in enrollment, scarcity in instruction, and scarcity in credentials. In addition to failing students professionally, this system has exacerbated social injustice and socioeconomic stratification across the globe. In The Abundant University, Michael D. Smith argues that the only way to create a financially and morally sustainable higher education system is by embracing digital technologies for enrolling, instructing, and credentialing students—the same technologies that we have seen create abundance in access to resources in industry after industry.

The Abundant University explains how we got our current system, why it’s such an expensive, inefficient mess, and how a system based on exclusivity cannot foster inclusivity. Smith challenges the resistance to digital technologies that we have already seen among numerous institutions, citing the examples of faculty resistance toward digital learning platforms. While acknowledging the understandable self-preservation instinct of our current system of residential education, Smith makes a case for how technology can engender greater educational opportunity and create changes that will benefit students, employers, and society as a whole.
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The Abundant University: Remaking Higher Education for a Digital World

The Abundant University: Remaking Higher Education for a Digital World

by Michael D. Smith
The Abundant University: Remaking Higher Education for a Digital World

The Abundant University: Remaking Higher Education for a Digital World

by Michael D. Smith

eBook

$21.99 

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Overview

Why our current system of higher education is financially and morally unsustainable and how to address the crisis with the creative implementation of digital technologies.

For too long, our system of higher education has been defined by scarcity: scarcity in enrollment, scarcity in instruction, and scarcity in credentials. In addition to failing students professionally, this system has exacerbated social injustice and socioeconomic stratification across the globe. In The Abundant University, Michael D. Smith argues that the only way to create a financially and morally sustainable higher education system is by embracing digital technologies for enrolling, instructing, and credentialing students—the same technologies that we have seen create abundance in access to resources in industry after industry.

The Abundant University explains how we got our current system, why it’s such an expensive, inefficient mess, and how a system based on exclusivity cannot foster inclusivity. Smith challenges the resistance to digital technologies that we have already seen among numerous institutions, citing the examples of faculty resistance toward digital learning platforms. While acknowledging the understandable self-preservation instinct of our current system of residential education, Smith makes a case for how technology can engender greater educational opportunity and create changes that will benefit students, employers, and society as a whole.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780262376358
Publisher: MIT Press
Publication date: 09/19/2023
Sold by: Penguin Random House Publisher Services
Format: eBook
Pages: 296
File size: 528 KB

About the Author

Michael D. Smith is J. Erik Jonsson Professor of Information Technology and Marketing at Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz College of Public Policy and Management. Smith is coauthor of the book Streaming, Sharing, Stealing: Big Data and the Future of Entertainment (MIT Press).

Table of Contents

Preface: Scaling the Ivory Tower vii
Part I: Admissions
1 The Unjust University 3
Why It's Hard to Foster Inclusivity in a System Based on Exclusivity
Part II: Orientation
2 The Education Factory 21
How We Got Our Current System and Why It's Such an Expensive, Inefficient Mess
3 Seating Arrangements 39
Why Limited Classroom Space Leads Rich Parents to Bribe Their Kids into College
4 Masters of None 53
Why We Standardize Our Teaching Even Though We Know Our Students Are Unique
5 The Noisy Classroom 71
What College Diplomas Signal--and the Resulting Distortions
Part III: Instruction
6 Open Enrollment 89
Why--at Last--We Can Do Things Differently
7 The Digitally Powered Ivory Tower 103
How Digitization Is Creating Abundance in Access and Instruction
8 Getting Down to Business 135
Why Abundance in Access and Instruction Hasn't Changed Higher Education
9 Structural Disruption 151
Why Big Changes Are at Last on the Horizon for Higher Education
10 Hello, Google State 165
The New World of Credentialing and Skills-Based Hiring
11 Objections, Objections 181
Understanding and Moving Past Our Resistance to Change
Part IV: Commencement
12 Rediscovering Our Mission 205
A Summation--and a Path Forward--for Educators
Acknowledgments 217
Notes 219
Index 259

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“Smith delivers a powerful critique of the traditional higher-education model, grounded in history and contemporary data. Importantly, he builds a case for why colleges and universities should embrace innovation in service of expanding access.” 
—Sean R. Gallagher, Executive Director, Center for the Future of Higher Education and Talent Strategy, Northeastern University; author of The Future of University Credentials
 
“Michael D. Smith deftly weaves together economic theory and substantive research to provide an incisive and unflinching look at the problems facing higher ed and, more ambitiously, the way we can solve them.”
—Aaron Rasmussen, cofounder of Masterclass; founder and CEO of Outlier.org
 
“Smith unpacks the economic implications of the conventional university model, underscoring an ethical imperative for change, and offers new insights—providing a powerful vision of accessible and affordable educational models. A provocative must-read for leaders!”
—Thayne M. McCulloh, President, Gonzaga University
 
“If you want to understand the messy, anachronistic, and resistant underbelly of higher academia, and how digital technologies can foster inclusivity and greater educational opportunity for all, Michael D. Smith’s Abundant University is a must-read.”
—Steven Lee, CEO, SkillUp Coalition
 
“All I can say is that Michael gets it! This book is a must-read for anyone interested in creating a more inclusive and sustainable future for higher education. His insights are important for every upcoming higher-education leader to understand.”
—Maria Anguiano, Executive Vice President, Arizona State University

“This thought-provoking book tackles the potential changes to higher education arising from the progress of digital technologies. From admission to graduation, Smith sets the stage for intense debates—not just about future directions, but about current conditions.”
—Joshua Gans, Professor of Strategic Management, University of Toronto; author of The Disruption Dilemma (MIT Press)

The Abundant University leverages business strategy and information economics, offering an honest evaluation of higher education’s limitations and an inspiring vision of its future. Essential for college leaders seeking transformative insights.” 
—Chris Dellarocas, Associate Provost for Digital Learning & Innovation and Shipley Professor in Management, Boston University
 
“Michael Smith has pulled off a great feat—writing a book that will make America’s higher-education challenges accessible and understandable to people both inside and outside of the business.”
—Jon Boeckenstedt, Vice Provost, Oregon State University
 
“Michael Smith turns the tired university model on its head, demonstrating a bold and more inclusive vision for higher education in a future where everyone will need the opportunity to keep learning.”
—Matt Sigelman, President of the Burning Glass Institute and Visiting Fellow, Harvard Kennedy School

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