A new university order?

It is great to come across something that really gets you thinking, and not to be twee about it but today I was privileged to enjoy that feeling.  Earlier this week the World Bank held a seminar with the President of Arizona State University (ASU), Dr. Michael Crow.  The wonders of modern technology (the same wonders that are making universities scared and excited in perhaps equal measure!?) allowed me to watch this presentation this morning, on my couch.  That, in itself is part of the amazing opportunities that the times we live in present us with.  But Dr Crow’s presentation went far beyond the opportunities of learning platforms and technological aids. 

The seminar was called Universities as Partners in Global Development, which is a bit of a thinking point for me at the moment.  The role universities can, and should, be playing in development is almost beyond limit, and goes a long way past scholarships to those from developing countries.  But how to make a university dynamic enough to take advantage of opportunities is something that many institutions and individuals struggle with.  So, back to Dr Crow.  His delivery was engaging, and his message is compelling.  I have since followed up with a look on the website, and I’m glad I watched the presentation first.  If I had seen the website first I would have in all likelihood dismissed it as a bit of weasel words; too many buzz words and empty statements.  But with the context that Dr Crow provided in his presentation it seems an ambitious and potentially game changing development. 

In summary, ASU is redesigning itself to address one of the key issues of universities in the modern age – how do you balance the need to deliver quality and excellence, with the growing demand for access to tertiary education.  Dr Crow talked about the mismatch between accessibility and excellence.  I personally think this is a huge issue in the Australian system, with many universities struggling to decide if they’re working to provide as many people as possible with a vanilla Bachelor of Business, or if they really want the best PhD graduates in the country. 

While Dr Crow doesn’t outline exactly how this is done (and the website doesn’t give away too much either), ASU is focussed on giving students from all SES backgrounds access.  Their goal is to ensure that regardless of your background on entry, your chances of success throughout your degree are equal.  He makes a persuasive argument that the old/current model of universities in fact drive inequity, by excluding many and measuring success by those that are rejected, or more simply how difficult it is to get in.

The argument reminded me of a conversation I had with a friend who was deciding where he would do his MBA.  Choices included US, UK and Australian institutions but his advice had been that while Harvard would give him a great network, other institutions would give him a better MBA.  The elitism that Harvard offered was a selling point for the MBA, rather than the quality of the educational experience and outcomes on offer.  That is, perhaps, exactly why projects like ASU are so important.

And why is all of this important to Global Development?  Because we copy.  Because universities around the world look to the US, UK and Europe (and maybe sometimes Australia) for examples about how to create and develop themselves.  Developing countries seek and pay for advice from academics and administrators in the developed world about how best to structure tertiary institutions.   Access to higher education is an issue in Australia, but it is an even greater issue in many developing countries.  And if a new model is out there, one that provides for greater access for those who could most benefit from tertiary education, without compromising on the quality of that education, then that should be the model we are looking to.  If ASU has unlocked the secret to the accessibility vs excellence conundrum then that is fantastic.  I look forward to finding out more about it.