As an expert in US higher education, Jason W. Osborne understands the challenges many institutions face as we move through 2023 and beyond. Jason provides insight into those challenges and how these institutions can navigate issues with funding, curricula, resources, and preparing for the future.

One of the biggest challenges is the continued downward trend in student enrollment and the recent pandemic impacts of students not finishing their degrees. With the trajectory of future jobs requiring advanced (graduate/professional) degrees, there will be a considerable disparity between workforce needs and the supply of graduating students prepared and able to adapt to an evolving workforce. 

Global pressures and underfunding are critical. While costs for higher education institutions continue to rise, many states continue to reduce funding for various reasons. In addition, while students are graduating from high school at a higher rate than ever before, many families now question the validity of a higher education degree. In terms of funding and providing better support for staff and faculty, health care, retirement programs, and the overall infrastructure, these challenges must be supported by additional funding sources.  

A resilient and future-ready institution in modern times must look at entrepreneurial revenue, support from government agencies, donor and corporate support, and instructional revenue as a comprehensive package to survive and thrive.

It can be difficult for education leadership to attack these multiple challenges head-on. Higher education institutions must consider the steps taken and view the challenges as opportunities for growth and retention. International student programs can position an institution as a global brand that recruits the best and brightest from around the world, opening the doors for various students while enhancing outside funding sources.

Additional opportunities lie in online offerings. Some students still prefer or need online offerings rather than being on campus full-time- including military-connected students,  students who work or support a family, or those who cannot easily travel to campus. 

Symptoms of the pandemic are still alive, causing these institutions to refocus on a new culture of students (and faculty) who may still not feel entirely comfortable engaging in person or students who have different priorities and need the flexibility of an online degree program to meet their needs.

Another alternative funding source is also an opportunity for institutions to improve how they serve their educational mission:  transfer students. One of the best ways to engage these potential students is by giving them more support, being transparent in services and course offerings, and creating an atmosphere where they are welcomed from first contact and throughout the transition process. 

Leaders have to help campus stakeholders identify opportunities like these that both serve the educational mission of the institution and also position it to be more resilient financially.

Over 40 million Americans have started some form of higher education but have yet to complete their degree programs. These potential students have invested in their education but have not yet received the benefit of a conferred degree.  They represent another opportunity for institutions to support student success and serve a societal need, recruiting them back to complete their degree.  Institutions engaging these students must focus on retention and student success, using multiple strategies to determine why these students might not have graduated in the past and addressing these issues.

 

With students committing to finishing their programs, funding shortages can be offset with positive gains while preparing a workforce prepared for shifting global changes and demands.

HE institutions have to focus on student success before college.  Getting students in high school actively engaged in thinking about options in higher education and demonstrating the benefits is crucial to the sustainability of the future workforce and encourages educational equity and inclusivity. Local partnerships with high schools where students can get a head start on their college careers through dual enrollment, student centers, and other value-added incentives can make a difference.

Higher education comes with a cost – to the students, faculty, and institutions. The cost to educate students increases yearly as digital transformation continues to evolve, the deliver of learning changes, personnel costs climb, infrastructure costs increase, and the burden of responding to increasing government regulation grows.  At the same time, declining revenue, the need for additional funding sources, stiffer competition, and the effects of inflation significantly impact how institutions must learn to pivot and adapt. Inadequate support in these areas could also lead to faculty choosing to pursue other opportunities and lacking offerings that appeal to the student base.

Leaders must help their faculty, staff, and supporters understand these dynamics, that the challenges we face will likely grow in the future, and that new opportunities and challenges must be met with new ways of doing things.  Once higher education institutions start viewing their approaches from an entrepreneurial standpoint, they may be better suited to invest in the areas that garner positive outcomes, financially and educationally.  It is the obligation of the leader to help focus interest on current and future challenges, communicate a clear vision for embracing opportunity, and engaging the entire institutional community in strategically addressing the future.

Jason is a highly experienced thought leader in higher education who has served in multiple leadership positions, most recently as provost and Executive Vice President at Miami University, Dean and Associate Provost of the Graduate School at Clemson University, and Department Chair at the University of Louisville. 

Osborne is in the top 2% of cited US scholars and has written many books and peer-reviewed articles, in areas including applied statistics, evaluation, educational psychology, and business analytics. He is a national leader in applied statistics and quantitative methods and is an Accredited Professional Statistician.