http://thechoice.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/02/10/hobart/
I apologize if, to some, I'm misusing Obamadogs to rant about my frustrations with college administrations, but I stumbled across this article and it only added fuel to my fiery hatred about the current state of higher education in the US. A college in New York is resorting to 3-D glasses to attract prospective student, wasting more resources toward prospective students at the expense of the education they provide their current students.
I understand colleges need students to operate, but when will institutions draw the line when it comes to its mindless quest to get another $40,000 out of unsuspecting high school students? Not anytime soon.
Colleges will claim such tactics are necessary to stay competitive in the cutthroat world of college admissions. Although colleges may be competing harder against one another, the intense battles playing out across the country do not seem to be caused by colleges fighting over a shrinking pool of prospective students.
More students are going to college than ever before, and even though there are more opting to go to community colleges than in the past, I do not think college admission staffs are faced with shorter lists than before.
I believe colleges are having to resort to such trivial strategies because their "brand" is becoming less attractive to the high school student. Colleges continue to not hesitate to bump students' bill a couple thousand dollars, but the concepts of raising academic standards and basic students services are not so welcomed.
The article mentions how colleges are offering to wave admission essays for prospective students. What kind of image is this projecting? "Hey, come to our college, you don't have to write an essay to get in. Hell, you probably won't have to do much when you get in, we just want your money.
Instead of demanding more from students, colleges are settling for the bare minimum, and this is only aiding in their demise. Colleges are thinking too much in the short term to fix their economic woes, when they need to become committed to long-term solutions to repair the financial mess they've dug themselves.
This means demanding more from prospective students in the admissions process to set the tone for the rest of their college experience. The only way colleges will project a true better image of themselves is when they produce graduates that are the product of a demanding college that doesn't sacrifice academics for applications, but currently this idea seems tragically way too idealistic. Thoughts?
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This is not inappropriate as a "rant" on this blog. In fact, quite the opposite: it makes several pertinent points on our current malaise in higher education, particularly the swap of money for a degree with all-but-explicit by-pass of the role that a college education is supposed to play in producing thoughtful, creative, competent citizens. I have one thought here that may be relevant to the diminished emphasis on intellectual quality as shown in high grade-points, low standards, easy admission, etc. Our political culture has become extraordinarily "anti-intellectual" of late. It didn't start with Bush II, but it was taken to new depths by a president who concealed effectively his two degrees from Yale and Harvard. The same thing is visible in the efforts by many -- Sarah Palin, for one -- to stigmatize Obama as a "professor who lectures at" the "American people." Authenticity, as Thomas Frank suggested in a piece from BBC I forwarded, has replaced issues as the basis for voting for many Americans. And authenticity and articulate thoughtfulness are seen in the main as incompatible in this country. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. Others' thoughts?
ReplyDeleteI agree Joe, Obamadogs is a place where we can vent these frustrations. I also feel that the business end of upper education is rearing its ugly head with only feeble attempts to mask it. Quality of education has apparently gone out the window only to be replaced by the bottom dollar. This is extrememly frustrating when we are the students paying thousands (even though it seems like trillions) of dollars for a "quality education."
ReplyDeleteIn my own personal experience at Wartburg, i have had my share of "disappointments" with administration, policies, etc. However, i do feel that thanks to certain members of faculty my education has been quality and worth the debt i will be starting my professional life with. I have a key example to share. First, with the cancelation of the Spanish capstone (due to low enrollment and administration's "double-talking" the course isn't actually "canceled," it's just well.... canceled. Because they offer an arranged study in its place it's fine, right?) I found myself in a pool of confusion. In the handbook it states that all majors and all students are entitled/required to take a capstone course for their major, which combines an ethical as well as writing component in their chosen field of study.
So now what? After meeting with my advisor we developed a plan of action. We both felt that in order to be appropriately compensated i should be entitled to an environment where i could submerse myself in the Spanish language and culture. After a month of organizing and typing up proposals I finally submitted a pristine application for a variance to the appropriate office. Under this proposal i would be spending time in Waterloo at the Latino Center as well as working closely with my Spanish advisor to develop a course of study complete with weekly readings and writings in addition to a final writing-intensive research project. Both my advisor and myself were feeling confident that due to the unique nature of my situation and the need to be exposed to a Spanish-speaking atmosphere, my variance would be approved.
As i was casually walking down the street in front of Grand Central Station in New York City over Christmas break i received an e-mail informing me my variance had been denied. Perfect.
ReplyDeleteUpon arrival back to Wartburg i immediately met with my advisor and we began the process again. After almost two weeks of being sent to offices all over campus and meeting with people who were obviously not on the same page (or in the right book for that matter) I hit a breaking point as i sat in a certain professor's who is the head of a certain department's office as he/she crossed the line and made several very unprofessional comments about my advisor and kept restating "A capstone is class and it's so very important that it remain a class" over and over as i would ask questions as to why my proposal could not qualify as a proper replacement. This was it. I felt irritated and taken advantage of. Because my capstone no longer existed, i was expected to skip around campus, meet with people who had no idea what to do in this situation, and type up proposals to replace a course that was canceled by the school? Seems logical to me.
Long story short, (or not so short) I typed up my fifth proposal and was very careful to avoid using certain words, because what this matter came down to was a case of semantics. In essence i turned in the same proposal i had innitially submitted in December after changing a few words and was approved.
The point of my ranting is this. If "a Capstone is a class and it's so very important it remain a class," why was it canceled regardless of the number of people enrolled in it? If this class was the "make or break" in my education what does that say about its cancelation and the administration who executed it? I bet a little thing called money could explain this.
I apologize, i know i was being very cynical when i wrote this.. i guess i'm still bitter.
Higher Ed. has taken too many cues from corporate marketing. I share Joe's and Ashley's frustrations to an extent, with Wartburg and with the "recruiting" process of law schools. Most materials spend a great deal of time describing quality of life aspects of their college, but glaze over what students can expect academically.
ReplyDeleteTo stay along the lines of Ashley's comments, my question is"What is the purpose of a class?" Capstone should be the pinnacle of a Wartburg students learning in their discipline. With regards to Spanish, if a class can't be formed because of lack of enrollment, wouldn't a "hands-on" experience be the best substitute? I guess I don't understand how students learn, but I would think that doing something would be better than nothing.