Sector reform needed to achieve universal higher education

Universities must undergo reform to fully realise their potential and meet student and societal needs, the Warden of Goldsmiths has said in a foreword to a paper exploring the future of the UK higher education sector.

Professor Frances Corner sets out the need for change in an introduction to the report, Down with the World-Class University: How our business models damage universal higher education, published by The Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI).

The Warden said: “In the age of technology, we need more, not fewer, graduates equipped with advanced skills to solve complex problems. Structural reform of our sector is essential.

“We must innovate within the spirit of our rich educational heritage, equipping more people with the conceptual and practical tools required for growth, progress and social innovation.”

The paper was sponsored by Goldsmiths, drawing on sector roundtables hosted by the College, and was written by higher education and creative economy consultant Edward Venning. 

It recognises the funding crisis hitting UK universities and says the root cause for this is a shared operating model which has allowed the sector to “stall in an era of surging demand”.

The paper argues good growth, and an era of universal higher education, can be achieved if the UK ditches the “world-class university” model in favour of group and collaborative approaches.

The report is the first of its kind to examine the UK university environment through this lens. It highlights that: 

• The UK lags behind other advanced economies in tertiary enrolment rates
• Current business models fuel the sector’s financial crisis and limit its reach, thanks to over-reliance on the “world-class university” model
• The sector can learn from emerging non-university competitors how to offer higher education at scale, in partnership and at lower cost

The report calls for:

• A re-design of the higher education system – to achieve a universal offer, created by an Independent Commission. This should go beyond funding considerations to differentiate types of providers and introduce new business models.
• New credentials and value propositions – to be designed by providers, working with the Office for Students (OfS) and Skills England, as a central part of the universal offer. These should define skills as conceptual and enquiry-based, not just technical.
• A major transition fund – to offer loans to providers to develop new business models, value propositions and organisational structures in line with the new system design.
• Group and federal structures – collaborative structures and joint ventures to be preferred to the use of mergers and acquisition, especially in the case of distressed providers.
• A sector-wide leadership body – responsible on behalf of providers for overseeing the tertiary ecosystem, including resource distribution, scrutinising regulatory burden, and shaping public understanding of higher education's value.
• Rebalancing the role of the Office for Students – to safeguard the sector, the Secretary of State to direct OfS to have regard to the overall health of providers and the sector, alongside its responsibility to students. This should include managing regulatory burden.

In turn, this would renew the view of universities as a public good and allow the sector to serve the broadest of publics.

The report states: “We must shift towards more collaborative, interdependent models and group structures. We must rethink our relationships with industry and restore higher education’s broader public good remit. 

“This will help achieve the critical mass and agility needed to serve new markets and develop compelling value propositions for universal higher education.”