'Drastic change in Dutch higher education required'

Unless we fundamentally revise the higher-education system, Dutch universities will find themselves on the path to the situation that can already be seen in America and Great Britain. The combination of the further retreating government and the huge intake of students will result in prohibitive teaching programmes, followed by privatization and eventually social divide. Utrecht University Rector Magnificus Bert van der Zwaan draws this conclusion in his book ‘Higher Education in 2040?’, which will be published on 24 November.

Aside from increasingly higher costs for high-quality education, Bert van der Zwaan discovered more problems in universities. These include a high pressure to publish within academia, an increased importance of social relevance which is occurring at the same time and Europe losing the competition over talent and innovation due to the high development of Asian mega cities as well as the big ecosystems of knowledge that are being developed there.

INVESTING IN HIGHER PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION AND SMALLER UNIVERSITIES

Van der Zwaan believes the solution can be found in a revision of Higher Education; a more selective admission into science programmes and an investment in Higher Professional Education to make universities smaller and better. This is based on the thought that a big number of science students tend to primarily choose for a 'higher step' in terms of educational levels, without having the research-focused profiles that are necessary for academic degree programmes. Van der Zwaan also proposes a more intensive collaboration between institutions, which enables teaching clusters and big urban economic regions to compete with other regions in the world.

DARING TO PARTICIPATE IN SOCIAL DEBATE

In a time where the 'wisdom of the crowd' is ruling and populist leaders have big followings, it is of big importance that universities dare to take a leading role in social debate. This is done by providing irrefutable facts and knowledge that are essential for securing our future, even if that means sending a message that will not be immediately convenient for politicians and public opinion.

In 2015, Bert van der Zwaan visited countless colleagues in America, Europe and Asia and discussed the developments within the higher education system with them in an attempt to compare them to each other and come to sensible future scenarios. It resulted in a clear image of the worldwide chances and threats universities face and a vision of what the university of the future should look like.