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Higher Education in

the Online World

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Higher Education in the

Online World

HIGHLIGHTS

Earlier higher education was considered to be

largely immune to economic cycle. However,

several new tides have buffeted the higher

education system caused by an unexpectedly

prolonged economic downturn.

The objective of this paper is to analyse these

changes and understand the role of online

information technologies (IT) in responding to

the changes

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Spending Crisis: Downturn & Demography

• Due to the continuing downturn, state spending is also reducing as a share of per capita real

educational costs.

• Two reasons for higher enrolment in HEIs

• Downturns

• Fewer jobs and greater competition for existing jobs

19%

19%

34%

7.60%

18.10%

2.20% Public Research University

Public Other 4- year

Public 2 Year

Private Research University

Private Other 4 - Year

Private 2 - Year

Some interesting statistics

• Out of the USA’s 21 million enrolled students,

72% went to public colleges and universities in

2010

• About 60% of students (FTE-adjusted) enroll in

four-year colleges and 40% of students enroll in

two-year colleges

Enrolment by Institution Type

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Internationalization of Higher Education

• By 2009, 690,000 foreign students were enrolled in US HEIs • Decadal growth rate of 2.6% and about 3.5% of total enrolment of 20.4 million

• Many foreign students are critical elements of masters and doctoral programs,

particularly in research-intensive universities.

• Case in point: Stanford University’s Computer Science Department, about three

fourths of the doctoral students come from overseas.

The US recognizes that it needs to do more at the level of higher

education to retain its leadership position

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The Seven Implications

1 • Deleting or reducing academic programs

2 • Greater emphasis on remedial education among underprepared groups

3

• Greater emphasis on upper levels of education and research among well-prepared K-12 graduates

4 • Shift to research-intensive education for the privileged

5 • Greater reliance on part-time faculty

6 • Greater reliance on international students

7

• Impact on other stakeholders: (Greater spending on CRM systems, online synchronous and asynchronous instruction, online learning management and instructional design and online research management, publishers developing online course material)

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Voices of Stakeholders

Administrators view learning

technologies as only one

component, and not even the

major one within the domain of

technologies that improve the

efficiency of learning.

Textbook publishers and

library software providers

see learning technologies

as the leading edge of

change in higher

education.

For administrators the primary

need in learning technology is

better user data management to

enable the smooth functioning of

admissions, enrolment, grading

and other requirements.

Elite institutions worry less

about spending on

synchronous learning than on

how to support face-to-face

teacher student interaction

through technologies.

MOOCs (massive open

online courses) are less

relevant to the elite

institutions than to the

average public college.

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Trends in Growth and IT Spending

• Unexpected importance of administrators in leading the on boarding of online

technologies

• The funding crisis is shifting more responsibility away from faculty (who were the

traditional decision makers) to professional managers.

• The role of the system integrator appears to have become critical

• The growing use of social media for learning requires integration of college software

with social media, while maintaining security under compliance laws

• To reduce costs, many HEIs are shifting out of proprietary systems to open-source or

free software

It is expected that SIs and startups will deliver fairly significant changes to the

educational experience by making use of online technologies

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Categories of Technological Change

• Making the experience faster and cheaper

• Incorporating personal consumer devices such as smartphones

• Better quality of information, pedagogical tools and research collaboration

Complementary Technologies

• Re-usable digitized lectures and artificial intelligence tools

Substitutive Technologies

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Discussions and Conclusion

HEIs, which are traditionally conservative, have

become open to online technologies

Administrators, not faculty, are leading the on

boarding on online technologies

Despite the interest in startups as leading the

technological shift, the role of the system integrator

has become ever more critical

Disruptive technologies are not immediately visible on

the horizon

Demand for teaching that could substitute for the

lecturer facing a large class in which teacher-student

interaction is limited

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For more details please visit the link below:

http://www.wipro.com/Documents/insights/whitepaper/high

er_education_in_the_online_world.pdf

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Wipro set up the Council for Industry Research, comprised of domain

and technology experts from the organization, to address the needs of

customers. It specifically surveys innovative strategies that will help

customers gain competitive advantage in the market. The Council, in

collaboration with leading academic institutions and industry bodies,

studies market trends to help equip organizations with insights to

facilitate their IT and business strategies.

For more information on the Research Council visit

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About Wipro Council for Industry Research

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About Wipro Technologies

Wipro Technologies, the global IT business of Wipro

Limited (NYSE:WIT) is a leading Information

Technology, Consulting and Outsourcing company,

that delivers solutions to enable its clients do

business better. Wipro Technologies delivers winning

business outcomes through its deep industry

experience and a 360 degree view of “Business

through Technology” – helping clients create

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innovation and an organization wide commitment to

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