Giving Compass' Take: 

• Alana Dunagan at The Christensen Insitute lays out the ways that higher education is affected by technology, and how institutions can make positive gains by shifting their models to fit with the changing landscape of education. 

•  What challenges would accompany colleges that are trying to keep up with the flow of edtech? How can philanthropists help with new funding models? 

• With all of the changes affecting higher education, managing innovation is going to be a key component into transitioning to this new era of learning.

It’s a tough time for colleges. Enrollment has declined in each of the past five years, largely concentrated in for-profits, but public schools are seeing drops as well. Demographers predict further drops in demand, one of many factors putting pressure on the traditional business model of college.

At the same time, it’s an incredible moment for the business of learning. Waves of technology are driving growing demand for life-long learning. Observers predict a significant increase in demand for credentials in order to meet the economy’s need for a more skilled workforce. Edtech is seeing massive inflows of funding, and successful startups are proliferating in higher ed.

But can traditional institutions play in higher education’s growth markets?

Some are starting to. Here are four lessons that colleges and universities can learn from the disruptive change taking place in higher education:

  1. Online learning can expand access and lower costs…with the right business model: Disruptive players embed the disruptive potential of online education within a new business model.
  2. New funding models can change organizational incentives: A number of potentially disruptive players in higher education, are pursuing non-traditional funding models, including income share agreements (ISAs), and outcome-contingent tuition.
  3. Workforce alignment can power the business model of higher education: Disruptive entrants are laser-focused on workforce outcomes. This leads them to involve industry practitioners in program and curriculum design, to partner with employers on experiential learning opportunities, and to facilitate student’s job searches.
  4. The market for unbundled learning experiences could be massive: Working adults who are also students are hoping for a bite-sized, unbundled learning experience to help them make career progress in the context of a turbulent economy. A plethora of microcredentialers, bootcamps, and online course providers are stepping into this market.

Read the full article about how higher education can respond to disruption by Alana Dunagan at Christensen Institute