How the Pandemic Could Transform Higher Ed | WSJ 

I'm not paying $65,000 per year for online education

First of all, they need to stop charging for facilities we CANT even use

All I know is tuition should not be the same price if we’re learning online.

This is what happens when you make education a business!

Remote learning can’t be used for science majors. If your in Med School, for example, ... you need to be physically present.

Stop paying administrators millions of dollars while lecturers are being paid dimes! Presidents of public universities making 1.5 million per year! This situatiln is immoral!

Expect another increase in tuition for an already criminally overpriced product.

I love how in the US people talk about a “higher education industry” as a normal way to make money and not something that should be easily accessible to each and everyone equally provided their marks are good enough to get in, while in Europe, especially France, it costs about 320€ for a bachelor, or 250€ per year in Germany for a bachelor...

Just cut the salaries of all of the chancellors and presidents to a living wage, and use their extra money to keep schools operating. They donT deserve multiple millions every year - easy.

7:27 looks like Hagrid left Hogwarts and switched to online learning

I took a couple online classes when I went to university and hated them. In-person classes offer things online just can't. I know the president of my school made almost 1 million dollars a year, which is crazy, so you could always cut costs there.

300,000$ for a 4 year degree? Thank god i don’t live in the US

Society should've invested in online education infrastructure years ago. Many schools will go out of business. The college bubble is bursting just as many predicted.

Graduate of 2020 here, could tell you that in no way does a three hour lab course be successful online. There are some things that are incredibly difficult to teach over zoom or canvas online.

Apparently using money from the huge endowment funds they have been building for a "rainy day " is off the table.

I understand the significance of the higher education experience but it’s absurdly overpriced at this point. It’s also insanely overvalued as society has made a college degree into this end-all be-all standard in leading a prestigious and successful life. People shouldn’t feel pressured to go to college just to live good happy lives. There are many alternatives to having professional success and as a society we have to start seeing that.

For the future generation, I am happy about this. They get to have quality education at 'affordable' prices. Prices that will not keep them behind for years and nearly impossible to achieve the american dream of financial independence and home ownership.

I'd really like to know how covid will affect admission rates for students applying in 2021

I feel so bad for all the College graduates. They had to move everything in a matter of days.

Everything in the United States is a business. Schools, prisons, police,... That's the problem!

American businesses dont have the selflessness to actually put college graduates to work with well paying jobs anyway

I am not worried about those upscale commercial institutions. They are sitting on Billions of $ of endowment. Most of them have twice the GPD of a small nation. They'll just have to scale back . They'll be just fine

I have to say, I genuinely appreciate that you interviewed a non-traditional aged student for this. As someone who due to financial/family issues will be 30 when I (hopefully!) complete my undergrad this coming spring, I feel like so much of the higher ed/COVID conversation has revolved around the financial burden placed on the PARENTS of students and the tragedy of traditional students "missing out" on a societal ideal of what a traditional college education should look like. There are thousands of mature students who have worked hard in a way that most current traditional students can't understand (unless they're the children of mature students). The possible impact for these students in the current circumstances can be devastating.

I love that a college education is the only thing considered a “higher education.” I work in a trade that is needed, pays well, my education left me with no debt and I did not get let go when the virus hit. Without the same or similar training I have received, no one can do what I do. But sure, college is the “higher education” that is so important to have. Oh... and there’s a HUGE skilled labor shortage in this country. I use my hands AND head everyday.

We will be moving more towards online and people see the value of trades in skills in online education

This is so random, but I was too shocked not to shout out! The featured journalist was my university professor in Thailand. Really cool to see him still pushing journalism.

The big problem is that most sciences and engineering courses can’t be giving on online. It also really screwed over degrees that have mandatory internships in those field. (I got lucky this year I was able to do the minimum amount internship hours required to graduate).

I am a phd student doing an experimental research. I don’t know whether we would be able to work in lab in near future

The value of education is declining? A bachelor's degree has been useless for decades yet it can cost students so much money.

I emphasize with higher educations but they are WAAAAY overvalued, some schools need to go.

As soon as I considered transferring to MacMurray College from my community college, they announced they were closing. RIP.

0:20 is Hagrid streaming from Hogwarts 😳😱😱

As an African American male it is difficult for me to say this, but the value of a college education is exaggerated and overrated. There is a large sector of our economy that can be serviced via on-the-job or vocational training - this includes many white collar positions. I am white collar professional with Masters Degree. What did my degree earn for me ? Thousands of dollars in student loan debt, only to use approximately 2% of what I learned in my current position.

Small colleges are going to suffer. I went to a small LAC (albeit well endowed) for undergrad and it was a total mess to do online learning because they don’t have the infrastructure. Their $2B endowment couldn’t save them. My med school seems so much more prepared because they already record lectures and most students already don’t go in person unless it’s required.

Trade schools and community colleges are where the action will be. Moderately priced , skills oriented training. No athletics sponsoring , no nonsense policies. Attend classes , learn a trade , transition into the job market. And then there’s the University of Phoenix types of place. For one to consider a full four year college , it will be a bigger step. Considering cost of money will increase tremendously in the next four years ,a full Bachelor’s Degree it will be relegated as a privilege if the moneyed class. Maybe then , a Bachelor’s Degree will earn back its economic value

a 4yr degree outside of engineering and medical hasn't been worth the cost of tuition for over 15yrs. Throwing tax dollars at it isn't viable either since the problem is multifaceted: administrative overhead is huge, ROI of tuition is huge, jobs that actually demand degrees aren't that numerous and there is oversupply of many degrees (driving down value)... throwing more money at this is only going to exacerbate some of these issues. One solution is to improve the quality of education received in grade school (reform the teachers union and encourage parent choice of schools) and increasing the number of technical schools (while also decreasing stigma of tech schools) would go a long way in equipping folks with the ability to succeed.

When higher education became a money-orientated business...

Everyone could put on VR goggles and walk around a virtual campus, classroom, and labs. Half joking.

Harvard wants 50k for the privilege of staring at a screen.

Expect a divide those who could afford on campus education and those who do online college.

Huh, so, private and public schools that significantly ovecharge with many of the latter remaining unaccredited are going to hit a rough patch. My heart bleeds for them, truly 🙄

Here’s a challenge for us... Let’s make higher education online, self-paced, and free for all. For those courses that requires hands on training like medicine, engineering, etc. a partnership with businesses could be formed to teach, train, mentor, etc. what can’t be taught online. Where there’s a will, there’s a way...

I am in med school. I love sitting at home. But hey, I NEED A CAMPUS.

RIP to everyones bank accounts. Tuition is about to skyrocket.

When my university makes me take all but one of my classes online so I have to pay for room and board 🙄🙄

Time to make like South Korea and improve our internet infrastructure and make Comcast and Verizon obsolete. Get rid of the oligopoly.

Many lectures are given with very little interaction to an auditorium of students. All this classes will stay online and grow as it will be cheaper and could reach more students.

This just further makes my PhD an unachievable dream in the shortest time possible.

Hoping that the current and future generations will be well-educated and successful in their professional careers!

There are too many colleges in America already.

Advice from hagrid himself

the people talking about the difficulties of distance education or online learning - I did my entire 4 year nursing degree that way and yes it was frustrating, difficult, technical issues, some classes we could hardly hear what was going on while those in the classrooms got a front row center seat and the whole experience. I agree that online learning is no replacement for brick and mortar learning. It's such a better experience to be able to converse and communicate openly with people in real time, in the same space as you. I think alot of classes and degrees are well suited for online learning, where the student can be self directed and self motivated and follow a syllabus. But there are classes that are simply better in person.

Education should be open to everybody through digital format. That would be a great leap for civilization.

I just got into my dream school and this whole thing is breaking my heart.

Let’s reset the conversation, why are students attending colleges and universities? Is it an assurance to employment, development or progression? When is the medium (f2f, online, blended) essential in the delivery of learning?

I'm the next batch of university and it's online classes mixed with physical classes tentatively. The orientation has become online instead of being physically there. >.

The answer is to do apprenticeship programs/models instead of degrees. Theory is not the same as practicing as you play. Every business can do it and they are incentives for doing it through taxes. People should be paid to learn the skill immediately and not the other way around as every person's time does have value and this isn't entitlement, it's factual.

The whole video is restating the obvious for the purpose of plugging the Cheg company.

If my college decides to become more than half online, I'm just going to defer and enroll in community college. Sitting in my dorm watching online lectures is not worth thousands upon thousands of dollars.

Wasn't this uploaded a few weeks ago

Get all the credits you can on line then transfer them to a 4 year college and get a degree.also do as many college credits in high school as possible.Go to school during the summer so you graduate in three years.This plan gets you the best value for your money.

I feel bad for the future generations, they won't feel the great experience of assembling with friends, group work, socializing, the rush of adrenaline when you're late for an exam, and etc. Lol

Why pay $100k when you can get the same education for $10 in udemy?

Online teaching can maybe work for theory, but there's no way it can substitute practical modules

1:52 i would like to see how mister Brian Alexandar drinks his soup

Online education isn’t as good as on campus experience. Experiencing it now and feel like online education will never replace in person education

Education as a whole needs to be reformed from the ground up, using a system from the industrial age is not the best thing for students AND teachers. Classes need to be more one on one.

Buy out private colleges. Make them all public and tuition free. Oh wait, that requires a vision for the future...and the will to act...and valuing education beyond pure capital gain...

Doing online courses is not bad, when I was working I have taken a couple of online courses when I was studying web and graphic design

so how do I bet against small private colleges?

Alexander man, you look so much like Chewbacca...and a real futurist!

I hate online classes. I absolutely got zero knowledge and it's so hard to make sense of the online lectures especially for last year students. It's frustrating, it's demotivating, it's maddening! And all that tuition i need to pay just for online learning 😰😰 I hope we're going back to normal asap.

why is wsj reuploading this like it's new content? ive seen this before

The effects of Covid on higher education have peeled back the bandage and have revealed the gaping wound that is our higher education system. I do see this as a learning point, no pun intended, to rethink how we are taught and how we learn. As someone who went the community college route, then transferred to the Cal State system, I am sympathetic to those seeking a cost efficient way to pursue a degree. After 6 years of schooling, I cannot confidently say my degree was worth the time, emotional strain, financial burden and overall stress. To me that is the real shame of being a college graduate, carrying a burden of doubt and asking myself ‘what if’ I had chosen a different path.

Im glad decided to attend an online college (WGU) for my graduate degree at this time. Tuition only $4000 for 6 months. No extra books or fees. I receive a quality education that helps in the real world. There is a place for on campus colleges mostly for recent high school grads who actually benefit from the social aspect of Universities. Unfortunately in these circumstances with no social benefits being available (career fairs...interview prep...meet the company days) there’s no reason to be on college campus. I would recommend all HS Seniors to work on taking general courses at a local community college online to save on cash at the moment and build an online presence on LinkedIn.

Paying for college and university. What's that? * Big laughs in Denmark *

I teach post-licensure undergrad (RN-to-BSN) nursing at a state university. I don't think anything can replace face-to-face learning and everything that goes with the college experience. But given the option of trying to hold even a few on-campus classes with 25 nurses from various work settings (with social distancing and masks) or moving on-line, at least for the fall, to me it's a no-brainer. We'll be on-line, and may be for the winter and spring quarters too. As teachers, we'll do all we can to engage students and give them an excellent learning opportunity, but I do think tuitions should be lower this year (and this would also be the right thing to do, given people's more precarious employment situations). Yes, we're looking at lower state budgets for universities and likely lower enrollments. But this is what universities have reserve funds for and we should use them. Hopefully we are back to the regular university setting and more pre-pandemic enrollment and revenue levels by fall of 2021.

I'm an international student at a US university. At this point. I'm already regretting going to college in the States.

Kids DO NOT want to go to college totally online. College is a "right of passage" experience. Yes it's about learning, but it's also about going to sporting events, frat parties, and on campus festivals etc. You don't get that online. The purpose is to get away from Mom & Dad! Online learning is a great supplement to the in-person college experience. But I think kids will always want college to be somewhere different than the living room or kitchen table.

Thank You for the Review 🌟 - Very interesting.. And important. And actual 🤷‍♀️... Maybe, it MAY look like a one-year 'academic' vacation - to look-around more precisely with all the aspects of upcoming reality... But, finally, I'm sure - the system will adapt successfully 👌🏻... - I see not a one chance we could reduce our needs in high education - 🌟✌🏻

Coursera has shown that the cost of online learning is near zero when there are 50,000 people taking an online course from a major university. What so many of us are really paying for is the exclusivity of credentialization, not education.

Lots of people are not disciplined enough to learn at home they need a classroom environment.

barely went to classes in 2010 and did fairly well and got a degree. it was apparent to me that colleges not only mark students higher these days compared to previous generations but all the information needed to get a good score is already online. the only reason to go to tutorials/lectures is to gauge what's coming for the exam. my supervisor wrote a few articles i wanted to verify with her, and she told me in no uncertain terms, that ALL the sources she referred to in her articles were available online. this was more than a decade ago.

Sir, Gandalf wants his beard back.

Let the colleges go under. The higher education system has been a giant scam for years.

The problem with academia is that a lot of 18-20 year olds haven't figured out what they want to be yet, and unless you are driven by your parents, there is little about that environment that forges you towards such. If it were up to me, most students should start at a vo/tech to get training for a survival skill job, get a job in that field, and then can proceed towards getting a degree piecemeal over time if they deem it necessary for career advancement. Hopefully with money they don't have to borrow. Obviously the academic and student loan industrial complexes don't ever want to see that happen.

I was a higher ed administrator for nearly 20,yrs after being faculty....they fought and fought and fought online education, before that satellite education by dish, they fought VHS tape learning for the military onboard ships etc, I was a proponent of ALL those for all but lab courses. I was treated like I was from Mars....they didnt want democratic learning. They wanted higher and higher tuition and fees for athletics and other things students often did not want at all. They will use any excuse to,keep,raising that tuition. I also worked for a state scholarship commission in the late 70s we funded 250million in student loans 97 million in state need based scholrships....the small privates had a lobbyist for their association to keep tuition reimbursement high they would have closed without our program in addition to federal student loans which we administered through banks then. TUition has grown faster than medical costs in the US. YEs all lecture classes can and should be taught online. TO get a taste of how great that could be watch Sapolski vidoes on RU-vid from Stanford University from one of the great profs of our time teaching Human Behavior. You will be amazed how cogent and understandable he is even with very complex constructs...yeeeessss it CAN and should be done. STudents in remote Wyoming or Alaska or even abroad could get degrees in all but lab based degrees. If you have to do experiments then it wouldnt work for those subjects, but those subjects are a distinct minority.

How can the "improved" higher ed make Field and Laboratory works of Biology dept. as effective as physically learning

For a second I thought the smiths just released a single

Pandemic affects the whole world and EVERYTHING. Here I am, inspired to take medicine course so I can help to eradicate new viruses in the future.

Higher education is entirely too expensive anyway. All education should be free including higher education. Online learning till pandemic is over.

Dang Baylor is beautiful

Yes! I love it

I'm in England studying for my English Literature degree with The Open University. It's one of the only ones also accepted in the USA. It's a good way to get a degree if you can't go to a brick uni and works really well for some people and even better for some; though it wouldn't work if you want the life experience of a Uni too. The teaching is a mixture of online and face to face tutorials; online learning and module books with an active facebook community and module and tutorial forums. I'm sure there will be more Universities offering something like this all over the world.

Imagine if Harry Potter was studying in an online Hogwarts. Would he outperform the you-know-who?

i would hope and would expect it should only get better. one can learn on ones own . the material and non waste of time that matters.

We think it will be a hybrid, both online and offline with more focus on real needs of certain groups

Didn't know that Hogwarts charged so much that Dumbledore had to talk on tv

There are still people who can't go online with no PC or a phone, How can they get what they deserve??. It's like the rich people, who have a gadgets to attend online classes can get education while others don't.

They got greedy and now they’re becoming obsolete. I sacrificed and went to community college and local university and still graduated with $20K in student loans...that would be impossible today.