Heffernan, T. (2023). 'The History of the University'. In: The Marginalised Majority in Higher Education: Marginalised Groups and the Barriers They Face. Palgrave Macmillan

 This chapter has only served to reinforce my thoughts that the HE sector seems to have lost its way at some point in the last 50 years and is undergoing something of an identity crisis that only those working within it can remedy. Heffernan discusses issues related to who is within the 'circle of power' (i.e. NOT the marginalised groups) and the general perception of HE that it is a luxury and simply a way to waste a few years building up debt. He explains the process of how this came to be; and of how a huge boom in universities in the 80s and 90s, where demand outstripped supply, has inevitably led to a situation where supply is now far outstripping supply and universities are having to compete for students, which costs money in itself. 

This situation seems to have a number of causes - economic downturns, rising costs of living, COVID and less governmental demand for the research and innovation that was championed after WWII. The post-war drive for occupations to become professions requiring university level training has levelled off as employment opportunities for graduates have dwindled, leading families who may have encouraged their children to go to university to fail to see the benefit of HE if it's not going to lead to higher wages. 

Of course, much of this can be mitigated through the innovative route of higher and degree apprenticeships, which my PhD aims to explore. However, a key point that comes from this reading is that it speaks to the sense I have that HE has lost its way and that society is missing the point of HE. If we only see HE as a short-term, direct route to higher status and higher pay work and if our understanding is that that is the only way it impacts on society and the economy, we are failing to see the far more profound (but less direct) benefit of the hidden curriculum inherent in HE when done well. 

I hope my work will contribute in some way to a different way of valuing HE and that it will be able to demonstrate how HE can transform lives by showing that it is not just higher wages that enables people to live well - that the ability to think critically, understand evidence, be reflective and skilled at responding effectively to challenges represents the truest gains from studying at university. The next step will be how we communicate this and how society's (and the government's) perception of HE can be altered as well.

References

Heffernan, T. (2023). 'The History of the University'. In: The Marginalised Majority in Higher Education: Marginalised Groups and the Barriers They Face. Palgrave Macmillan