Some Trends in Public Higher Education: Asia and U.S.

Abstract

Higher education is undergoing a major transformation due to numerous forces and factors, many of them associated with globalization. In this paper, some recent trends in higher education in the United States and various settings in Asia are examined. The central question is: is the contemporary university as we know it an endangered species? In most parts of the world, including Asia, higher education institutions are being challenged to adjust to a rapidly changing world. Yet, universities as we know them were not built to adjust rapidly to change. If anything, they were built to resist change. Issues such as differentiation, decentralization, globalization, social mobility, funding, virtual education, and internationalization will be discussed in the context of rapid social change.