The University of the Future

Universities have been changing and the stresses and strains are starting to show. People like Jordan Peterson are talking about how universities need major reform. Some say they are on the decline although in many, if not most cases, student numbers are increasing, sometimes exponentially. The number of universities is also on the increase and many are growing to involve campuses at multiple sites and some in different countries. Many universities have moved, in a relatively short period of time, from being centres of education geared up to handle relatively small numbers of young men and women studying as undergraduates for general degrees to becoming large centres of learning which span a whole array of ages and offer many choices of professionally orientated courses ranging from certificates to higher degrees. There have been questions asked as to how, under these circumstances, institutions have been able to maintain standards. Whereas attendance at a university meant physically having to go to where it was located, today with e-Learning, universities are increasingly taking students from far and wide. But can the educational experience be as good or even be said to be good at all? There has been an increase in private universities and there is the question of their ability to deliver quality education. The work of an academic today is totally different to that of a few decades ago. University jobs had a reputation of being great opportunities because of the time they gave for personal pursuits, both in research and recreationally, but this is now entirely different. Pressure to publish in top journals and the intervention of management procedures often referred to as managerialism has substantially changed the academic environment. Academics are now among the most pressured professionals. Students fees have been on the rise (in some countries substantially) and at the same time there are claims that some university executives have been awarded very high salary increases. Tenure, which was seen by many as the backbone of the academic profession has in some places been abandoned. There is no doubt that universities are not what they used to be. ACPIL are inviting contributions to a new book called The University of the Future – An exploration of how Universities will have to change.  Contributions will be considered from academic faculty, university administrators, students and other interested parties. The publication date of The University of the Future is late autumn 2019. The closing date for submission is August 15, 2019. Enquiries may be made directly to Professor Dan Remenyi, dan.remenyi@academic-publishing.org Academic Conferences and Publishing International Limited academic-conferences.org www.academic-bookshop.com SKYPE: dan.remenyi Tel: 44 (0) 118-972-3699