Higher education is approaching a period of profound disruption, and many colleges may not survive, Arthur Levine, the newly appointed president of Brandeis University, said during a recent event.
Levine estimated that between 20 and 25 percent of colleges will close in the coming years, while community colleges and regional universities move increasingly online.
He made these remarks during a recent American Enterprise Institute event titled “Tackling Higher Education’s Challenges: A Conversation with Frederick M. Hess and Brandeis University President Arthur Levine.”
Wealthier institutions may have the resources to withstand the transition, but many others do not. Levine said that elite schools, such as Harvard, can afford to wait out disruptions, while smaller institutions face immediate pressure to adapt.
“Higher education is undergoing a transformation. Our whole society is undergoing a transformation,” Levine said, pointing to the shift from a national, industrial economy to a global, digital, knowledge-based one.