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  • For-Profit Higher Ed: 20 Questions

    By Joshua Kim February 20, 2011 8:30 pm EST

    1. Who is doing comparative research on the for-profit educational sector and the professionals who work in this industry?
    2. Where can we find research on the for-profit educational sector that is unbiased and peer reviewed?
    3. What researchers or institutions are conducting research on the for-profit education sector that presents balanced views of both the positives and negatives of this growing sector?
    4. What can this research on for-profits teach us about the changing landscape of higher ed?
    5. What can this research on for-profits teach us about improving the quality and affordability of all sectors of the postsecondary education market, including public and private non-profit institutions?
    6. What is life like for a professor at a for-profit university?
    7. How does an academic career at a for-profit resemble and differ from a career at a traditional nonprofit?
    8. Does a full-time faculty position for a for-profit include research and service, or is it all about teaching?
    9. Assuming that tenure is not a part of the picture of a for-profit professor (is this correct?), what sort of academic freedom and protection do for-profit full-time faculty enjoy?
    10. Is a for-profit academic career a viable alternative for a new PhD?
    11. How many full-time, teaching gigs exist at for-profits? How does this number compare to nonprofits?
    12. How is the employment picture for full-time professors at for-profits changing?
    13. What proportion of full-time faculty at for-profits have PhDs?
    14. Is there a career path from part-time, adjunct faculty to full-time faculty at a for-profit?
    15. What are the proportions for part-timers vs. full-timers across non-profits and for-profits?
    16. What opportunities or forums or places exist for people who work in the non-profit and for-profit sectors to come together and honestly discuss what we are doing, and what we can learn from each other?
    17. How would we rank for-profits in terms of quality and value for the money from a student perspective? Does such a ranking exist?
    18. How would we compare and contrast the quality of non-profits with for-profits? Do such comparisons exist?
    19. Who would be interested in research on the for-profit education sector, and why?
    20. What are your questions about for-profit higher education?

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Comments on For-Profit Higher Ed: 20 Questions

  • 20 Questions
  • Posted by Fred Stielow , Dean of Libraries at APUS on February 21, 2011 at 5:45am EST
  • Ton of research going on now. In addition to DOE, you may want to start with Educause and Sloan C. In comparison to traditional universities, these Schools also typically collect and are managed by a frightening amount of metrics.
  • One answer to questions 1, 2, & 3
  • Posted by Don Heller at Penn State University on February 21, 2011 at 8:30am EST
  • Kevin Kinser at SUNY Albany and Brian Pusser at U. of Virginia.
  • Imagine America Foundation
  • Posted by Tom Holz , National Director of Sales and Market Development at Blackboard on February 21, 2011 at 10:30am EST
  • Imagine America did a recent study on "Graduating At-Risk Students: A Cross-Sector Analysis." The contacts listed in the study are Bob Martin, President, bobm@imagine-america.org; Jenny Faubert, jennyf@imagine-america.org; and Dr. Watson Scott Swail, President, Educational Policy Institute, wswail@educationalpolicy.org. Imagine America is highly involved in this research.
  • University of Phoenix Academic Annual Report
  • Posted by Robert Jones , Director of Product Marketing at Pearson Learning Solutions on February 21, 2011 at 11:45am EST
  • Building on Fred's comment, the Academic Annual Report the University of Phoenix has taken to publishing is pretty insightful on their metrics. It's obviously not the objective, third-party-vetted or peer-reviewed analysis you're seeking, but it's definitely worth a look. http://www.phoenix.edu/about_us/publications/academic-annual-report.html
  • Accountability
  • Posted by UOP , Faculty at UOP on February 21, 2011 at 12:45pm EST
  • Got to love the attack on for-profit education. Now if only the public sector was held to the same accountability?
  • Answers to Questions
  • Posted by Education Doctoral Student on February 22, 2011 at 10:45am EST
  • There has been a great deal of research on for-profit institutions. Try Kinser, Pusser, Tierney and Hentschke, Breneman, Ruch, Chaloux, Clowes, several ECS studies, and others to start... Of course, this is an evolving sector, so continued research is clearly needed. There is much that for-profits and non-profits can learn from one another, so this research is of use to many parties.

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