Let’s Open the Black Box of Selective College Admissions
The aftermath of the 2023 Supreme Court ruling in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard (SFFA) has put a spotlight on the capriciousness of admissions practices at selective colleges. In…
Articles by Frederick M. Hess
Don’t Trust Colleges on Race-Based Admission
This week marks the one-year anniversary of the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College and UNC, the twin rulings striking down…
Finally, a Chance to Start Getting Higher Ed Right
“Finally.” It’s a word those who’ve spent years sounding the alarm about the plight of higher education have been saying a lot lately. Finally, the thought-policing and groupthink have become…
Biden’s Even Worse Version of “Free College”
The Biden administration has abolished the federal student-loan program, at least if a “student-loan program” is one in which students borrow money and then eventually repay it. What’s being erected…
How to Control College Costs in 2023 and Beyond
TRY WORKING HARDER The college-costs question invites a raft of sensible responses. But I’m a simple guy, and I’ll offer a simple place to start: Students, teachers, and staff should…
A Less Cloistered Schoolhouse
A single-minded focus on recruiting new college graduates for teaching jobs once made sense, back when college-educated women were a captive applicant pool and it was routine for new college…
Are Microcredentials More Than the Next Higher-Ed Fad?
How do you spot a hot trend in higher education? Hint: Headlines in industry outlets simultaneously insist that everyone wants it, no one is sure what it is, and nobody…
The Case Against Admissions Selectivity
It’s time to do away with selective college admissions for undergraduate education. Now, let’s get the caveats out of the way. When it comes to specific training that requires particular…
After Student-Loan Forgiveness, Mandatory Credentialing Has to Go
President Biden recently announced a controversial, half-trillion-dollar student-loan-forgiveness scheme in which his administration would use a minor provision of the post-9/11 HEROES Act to excuse student borrowers from repaying roughly…