Why Do Colleges Make People Unhappy?
My friend James Creigh recently alerted me to a new study showing that relatively young (18-to-40-year-old) American women who consider themselves “liberal” are more than twice as likely to be…
Articles by Richard K. Vedder
Policy Brief: From Empty Classrooms to Efficient Campuses
Executive Summary Colleges and universities across the country are burdened with inefficiently utilized facilities, leading to unnecessary costs, wasted space, and misplaced financial priorities. This policy brief, authored by economist…
The Bell Tolls for Higher Ed
Writing four centuries ago, John Donne memorably opined, “No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.” He…
Introduce More Market Incentives into Higher Education
When most decisions regarding the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services are made by private individuals or businesses operating in a market environment, society tends to be prosperous,…
Divesting from Israel Is Not Just Wrong but Stupid
Clearly, the most newsworthy story in American collegiate life recently has been the widespread eruption of pro-Palestinian protests over the war between Israel and Hamas. A central demand of pro-Palestinian…
The Collegiate War Against Merit
A story in Inside Higher Ed last week revealed that two more Ivy League schools, Cornell and the University of Pennsylvania, have stopped publishing “dean’s lists” that recognize high levels…
The Real World Confronts the Ivory Tower
For years, there has been an ever-widening gap between the values and behaviors of contemporary America (“the Real World”) and those on college campuses (“the Ivory Tower”). Since, ultimately, the…
The Ne Plus Ultra of Collegiate Wokeness
Observers of the American collegiate scene are likely well aware of the academic jihad against University of Pennsylvania law professor Amy Wax and the disgraceful shouting down of federal judge…
Does College Accreditation Work?
When you buy a car, a piece of furniture, or a pleasure boat, you typically don’t ask the seller, “Is the manufacturer accredited?” We buy all kinds of things, even…
The Decline (and Fall?) of College
“A majority of Americans don’t think a college degree is worth the cost,” wrote Wall Street Journal reporter Douglas Belkin in late March. That revelation was inspired by the results…