The Liberal Arts in the Age of Efficiency
I just spent the weekend with my college roommates and was reflecting on our college experiences. At the time, we, of course, had an eye on employment and what we were going to do when we "grew up." Full disclosure: out of the four of us, I have "explored" the most—lol—but we went in knowing that our undergraduate education was a time for exploration, education, and growth. We took the required courses in fine arts, humanities, foreign languages, and non-Western-centric history. None of us would ever claim to be worse off for it—quite the opposite. We experienced art, music, literature, dance, travel—life through that informed lens.
It should be noted that each of us did go on to graduate school, which is where our vocational training began.
WVU has cut a myriad of majors, courses, and faculty in those disciplines, and I, too, at the community college level, have fought against categorizing courses as useless or a waste. My trigger is "when will I need [insert course] in my life?" Look, you may never need to escape from a fire, but isn't it great to know how in case you need it? And we know that innovation often comes from applying one idea to a different problem. Training to think and ponder is the role of the university.
Leaning into majors like "esports and gaming" or business administration (hot take) pivots the institutions toward vocational training programs, albeit white-collar vo-tech by vocational schools all the same. And to be clear, if a prestigious company even recruits from an undergraduate school (e.g., McKinsey), they are most likely (of course, there are exceptions) recruiting from schools that have not eliminated humanities and foreign languages. Note on the foreign languages: in the quantifiably growing international interdependence and the necessity of strong communication skills, it is extremely shortsighted to eliminate programs that would enhance that ability.
And I view these changes as a move away from equity and access because, as public institutions move towards a vocational focus, the private, liberal arts, and research institutions maintain these programs. Sociologically, relying on undergraduate education for the best jobs (meaning high-paying, wealth-generating jobs) while subsequently diminishing the quality of the education by eliminating traditional core disciplines contributes greatly to sustaining the financial inequality that exists.
Unfortunately, the neoliberal mindset has permeated the halls of higher education, especially within the walls of public universities. Ideological partisans are not only tying funding allocations based on "profit" (efficiencies) but also driving governance through political and ideological appointments.
The trajectory of higher education, especially within public institutions, reveals the shift towards a neoliberal paradigm that prioritizes vocational training at the expense of a well-rounded, liberal arts education. This shift not only undermines the intrinsic value of liberal studies but also threatens to widen the gap of financial inequality by limiting access to comprehensive education.