University in corporate culture

Author: (American) Eric Gould
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-07-01
Features: This book is extensive in scope and deeply thoughtful, an outstanding work in analyzing the dilemmas of American higher education. Gould provides a panoramic view of the contemporary American university landscape, comprehensive, insightful, and forward-looking. —Peter Henegg, The American
This book is beneficial for both higher education professionals and students, a significant contribution to the field of higher education research. —Tim Merrill, The Journal of Higher Education
The book presents novel and passionate perspectives. Gould’s critique of university commercialization is noteworthy because he can both survey historical depth and understand the role of universities in the generally corporate American life. —Los Angeles Times Book Review
This book offers serious discussions on many major issues in the field of higher education, making it a preferred choice for academic and public libraries. —Library Journal
Over the past century, American higher education has developed a more pronounced corporate ethic, a system that competes for students, faculty, and funding. The University in a Corporate Culture examines the conflict between the liberal democratic ideals that traditionally drove American higher education and the market pressures to issue diplomas and provide more transactional knowledge.
The author, Gould, is both a scholar and a college administrator. He argues that universities have failed to rebuild a new curriculum to integrate responsible social idealism, humanism, and practical economic and cultural needs, leading to the current moral crisis of higher education.
Gould analyzes the economic and political factors influencing higher education. He claims that universities need to provide undergraduates with a more universal and democratic education to enhance their critical ability to understand power relations (including those within the field of higher education), enabling students to comprehend how various social forces—often lurking in ideas, ideologies, and “zero-sum claims”—shape current public thought and opinion.