The future of higher education, and universities in particular, faces substantial challenges. In the United Kingdom, about 50 universities face the risk of closure in the next few years, and half are on the brink of insolvency. In the United States, the picture is even bleaker. Between the Global Recession (2008) and the immediate post-COVID era (ending 2024), between 300 and 500 degree-granting colleges and universities have closed, according to various reports from University World News and The Change Leader, Inc.
In China, which has the largest number of universities among Asian countries, no facilities have closed, but the government has undertaken a major strategic overhaul of academic programmes, cutting over 12,000 programmes between 2021 and 2024. In Canada, reports indicate that universities and colleges have not experienced closures on the scale seen in Asia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, but funding for public universities and colleges has fallen. Estimates suggest that funding for public institutions is currently about 48 per cent, down from about 67 per cent in 2008. Compounding the crisis for the US, UK, and Canadian universities are new visa policies that have drastically reduced the number of international students accessing universities in these countries. These policies have badly hurt many universities’ finances.
The picture is somewhat different in Africa and Latin America, for while there have been closures, hundreds of state-approved universities have been opened.
CARIBBEAN REALITY
In the Caribbean, about 100 universities and a few dozen offshore universities operate across various Caribbean countries. While a few private universities and colleges across the Caribbean have closed, most large institutions, including those that receive state funding, have remained open even though all face severe financial challenges.
Despite the relatively large number of local/regional and overseas universities operating in the Caribbean, university enrolment among high school graduates is low, ranging from 15 per cent to 27 per cent across Caribbean countries. In addition, an unspecified number of Caribbean students attend universities overseas. Together, these two facts are a positive for Caribbean universities from a business perspective. The prospects are great for growing the “university” business given that consumption is currently low, provided that the products are appealing and given the developmental imperative to increase demand.
TWIN IMPERATIVES
Stimulating demand is a major imperative for universities, and this has to do with a variety of factors, including perceptions of the value of a university degree. I have spoken with business leaders and students across the Caribbean, many of whom question the value of a university education. Some leaders question how well students are being equipped for the workplace, and some students question the value of the effort. A July 2026 Gallup Poll found that public confidence in higher education has fallen from 57 per cent in 2015 to 38 per cent in 2026. There is widespread acknowledgement that higher education faces an enrolment crisis. According to UNESCO data, about a decade and a half ago, 21 million students (85 per cent, about 18 million of them undergraduates) were registered in universities globally. The undergraduate population now stands at 15.5 million, down 14 per cent.
STATE, INSTITUTION, AND PRIVATE-SECTOR PARTNERSHIP
Yes, a university education is primarily intended to provide the critical-thinking skills to support the attainment of independence and the ability to create jobs, but are people believing that as much as they should, and even so, can they afford it? Therefore, there is a need to stimulate demand – which is the role of universities – and to facilitate access, which is a role shared by universities and the State, particularly in developing countries. This is then a collective effort.
The Caribbean is one of only two regions globally with a regional university. As a regional entity, The UWI is an asset whose resources must be leveraged to advance the region’s development. Whatever other descriptions The UWI may attract, it is principally a tool for regional development.
But the partnership on higher education as a tool of development is not exclusively one between institutions and the State. The private sector has an important role to play, not merely as consumers of knowledge outputs from the university but also in informing the areas of knowledge output that should be given consideration and funding some of the knowledge generation activities, and given feedback on the quality of graduates needed to drive innovation and productivity in their industries. This feedback loop is essential in order to ensure that universities are meeting the demands of the market.
GRASPING OPPORTUNITIES
The challenges facing higher education also offer opportunities. To take advantage of these opportunities, strategies should include:
• Developing, and seeking external accreditation for, programmes that target students affected by shifts in global geopolitics, particularly visa policies and taxes on international students.
• Creating responsive micro-credentials systems with keen attention to product offering, design, pricing, and market usefulness.
• Adopting China’s model and undertaking radical reviews of programmes and courses and assessing their relevance to market needs.
• Centering work-based learning so as to ensure that more students graduate with relevant work experience.
• Utilising more creative means to communicate research outputs to ensure that broader cross-sections of Caribbean society have easy access to research data, information, and insights. Scholars need to use social media to share the knowledge they are generating while maintaining engagement with traditional outlets.
• Establishing systems for enabling undergraduate students (who make up the bulk of university populations) to be involved in business- and industry-aligned research with their lecturers and professors.
• Promoting entrepreneurship as a central component of the undergraduate studies experience, while building students’ leadership skills.
Professor Canute S. Thompson is the pro vice-chancellor, Undergraduate Studies, The University of the West Indies. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com
