Higher Education and Employability makes a crucial contribution to the current reassessment of higher education in the United States by focusing on how colleges and universities can collaborate with businesses in order to serve the educational and professional interests of their students. Drawing on his extensive experience with universities and the business world, Peter J. Stokes argues that the need for closer alignment between the two sectors has never been more critical—and that the opportunities for partnership have never been greater.
This book includes a series of trenchant case studies of particular universities that have developed ambitious collaborative programs—New York University, Northeastern University, and the Georgia Institute of Technology. Incisive and practical, this book surveys the full range of current partnerships between businesses and higher education and points to opportunities that will best serve students now and in the future.
Peter Stokes has written an insightful analysis of the way forward in American higher education. Rather than adding to the many dire predictions about higher education, Stokes describes a new breed of research universities that boldly combines general education with career readiness in their graduates. “Higher Education and Employability” should be required reading for every university leader seeking a sustainable model for the future.
Marie A. Cini, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs, University of Maryland University College”
In “Higher Education and Employability,” Peter Stokes ably plays the roles of provocateur, pundit, and prophet, curating cases and framing conversations on a topic that couldn t be more pressing: integrating work and study to help ready our students for lives and careers that will be steeped in learning.
Mark David Milliron, cofounder and chief learning officer, Civitas Learning”
“Higher Education and Employability” is a must-read for every campus leader thinking about the potential of experiential learning opportunities to complement traditional classroom-based methods of instruction. Through a focused series of case studies, Stokes demonstrates that the old divide between institutions devoted to the life of the mind (knowledge creation and critical thinking development), and those devoted to ensuring student employability, is a tired and limiting construct of an earlier time.
Joshua Kim, director of digital learning initiatives, Dartmouth Center for the Advancement of Learning”
