tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21077063.post1401554817368314390..comments2024-02-16T08:32:46.618+00:00Comments on Donald Clark Plan B: Is Higher Education a classic bubble? 7 reasons to think soDonald Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00796341486328270474noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21077063.post-35246784383891805412011-10-19T15:12:16.147+00:002011-10-19T15:12:16.147+00:00"higher education" has become an oxymoro..."higher education" has become an oxymoron.<br /><br />The man who changed the world in our time was a college dropout. <br /><br />'nuff said. <br /><br />(oh, yeah, college grads pushed papers for him and probably trimmed his hedges)..https://www.blogger.com/profile/15242309978105585114noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21077063.post-18574894994528735082011-05-14T12:29:00.846+00:002011-05-14T12:29:00.846+00:00Donald,
I don’t know that much about how UK unive...Donald,<br /><br />I don’t know that much about how UK universities are funded but it seems to me that the system is a recipe for inefficiency and the kind of bubble that Thiel alludes to. It seems they get huge government subsidies and extract exorbitant fees from foreign students, while they also have the freedom to Jack up their fees for British ones. Meanwhile, they don’t really have to answer to anyone and they’re staffed by a good number of un-firable, tenured professors who disdain the notion that they should be held accountable in any sense. Having worked all my life as an entrepreneur in the private sector I see these things as indicators of trouble ahead. I also wonder if we really need more graduates in ‘poi studies’ or indeed anything with the “media” attached to it? I’m not sure these things make a contribution to the society that pays for them (in part. <br /><br />Ken CarrollKen Carrollhttp://www.ken-carroll.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21077063.post-5565281628523141652011-04-28T12:35:19.488+00:002011-04-28T12:35:19.488+00:00Didn't finsd this article convincing as it lac...Didn't finsd this article convincing as it lacks any sense of forward looking analysis.<br />Loans are not straightforward commercial debt in US as they are underwritten by SLABS and have federal guarantees. It’s more circuitous, but similar to the UK. One could argue that we are in a worse position, as a massive default would leave us with the bill, and not the students themselves.<br />Debt is debt and the fact that the state is picking up the tab makes no real difference – that tab is our collective debt. We’re picking up the tab for the housing and banking bubble that doesn’t make it less of a bubble. Remember that the money will have already been paid out to the Universities – it’s already spent and converted in to a long term debt, accumulating in value.<br />I agree that the value of a degree is more than its earnings potential. However the subsequent return on investment through earnings is easy to calculate. Sampled data and actual earnings does the job. That’s why the treasury can come up with a default figure.<br />Overseas students argument is a red herrring. Those fees are paid by the parents of a tiny elite. In fact foreign student data in the UK shows that only a tiny number of vocational degrees are sought after. This is far from congruent with the western liberal arts idea of a University.<br />This, or next, year’s figures are not that relevant. The bubble is the cumulative number of graduates hitting the market year after year accompanied by the law of diminishing returns.<br />The ‘philosophy’ example is close to my heart as that what I did. It proved to be lucrative, then, as the number of graduates was relatively small, compared to the population as a whole. I should point out that almost every cabinet minister on both sides of the house did PPE ;). Seriously though, the Walker data should be worrt=ying because of the trend, not the snapshot. This article is weak because it’s all present tense analysis. Thiel takes a longer economic look at the growth of a potential bubble.Donald Clarkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00796341486328270474noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21077063.post-68317901514765744182011-04-28T09:21:36.051+00:002011-04-28T09:21:36.051+00:00Up to a point. But Thiel is talking about the situ...Up to a point. But Thiel is talking about the situation in America. As <a href="http://bit.ly/mJMOMd" rel="nofollow">this</a> article suggests, "Here, the cost will continue to be significantly subsidised (for now at least). And if you don't earn enough, you'll never pay back a penny. The term for this is not bubble but moral hazard. As with the banks, the state is insuring students against economic failure."Robhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11647405720597546140noreply@blogger.com