At a recent Stanford University event, the novelist Marilynne Robinson lamented how the trend toward utilitarianism in universities has displaced the traditional emphasis on educating students for the rigors of participatory democracy, engaged citizenship, and self-discovery.
Those of us who administer liberal arts or humanities colleges share Robinson’s dissatisfaction with the nefarious influences of market forces on higher ed. At the same time, more context is required to understand why her critique is likely to be idle. One significant fact she overlooks is that most university students (89%) consider career preparation the #1 reason for university study. Indeed, the expectation of a solid “return on investment” regarding promising career options explains why students and/or their parents are willing to pay exorbitant university fees.
Until a more equitable financing strategy has been put (back) in place for a broader spectrum of students, can we reasonably expect students and administrators to avoid utilitarian thinking?
The best option going forward is for university administrators to be smarter and more strategic about aligning a traditional liberal arts vision of higher education with contemporary students' personal and career aspirations. There are many ways to do this today because many contemporary employers and organizations are looking precisely for the liberal arts values and thinking skills argued for by Robinson. The problem should not thus be cast as an either/or (ethical or utilitarian; either about self-discovery or careerism, etc.) but rather as a both/and.