Brief Thoughts on the Evolution of Higher Education

This week for class, I am reading about the shift in universities from the unitary structure of the 19th century to the federal structure of the 20th and 21st century.  The average university in 1870 had a faculty size of 10, and an average student enrollment of 92.  By 1950, average faculty size had jumped to 134, with student enrollment just under 1500 students.  Those numbers are much larger today.  While there is undoubtedly still a gap between state schools and private universities in terms of student enrollment and faculty size, all higher education systems have moved from a unitary to a federal structure.

If you went to college in 1870, you probably had 6-10 faculty members at your whole school.  You and all of your peers followed the same curriculum (mostly focused on classics and mathematics): no majors or minors, no schools or departments, and no advanced or remedial offerings.  All students matriculated, completed the set curriculum, and graduated.  Today, even the smallest liberal arts colleges can have 20 departments, each with 4-5 faculty members.  Larger state university systems typically consist of at least 70 departments, each department having anywhere from 10-25 faculty members (depending on the popularity of the department). 


This makes me appreciative of two facts: first, that we are all free to choose our own major; second, that we should take advantage of whatever type of school we want to attend.  I knew in high school that I wanted to attend a smaller university where I could experience a feeling of camaraderie and closeness with both students and faculty.  Attending a larger state school as an undergrad works for many students, but I do not think it would have worked for me.  Ball State is a medium-size state school, and to me it seems huge.  However, the graduate programs at Ball State are small enough that they make me feel as if I am still at a smaller university

I do not think one type of university is better than another: where one is lacking, the other is strong.  What is important is that students attend a school that works for them based on their ambitions, personality, and motivations: a school where they're able to best coalesce their new knowledge, old knowledge, and existing skills.