Professors across the United States share a less optimistic view when it comes to rating the current system of higher education, according to a recent poll.
Most of the professors rate the system at 6.7 on a scale of 10 when it comes to preparing students for their careers. At the same time, 74 percent of them feel that federal authorities have a negative impact on the future of higher education.
The 3rd annual Professor Pulse Survey, which was conducted by Top Hat, a provider of cloud-based teaching platform, and had 1,956 participants, found that 87 percent of professors see the cost of tuition a significant concern, as it is too high.
“Insufficient funding is top of mind as the greatest institutional challenge for three out of five (60 percent) professors. Thirty-five (35) percent of professors also cited decreased enrollment as a top institutional challenge,” the poll results said.
The survey also found that half of the professors believed the success of a person wasn’t dependent on a post-secondary education, while 41 percent felt it was challenging to maintain or increase academic standards at their respective institutions.
“Changes to the educational infrastructure are continually dominating headlines with proposed federal budget cuts, rising financial costs of higher education, and decreasing student enrollment, among other unsustainable changes,” Mike Silagadze, co-founder and CEO, Top Hat said.
“At the same time, college and university professors are increasingly challenged to foster active learning and support student success inside and outside the classroom – and they wouldn’t have it any other way,” he added.