ABSTRACT
Higher education is an industry in and of itself, and each institution within this industry must wrestle with its multiple purposes, conflicting agendas, and declining resource base. Institutional leaders must be prepared for an endless balancing act of competing and conflicting forces. This chapter looks at some of the ongoing issues that will continue to impact higher education in the future, and frames them within a business perspective. As of 2016, the for-profit sector enrolled over 1 million students and this number is expected to increase as these institutions continue to aggressively market themselves. Federal, state, and local governments have been involved in funding, and to some degree regulating, postsecondary education for quite some time and there is no indication that their involvement will diminish anytime soon. Calls for accountability, fluctuations in funding, and enrollment swings contribute to the uncertainty in the higher education marketplace and support the need for a strong system of accreditation.
