ABSTRACT

This chapter is concerned with some of the uncertainties in the changing academic profession. These uncertainties are caused by circumstances, conditions, and forces that are often external to the academic community, although some are generated internally. The chapter discusses three explicit external forces: changing demographics and the debate over affirmative action and diversity; the role of the federal government, along with that of private industry; and the revolutionary advances in technology. The internal forces affecting change within higher education are as strong as the external forces, and in many cases it is difficult to distinguish whether or not the various forces are internal or external. The United States has perhaps the most diverse set of institutions of higher education in the world, and therefore it is impossible to speak of "American higher education" as a monolithic uniform enterprise. The chapter focuses on three categories of institutions: the major research universities, "second-tier" doctoral-granting institutions, and undergraduate liberal-arts colleges (primarily private institutions).