ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the likely future for institutions of higher education as the transition to the digital age continues. The discussion covers the three major areas of activity for established colleges and universities, teaching, research, and service. For each of these areas the chapter considers the issues internal to the higher education sector, forces building outside the sector, and the work of the EdLab that attempted to prepare one institution to lead the transition to the digital age by example. Although the time frame for the transition to the digital age is unknown, the forces working against the current higher education delivery model are building, and over time, they will erode institutions that retain orientations formed during the industrial age. The EdLab explored some alternatives that might allow current institutions of higher education to negotiate a transition to thrive under the new and evolving conditions of the digital age.
