I see that @severincarrell’s piece about St Andrews has been followed by a similar piece about Aberdeen University.
After my three years as an NUS Scotland officer I worked for various education sector orgs. I have some thoughts - a thread follows: https://twitter.com/severincarrell/status/1248287511400656899

Firstly: I know funding is a year on year battle but I believe education is given special consideration. Hallowed. Revered.
And with good reason.
Education is transformative - for individuals, their families, their communities and the economy.

But we have to be honest when we say that a hierarchy of respect and recognition exists. And that despite the recommendations of the Commission on Widening Access, post-compulsory education still remains out of reach for too many people - unacceptable, for a public & social good.

That said, I assumed - I think many did - that it would be the prospect of the 4th industrial revolution which would disrupt education. It is wild that the four year, full time, September-April degree (for example) is still accepted as the standard.

And that the college sector is expected to be all things to all people - proving all levels of education, delivering access to the labour market for those furthest distanced, generating commercial income to support operations - with little to no recognition of their contribution.

And don’t get me started on the fact that from nursery to University we still follow an agricultural calendar despite very few weans or students spending their home time bringing in the harvest or tending to the flocks.

When I was at NUS I often had to challenge fellow officers and students from the rest of the UK who insisted Scotland had “free education” as English students paid £10k a year fees with none of the protections offered to fee-paying students at English universities.

And here we see that what is putting the whole university sector in danger is the collapse of the market for international students paying serious £££ for a Scottish degree. Marketisation of education has always been a bad thing. NUS has been saying this for literally years.

It’s terrible to see Ancient institutions warning of danger. Their contribution to Scotland goes beyond providing degree programmes - and is perhaps a story still not told to its fullest in Scotland. Of research, of community, of economic development and social empowerment.

But disaster brings things into sharp focus. I believe that we have some of the best and brightest minds in Scottish education, and while I don’t deny that the future is going to be tough, I fully believe there is a window of opportunity to reform the entire education field.

The questions we must start with are: what do Scotland’s people/communities/businesses/local & national economies need?

Then: what can the whole education sector do to deliver that?

And: what does that look like?

And the model we should start with, is the Open University.