Catholic Universities in an Increasingly Competitive Environment

Abstract

Pope Francis’ vision for a global compact on education, including the role that Catholic universities should play, is in sharp contrast to the vision that dominates the higher education sector: that of producing graduates for gainful employment. Can Catholic colleges and universities rise to the challenge? This article provides a partial answer to that question by first considering four trends affecting higher education globally: (i) the impact of Covid; (ii) the technologization of higher education; (iii) the promise of employability; and (iv) the great unbundling towards micro-credentials. Thereafter, using data for the United States, the article provides a brief assessment of whether Catholic universities may be losing ground, while nevertheless keeping some sources of comparative advantage. The analysis remains explorative and tentative. What seems clear is that there is a lot of heterogeneity between institutions, with some struggling and others finding ways to maintain their comparative advantages.

Keywords:

• higher education
• Catholic universities
• competition
• employability
• micro-credentials

Disclaimer

The author is employed by UNESCO. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author only and may not represented the views of UNESCO, the members of its Executive Board, or the countries they represent.

Notes

1 For examples of how the commitments of the Global Compact on Education are already being put in action around the world, see the synthesis of interviews with practitioners and Catholic school leaders in Wodon (2022a).

2 The rest of the Vademecum consists of two annexes, one for a message of Pope Francis about the Global Compact and the other for its Instrumentum Laboris or practical guidance.

3 The University of Bologna is probably the oldest in the world. It is said to have been founded as a school in 1088 by a guild of students and it was granted a university charter by Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa in 1158. It long functioned as a Catholic institution with support from subsequent Popes, but it became a public institution when the Papal States were absorbed into Italy.

4 The discussion of the four trends has been adapted and shortened from a text by Mellul with her permission.

5 Rankings taking into account the level of employability associated with a degree from a given university are already a widespread feature, and in these rankings the number of universities that engage in partnerships with firms to equip students with employable skills is on the rise. Countries that have traditionally had systems linking higher education and industry, such as Germany and South Korea, are doing better than others in these rankings.

6 A total of 174 Catholic colleges and universities are ranked in either year, but one of them included in 2021 is not included in 2022, so the comparisons between both years are based on 173 institutions. Given that many of the Catholic institutions of higher education that are not ranked tend to be small seminaries or institutions that focus on philosophy and theology, Catholic institutions are well represented in the sample.

7 These rankings are available at https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-universities.

8 These rankings are available at https://www.thirdway.org/report/out-with-the-old-in-with-the-new-rating-higher-ed-by-economic-mobility.

9 This ranking is available at https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/service-learning-programs.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Quentin Wodon

Quentin Wodon is Director of UNESCO’s International Institute for Capacity Building in Africa. Previously, he worked at the World Bank, including as Lead Economist, Lead Poverty Specialist, and manager of the unit on values and development.