With federal and state budget crises raising up the voices of people calling for higher education becoming “free”, this brings up an interesting dilemma. Because, government subsidizing the costs of higher education isn’t “free” obviously. But, we’re actually closer to “free” education than we’ve ever been before. You can jump online and learn how to do nearly everything. Free tutorials that are easy-to-follow and detailed. You can learn how to design websites. How to program. But more than tech skills, universities are now beginning to release the comprehensive audio and video of lectures from entire courses. Now, you wouldn’t get “credit” for doing college this way. But, it’s becoming easier and easier to learn online the same things for free.
And while schools like the University of Phoenix have led the way in for-profit online education, organizations like the Khan Academy are pushing free versions of high-quality educational content. So, how long will it be until an individual is able to get their undergraduate degree completely free online, and more importantly, it be recognized as valuable by a hiring manager?