A Small Note to My Readers
I’m trying something new with my writing.
For some topics, I’ll be creating two versions of the same idea — one for the academic community, using theoretical frameworks and references, and another for general readers, where the same ideas are explored in a more accessible and less jargon-heavy way.
The aim is simple: to make complex ideas travel across different spaces without losing their depth.
(And now, here is the version of the blog for general readers)
We talk about: skills, outcomes, employability, global competitiveness.
But we rarely ask: What is happening to thinking? This piece reflects on the changing nature of higher education and the cost of these transformations.
A Faustian Bargain? What Is Really Happening to Higher Education Today
Higher education today is increasingly driven by metrics, markets, and measurable outcomes.
But education was never meant to be only about productivity. It was also about thinking, questioning, and imagining differently.
So a difficult question arises:
What happens when knowledge is valued only for its economic return?
Are Universities Making a Dangerous Deal?
Let us begin with a story.
In an old European legend, a man named Faust makes a deal with the devil. In exchange for unlimited knowledge, power, and pleasure, he agrees to give up his soul.
This story—popularised in Doctor Faustus—has given us the phrase “Faustian bargain”: a deal that promises everything now, but costs everything later.
Today, higher education seems to be entering a similar moment.
Universities promise:
better jobs
global opportunities
innovation
measurable success
But what are we quietly giving up in return?
When the Market Enters the Classroom
To understand what is changing, we need to look at a simple shift.
The logic of the market—buying, selling, calculating value—has slowly entered everyday life. Increasingly, we are encouraged to see ourselves as projects to be managed—constantly improving, optimizing, and investing in our future.
In this shift, education becomes less about understanding the world and more about preparing for the market.
Education as Investment
Today, education is widely seen as:
an investment
a pathway to employment
a measurable return
Students are expected to:
build CVs
acquire skills
remain “competitive”
Universities begin to function as spaces that prepare individuals to succeed within the economy.
But this raises a fundamental question:
Is education only about employability?
The Rise of the “Audit University”
This transformation is visible in how universities are evaluated.
We now live in a culture dominated by:
rankings
credits
performance indicators
measurable outputs
Numbers begin to define value.
But what about:
curiosity?
critical thinking?
imagination?
These are difficult to measure—and therefore increasingly sidelined.
When Knowledge Becomes a Product
Knowledge itself is changing.
It is no longer just about understanding—it becomes:
something to package
something to sell
something to consume
Students become consumers.
Degrees become investments.
Universities begin to resemble marketplaces.
Kerala: Reform, Migration, and Market Anxiety
This transformation becomes especially visible in Kerala today.
Kerala has long been recognised for its high literacy rates and strong public engagement with education. Learning has historically been linked not just to employment, but to social awareness and civic participation.
However, recent developments suggest a shift in how education is imagined.
1. NEP and the Language of Reform
The implementation of the National Education Policy 2020 has introduced a new vocabulary into higher education:
flexibility
multidisciplinary learning
skill orientation
innovation
While these ideas appear progressive, they are also closely aligned with a broader emphasis on employability and economic relevance.
Education is increasingly framed as a system that must respond directly to market needs.
2. FYUGP and Structural Transformation
Kerala’s Four-Year Undergraduate Programme (FYUGP) is another important development.
It promises:
flexibility in course selection
multiple exit options
interdisciplinary learning
At one level, these are positive changes.
But at another level, they also reflect a shift toward modular, outcome-based education, where learning is broken down into measurable units—credits, skills, competencies.
The deeper question remains:
Does flexibility lead to intellectual exploration, or does it simply produce more adaptable workers?
3. Migration and the Anxiety of Retention
Perhaps the most visible pressure shaping education today is student migration.
Large numbers of students are moving abroad—to Canada, the UK, Australia—in search of better opportunities.
This has created a sense of urgency:
How do we retain students?
How do we make local education “globally competitive”?
In response, education is increasingly restructured to align with global labour markets.
But this also transforms how we think about education itself.
Instead of asking:
What kind of thinkers do we want to create?
We begin asking:
What kind of workers do we need to retain?
The Emotional Cost of This Shift
This transformation is not just structural—it is emotional.
It produces:
anxiety about performance
fear of failure
pressure to constantly compete
Students begin to see themselves as investments that must succeed.
Teachers, too, face increasing pressure to meet targets, produce outputs, and remain “relevant.”
The joy of learning slowly gives way to the stress of evaluation.
The Digital Turn: Education as Data
Technology intensifies this process.
Education today is increasingly:
tracked
monitored
data-driven
Attendance, performance, engagement—all become measurable.
While this creates efficiency, it also risks turning education into a system of continuous surveillance and optimization.
Can We Still Think Differently?
Despite all this, universities are not completely lost.
There are still spaces that resist:
classrooms that encourage discussion
teachers who prioritise curiosity
students who question rather than conform
These spaces remind us that education can still be:
reflective
ethical
transformative
The Real Question
The modern university promises:
efficiency
innovation
global relevance
But we must ask:
What are we losing?
If education becomes entirely driven by markets and metrics, we risk losing:
critical thinking
intellectual freedom
the ability to question
A Final Thought
Faust’s tragedy was not that he wanted knowledge.
It was that he accepted a deal without fully understanding its cost.
Today, as we reshape education, we must ask:
Are we doing the same?
Because what is at stake is not just the future of universities —
but the future of thinking itself.
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