QS Insights Magazine
Issue 16 April 2024
What students want
Contents
Skills, not suits
Employers are more likely than ever to hire based on skills – so what is the benefit of higher education?
The future of Turing
Despite the Turing Scheme being more successful than what many have expected, its future still looks uncertain.
Gen Z's business school wish list
The new generation of students in business schools are prioritising ethics, sustainability and mentorship as they look to enter the working world.
The niche MBA
With the demand for more generalised MBAs plateauing, business schools are looking to get more sector-specific.
Building boundaries
A survey reveals that a substantial number of academics find technology ‘burdensome’.
What students want
What are the things that truly matter to students when they’re looking for the perfect university match?
From college dropout to Vice-Rector
How Jean-François Champagne’s new scholarship pays testament to a life well-lived.
Breaking barriers
Transforming higher education in India through interdisciplinary research and collaboration, as discussed at the QS India Summit 2024.
QS ImpACT’s campus sustainability pioneer winner
Sylvain Djerambete’s achievement highlights the exceptional work of young activists across Chad striving to create a green and sustainable future.
QS Subject Rankings 2024
Explore the latest results of the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024.
Democracy and the threat to the internationalisation of European higher education
With a rising tide of anti-immigrant sentiment in Europe, universities must advocate for international openness, inclusion and diversity within higher education.
The evolution of transnational education in the Caribbean
Transnational education brings international degrees to Caribbean students, reducing costs and opening doors, increasing access to higher ed.
Adpative thinking
With employers asking more of graduates, students are asking more of their universities. New disciplines, better provision of soft skills and a new values sets are in the mix. Are universities ready?
Long term thinking
A lot’s happened since 2020, so it may be easy to forget some of the ways in which life changed during the pandemic. We had masks, lockdowns, rapid tests and vaccines. We were unable to travel, see family or do the activities we used to. But also, it was really hard to get basic items for a while.
For a period of time (I can’t remember exactly when), supply chains broke down around the world. Parts of systems couldn’t move because others were stuck, large manufacturing stagnated, and there was a general turndown in production. Surprisingly, shortly after these challenges, Supply Chain Management as a discipline of study became popular, and was included for the time in the QS Business Masters Rankings.
Since the November 2022 launch of ChatGPT, AI has also started to capture the imagination of educators, not only as a field to directly study, but a field that influences business, the arts and humanities, and many other areas.
New undergraduate, postgraduate, graduate diploma and non-accredited programmes are starting to appear within universities. It’s an exciting time for school leavers and education returners, but it’s also a time for careful reflection and consideration.
Last month, we explored what employers want from graduates, particularly business graduates. There are clear connections between employers’ expectations and what universities do. But we would be mistaken if we only looked at the provision of education through that lens. Of course, as students expect work post-graduation and employers expect certain skills pre-graduation, both expect universities to do something about it. But students also want much more.
This month, the cover looks at just that: what students want. There are some surprises in there, particularly around autonomous learning and work opportunities. We also ask the question whether universities are ready, like they were with supply chain management and AI management, to meet the hard skills changes at a degree level.
There are some promising signs, and we also explore some of the emerging niches in management education and the reasons behind it.
There is plenty more within this edition to pique your interest.
Anton John Crace
Anton is Editor in Chief of QS Insights Magazine. He also curates the Higher Ed Summits, EDS and Reimagine Education conference at QS Quacquarelli Symonds. He has been writing on the international higher ed sector for over a decade. His recognitions include the Universities Australia Higher Education Journalist of the Year at the National Press Club of Australia, and the International Education Association of Australia award for Excellence in Professional Commentary.
Contributors
Editor-in-chief Anton John Crace
Deputy Editor Afifah Darke
Content Manager Khushboo Singh
Contributing writers Chloë Lane Claudia Civinini Gauri Kohli Julia Gilmore Seb Murray John O' Leary Niamh Ollerton
Guest writers Nigel Healey Shazim Husayn
Events Technology Manager Loh Lu Han
Marketing and PR Serena Ricci Mak Leeson
Cover Produced by Adobe Firefly
Design Kek Yea Yin
Sales contact sales@qs.com
The QS Insights Magazine is a monthly, online and print publication that highlights trends within the international education sector.
The online edition is emailed to our network of academics and university leaders worldwide. A limited number of selected copies of the print edition are also sent to university leaders around the world and distributed at QS events.
The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors. They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of QS Quacquarelli Symonds.