The nation is consumed by the quest to grant more college degrees. A new report by Douglas Harris and Sara Goldrick-Rab if the University of Wisconsin-Madison offers a look at how to do that cost-effectively.

“The (Un)Productivity of American Higher Education: From Cost Disease to Cost-Effectiveness" compares several practices to see which are cost-effective for producing ...]]>

The nation is consumed by the quest to grant more college degrees. A new report by Douglas Harris and Sara Goldrick-Rab if the University of Wisconsin-Madison offers a look at how to do that cost-effectively.

“The (Un)Productivity of American Higher Education: From Cost Disease to Cost-Effectiveness" compares several practices to see which are cost-effective for producing more degrees. The practices include programs such as GEAR UP, Upward Bound, call centers for colleges, reducing student-faculty ratios, and hiring more full-time instructors.

The findings support the common wisdom that outreach programs such as GEAR UP and Upward Bound are relatively expensive.

But they also support the notions that adding full-time faculty is more cost-effective than adding adjuncts and that running campus call-centers to contact students who miss class or fail to register can be cost-effective measures in producing more degrees. At the Des Moines Area Community College, student persistence is between 2 and 15 percentage points higher when the call center actually makes contact with the student.

The number of U.S. colleges and art and trade schools offering degree programs in video game design will reach 300 nationally this fall—a nearly 20% increase in degrees offered in the field over last academic year, according to the Entertainment Software Association (ESA).

Twenty of the programs are offered at New England colleges.

Vermont's Champlain ...]]>

The number of U.S. colleges and art and trade schools offering degree programs in video game design will reach 300 nationally this fall—a nearly 20% increase in degrees offered in the field over last academic year, according to the Entertainment Software Association (ESA).

Twenty of the programs are offered at New England colleges.

Vermont's Champlain College, an early pioneer in the field, now offers four  programs in video gaming, up-to-date multimedia and game production labs, a chance to study in Canada at the word's second-largest game development center, and a new studio tailored specifically to the hands-on learning.