> A typical belief among students is that classes are a series of hurdles to be overcome; at the end of this obstacle course, they shall receive a degree as testament to their completion of these assignments.
IMO the core problem is that in many cases this typical belief holds true.
I went to university to get a degree for a particular field of jobs. I'd generously estimate that about half of my classes actually applied to that field or jobs. The other half were required to make me a more "well rounded student" or something like that. But of course they were just fluff to maximize my tuition fees.
There was no university that offered a more affordable program without the fluff. After all, the fluff is a core part of the business model. But there isn't much economic opportunity without a diploma so students optimize around the fluff.
IMO the core problem is that in many cases this typical belief holds true.
I went to university to get a degree for a particular field of jobs. I'd generously estimate that about half of my classes actually applied to that field or jobs. The other half were required to make me a more "well rounded student" or something like that. But of course they were just fluff to maximize my tuition fees.
There was no university that offered a more affordable program without the fluff. After all, the fluff is a core part of the business model. But there isn't much economic opportunity without a diploma so students optimize around the fluff.