Education

Review: Pluralist economics is a work in progress

23 March 2018

“Econocracy”, a book by rebel Manchester undergraduates, gives mainstream economics a well-deserved thrashing. They could have been even tougher. But where are the alternatives? Too much of the companion volume, “Rethinking Economics”, seems underdeveloped, not to say flaky.

Gary Cohn could go from White House to blackboard

7 March 2018

President Trump’s departing economic adviser may fancy staying in government. Or perhaps he’ll try to return to finance. But America is awash with politicians and bankers. Becoming a teacher would be a fine display of public service. Cohn now has some valuable lessons to pass on.

Hadas: Billy Graham’s great missed economic chance

26 February 2018

The evangelist, who died last week, lived through a global debate over the Christian responsibility to help society. He put preaching before activism. If he had spoken out – as many European Catholics did – America might have a stronger welfare system now, and less populism.

Pearson investors need their homework checking

17 January 2018

The $8 bln education publisher’s revenue has stopped cratering after it stemmed a decline in sales of U.S. textbooks. The relief may be temporary. Colleges are shifting to cheaper course materials and a price war is looming. That is hard to square with a rich valuation.

Harvard fund helpfully expels star pupils

18 December 2017

The university endowment is spinning out its real-estate team to buyout firm Bain. Investment boss Narv Narvekar had promised to outsource more of the $37 bln portfolio. Pushing out one of the bits that’s actually turning in stellar performance is a reassuring sign he means it.

Indian family writes its own philanthropic code

24 November 2017

The Bhartis are donating $1.1 bln to their own foundation. Though the sum pales next to other billionaire pledges, there's a creative twist. Money will be used to start a university to teach AI and robotics, free to poor kids. There's no global playbook when it comes to giving.

Chicago School gets $125 mln for being wrong

1 November 2017

The university’s tradition leans heavily towards free and efficient markets. Hedge-fund boss Ken Griffin’s name and cash – generated in an industry that depends on markets being inefficient – will now endow the economics department. Kudos to Griffin and Chicago’s open mind.

UK student loan sale has costly Corbyn hedge

31 October 2017

Britain is pushing ahead with the sale of 4 bln pounds of loans, despite Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn’s promise to ease student debt. Investors will get compensation from a complex scheme if government policy changes. That further strains the logic of the sale.

For-profit college deal textbook merger of equals

30 October 2017

Strayer and Capella are forming a company worth $1.9 bln as regulatory pressures force them to improve the quality of their degrees. Pooling resources, and slicing out $50 mln in costs, gives them a better chance to disrupt America's overpriced higher-education racket.

Pearson’s improved report card could be erased

17 October 2017

The education publisher issued a slightly more optimistic forecast for operating profit and said its U.S. textbook business is unlikely to repeat its catastrophic 2016. But Pearson has misread its key market before. The shift to digital publishing still looks painful.

Harvard endowment risks wasting its big advantage

20 September 2017

An 8.1 pct gain in the year to June was far from Ivy League. Newish boss Narv Narvekar says it will take years to fix performance. But worrying about short-term returns misses a Harvard strength. Its $37 bln pot is ideally suited for the ups and downs of very long-term investing.

Endowment CIO pay demands greater academic rigor

23 August 2017

The boss of Harvard’s $35 bln fund recently made nearly three times as much as the head of Yale's $25 bln pot despite much weaker returns. Colleges generally base compensation more on size than performance, as companies tend to do with CEOs. They should grade more carefully.

Exchange Podcast: Duff McDonald

25 July 2017

Harvard Business School has trained world leaders, billionaire entrepreneurs and convicted felons. Duff McDonald, author of “The Golden Passport,” discusses the seamier side of Harvard's teachings with Rob Cox.

U.S. colleges may need to start on M&A course

25 July 2017

After tripling in real terms since the early 1970s, tuition costs are now rising only a hair faster than CPI. Cost cuts won't offset flagging enrollment, the result of a stronger job market and demographic shifts. Merging could help, especially for small private schools.

U.S. student debt dims home-ownership outlook

17 July 2017

Economic growth is supposed to lure millennials out of their parents’ basements. But a study from the New York Fed suggests that borrowing for surging college costs accounts for up to a third of the decline in home buying by 28-to-30-year-olds. That purchasing power won’t return.

Pearson’s $1 bln Penguin sale papers over cracks

11 July 2017

The education group is selling almost half its 47 pct stake in Penguin Random House to co-owner Bertelsmann. Pearson has maximised the cash proceeds, but the valuation looks low. With a still-troubled core business, boss John Fallon is running out of assets to sell.

U.S. for-profit colleges get presidential clemency

15 June 2017

The education secretary chosen by the founder of defunct Trump University is set to rework two Obama administration rules that targeted dodgy degrees. They could be improved, but more likely they'll be weakened. Students may need to be more vigilant and taxpayers could lose out.

Hadas: Free university for all is good policy

14 June 2017

The UK Labour party promised to abolish the current tuition-plus-loan system for tertiary schooling. That’s normal in most of Europe. It’s also fair and enriches society, whereas student debt does the opposite. Clever use of taxation might offer an answer.

Chinese school IPOs require some serious homework

5 June 2017

Several school groups are going public in Hong Kong and New York. Catering to an emerging middle class that is obsessed with education sounds like a first-class idea. Given the legal grey areas in private education, however, prospective investors will need to swot up.

Cost cuts won’t save Pearson or its CEO

5 May 2017

The UK education publisher is planning 300 mln pounds of savings by 2020, with the troubled North America business taking some of the pain. Markets aren’t giving embattled boss John Fallon much credit for the plans, and falling revenue could cancel out the gain to shareholders.