Every Learner Matters: Creating Alternative Models of Higher Education

Every Learner Matters: Creating Alternative Models of Higher Education

The American University of Bahrain (AUBH) is in the process of creating its 2022-2027 Strategic Plan. As such, it has an opportunity to do something new and possibly create an alternative model of higher education in Bahrain better designed to meet the changing educational demands of both learners and employers.

There is growing global skepticism about the conventional model of higher education and whether its relevance and value proposition still holds in today’s context. Both public and private enterprises need graduates who are ready to add value immediately by having both the necessary high-demand technical skills as well as having badly needed qualitative skills. Many argue that universities are too slow, tone-deaf, and non-responsive to the real needs of the job market and employers. In many cases, this argument is warranted by universities that hold too tightly to practices and processes that can be argued are outdated and overly bureaucratic.

AUBH has an opportunity to adopt the best in what higher education has to offer and leave behind some of the long-held assumptions about how universities ought to operate. To be clear, AUBH’s core education value is immovable: every learner matters, deserves individual attention and support, and it should develop the entire