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ERIC Number: ED603104
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2019-Apr
Pages: 31
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Betting on Bootcamps: How Short-Course Training Programs Could Change the Landscape of Higher Ed
Price, Richard; Dunagan, Alana
Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation
Whirlwind growth in the technology sector has led to heightened demand for workers with specialized skills in coding and computer science. Projections for continued expansion of the sector feed a persistent fear that traditional educational offerings won't generate enough graduates with the skills the economy demands. Bootcamps focused on coding and computer science have emerged as an important pipeline for tech talent. Studying the bootcamp model through the lens of Disruption Theory highlights its disruptive potential relative to traditional higher education. Bootcamps are addressing nonconsumption and overserved demographics with a product that is arguably inferior to traditional degrees--but one that is also simpler and cheaper. Bootcamps are leveraging technology for skills-based signaling, expanding their online presence, and seeing little response from traditional institutions. But, whether bootcamps disrupt higher education depends on whether and how federal funds enter the market, and on bootcamps' ability to expand into lifelong learning and beyond the technology sector. The authors identified five scenarios for how the future of bootcamps could play out: (1) Bootcamps get stuck and fail to disrupt higher education; (2) Federal funds could open up access to bootcamps--or destroy the model entirely; (3) Bootcamps expand into lifelong learning; (4) Bootcamps expand into industries beyond tech; and (5) Bootcamps achieve breadth and depth, and widespread disruption. Traditional institutions can integrate professional and technical skills into their programs, but this will not protect them from disruption. A more foolproof way to address this disruptive threat is to invest in the bootcamp business model through an autonomous unit. Successfully pushing into new industries and new training contexts will require bootcamps to continuously innovate. But if they take on that innovation challenge successfully, bootcamp models could disrupt higher education and dramatically and permanently change the landscape of education and training.
Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation. 425 Broadway Street, Redwood City, CA 94063. Tel: 650-887-0788; e-mail: info@christenseninstitute.org; Web site: http://www.christenseninstitute.org
Publication Type: Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education; Adult Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A