University should be preparation for a life of learning

University should be a preparation for a life of constant learning to enable people to meet the challenges of the modern world, a major international conference heard.

The ABET Symposium 2025, held in San Diego, California, last week, stressed the need for preparing students for a lifetime of education and skilling to meet the needs of shifting technological and social trends, and their own career ambitions.

Nearly 750 higher education professionals and volunteer evaluators attended the event hosted by ABET, the United States-based quality assurance and assessment organisation, which focuses on STEM education, including computing, engineering and the applied and natural sciences.

In an opening keynote speech, Dr Rodney K Rogers, president of Bowling Green State University, in Ohio, USA, said higher education was not just a journey to maximising earnings. It also needed to be a growth mindset, in which people sought to be better, to be more effective personally and to have the tools to be able to learn throughout their lives.



Rogers, who was speaking in a personal capacity, recalled his own journey from graduating in music to taking professional accounting qualifications following a conversation with his father about what he should do with his music degree.

“I tell that story because if my background has taught me anything, it’s that this idea of lifelong learning, of constantly being open to learning, to evolving, is the key.

“How do we embrace lifelong learning? We must get away from being pulled down the path of just maximising earnings as a key objective of the degree. It’s about learning to learn and being aware and understanding how individuals learn,” he said.

“Are we intentionally or passively doing that? It’s about wanting to be better, to be more effective and to embrace that process. We need to graduate students who have learnt how to learn.

“Lifelong learning is about having a growth mindset. How do you learn quicker? How do you learn more effectively? This is more important than ever because of evolving technologies and the impact of AI,” he noted.

Rogers said there was a distinction between teaching and teaching and learning and that students learn differently. Some did it through seeing, others through hearing or through doing. Some teaching styles might be compatible with students’ learning styles, but not all.

He added: “Are we empowering our students to control their destiny? If I were to drill down a little bit further, I would suggest that curiosity is the foundational skill that we must all encourage and develop. Asking questions, observing, and doing are the first steps in learning.

“But there are all kinds of learners. Is it possible for some students to stumble upon this on their own? Absolutely. But I might argue it is important that we intentionally help our students to navigate their own personal experience.”

Rogers said that Bowling Green State University was using the principles of design thinking – a process which focuses on understanding the needs, behaviours, and motivations of the student – which is embedded into the experience of every undergraduate to help them navigate their own learning.

The university took the idea from Stanford University, where it had been developed, and adopted it with support from a US$15 million gift from donors who believed in this system.

“We push our students to understand how they learn and reflect on that and know that not all of us learn the same, and we try to help them to be better learners,” Rogers said.

“It starts with curiosity, but they have to take charge and be responsible for navigating their experience. After the first couple of years, they use design thinking to pivot towards thinking about transitioning to careers, and we encourage them to begin to have a framework that they can use to navigate into lifelong learning.

“Education isn't done to the student. Education is owned by them,” Rogers noted.

Dr Michael K J Milligan, CEO of ABET, told the event that universities faced many challenges, and one of these was how to shape higher education for the future.

“There is a shift we see a lot in higher education from a traditional model that we’re all familiar with to more focused models, with technical training focused on specific skills and knowledge areas.

“The important words that come to mind are ‘discover’, ‘develop’, ‘examine’, ‘influence and ‘create’. We play a critical role in preparing students for life and building that strong foundation,” he said.

The theme of lifelong learning was also the focus of a plenary session at the ABET symposium. Dr Nelson Baker, professor in civil and environmental engineering at Georgia Tech with the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, said lifelong learning was about lifetime progression, with people now changing jobs many times during their careers. This required institutions to make education more purposeful and intentional.

Part of this was acknowledging students’ different learning styles.

“It’s eye-opening for most people to see that their fellow individuals in the class learn differently than they do. It’s why our college is about learning – not teaching, not educating – because it truly is what the individual needs, not what we impart on them,” he stated.

Baker, who has created a college of lifelong learning at Georgia Tech, of which he is interim dean, said that research is needed into what purposeful journeys in education should look like.

“We’re changing our economies. We need to think well beyond just the four years or six years in a collegiate, traditional educational system,” he noted.

He said this needs to include changing the paradigm for young people who don’t even think they can go to college.

“We need to instil confidence throughout one’s life. That’s a collective job for all of us.”

But it also means challenging the assumptions on which education organisations and institutions have been built. At Georgia Tech, for example, there are three master’s degrees offered at low tuition rates that make up 50% of Georgia Tech’s credit headcount now, he said.

The Online Master of Science in Analytics, for instance, is a top-five nationally ranked data science and analytics programme offered 100% online and self-paced over 24-36 months at a total tuition cost of under US$11,000.

Curriculum rethink needed

Meanwhile, Dr Jaime Bonilla Rios, senior adviser to the Dean at Tecnológico de Monterrey, Mexico, and Adjunct Professor at Rice University, Texas, told delegates that universities need to think strategically about how to impart the vision of lifelong learning and how to organise the curriculum to meet this aim.

This could be done with greater involvement of business and industry in universities so that students become aware of what competencies they need for the world of work and might require giving enrolled students access to courses from other institutions to build their competencies in the form of micro-credentials.

He said that university teachers had to be designers of courses that were relevant to the needs of students and the changing education landscape.

“What we do is prepare the professors for how to teach and how to design the courses for students,” he said. “In the past, when I was teaching, I did a presentation and then a paper. But nowadays, with artificial intelligence, you can personalise the way you teach and curate the materials.

“Professors need to inspire students by always talking about the new things that are happening [in their discipline] and about the trends. Whether they are in biotechnology or physics, you need to tell them that they will have to learn about this new thing that is happening and that that will take time. To inspire students is very important,” he noted.

Engaging industry representatives

Dr Ann Kenimer, ABET’s chief accreditation officer, said much more can be done to engage with representatives from industry – many accreditation programmes have advisory boards for this purpose – to make sure that programmes are “really hitting the knowledge base, the relevant tools and resources that are important within the discipline, to make certain there is good alignment there”.

But, she said, it is also important to ensure that your industrial colleagues understand the academic context and restrictions you have within your curriculum, such as how many hours are to be dedicated to general education, and to think through which content should be prioritised.

The ABET 2025 Symposium schedule was packed with discussions about issues related to lifelong learning, including strategies for sustainable development, models for lifelong learning programmes for education and industry, and developing recognition of microcredentials – a project led in part by Jessica Silwick, ABET’s chief fiscal and operating officer.

There were also many sessions on how to improve aspects of programme accreditation and assessment; and others providing insight on the development of inclusive learning for students with diverse learning styles and needs.

Dr Sarah Rajala, ABET president from 2024 to 2025, said the event was designed to empower professionals at every stage of their career and share success stories of individuals who defy convention and pursue knowledge against all odds.

She encouraged participants to embrace the mindset that learning never stops.

“The future of education is not about keeping pace; it’s about setting the course for a better future. Together, we have the opportunity to shape a world where learning is a lifelong pursuit, where credentials open doors, and where education continues to be the foundation for innovation,” she stated.