The Next 10 Years and What These Industries Will Actually Become - Part 2

The Next Decade of Higher Education

Higher education stands at a structural turning point. For decades, universities have operated within a relatively stable model built on credentialing, campus-based delivery, research prestige, and international enrolment flows. Leaders have focused on improving rankings, expanding programs, refining student experience, and strengthening research output.

Yet beneath these operational priorities, deeper forces are reshaping the foundations of the university itself. Technology is altering how knowledge is accessed and produced. Demographic shifts are changing who studies, when, and why. Employers are questioning the signal value of degrees. Governments are tightening funding and regulatory frameworks. Students are increasingly weighing cost against long-term economic return.

The next decade will not simply be about incremental reform. It will determine whether universities remain central institutions in shaping economies and civic life, or whether they become one pathway among many in a rapidly diversifying knowledge ecosystem.

As with healthcare, the question is not whether change is coming. It is whether leaders will recognise the structural shift underway and respond deliberately, rather than continue optimising a model designed for a different era.

Universities are frequently described as being under siege by rising tuition costs, online platforms, AI tutors, and the growing skepticism over the economic value of degrees. In a world where knowledge itself is no longer scarce, lectures, research papers, coding tools, and advanced technical training are accessible globally at minimal cost, their relevance is often questioned. Yet universities were never simply repositories of information. As Sir John Henry Newman observed in the 1850s, the purpose of higher education is not merely vocational or instrumental. “Knowledge should be pursued for its own sake,” he wrote. Newman did not mean research alone; he meant the pursuit of wisdom and truth, an education anchored in shaping the personality and character of the cultivated human being.

Even in our current time of artificial intelligence, which can produce a book chapter or solve complex equations in seconds, the pursuit of wisdom remains irreplaceable. There remain scholars who dedicate themselves to master’s and doctoral studies, not only for credentials, or for transactional gain, but as a commitment to rigorous inquiry, testing ideas, innovative breakthroughs and shaping our collective understanding in a world too often dominated by a mechanistic, “worker-first” mentality.

Foundations of Higher Learning

If we look to antiquity, the Academy of Plato, founded in Athens in 387 BC, is widely regarded as the intellectual ancestor of the modern university. Situated in a grove sacred to the hero Academus, it had no formal degrees, administrative charters, or tuition. What it did have was something far more profound: a community devoted to inquiry. Plato’s ambition was to cultivate leaders capable of rational thought, ethical reasoning, and civic responsibility. Education at the Academy was not vocational, it was rigorous engagement with mathematics, philosophy, metaphysics, and the nature of reality itself. Geometry, famously central to the curriculum, symbolised the Academy’s intellectual seriousness, encapsulated in the enduring injunction, “Let no one ignorant of geometry enter.”

Aristotle, Plato’s most famous student, spent two decades at the Academy before founding the Lyceum. Through Aristotle and the work of countless scholars across Roman, Islamic, and medieval European traditions, the Academy’s intellectual lineage persisted for nearly nine centuries, until its closure by Emperor Justinian in 529 AD. While it lacked formal degrees, it established core principles that universities would later formalise: disciplined inquiry, structured teaching, scholarly community, and the pursuit of knowledge beyond immediate practical gain.

The University of Constantinople, founded in 425 AD by Emperor Theodosius II, represents the first fully institutionalised university in the modern sense. State-sponsored, it combined formal curricula in law, philosophy, medicine, and rhetoric, with appointed professors and long-term continuity. Designed to train civil servants, scholars, and clergy, it embedded education within the stability of the empire.

Similarly, Nalanda University in 5th-century AD Magadha (modern-day Bihar, India) exemplified early international scholarship. At its peak, it hosted over 10,000 students and 2,000 teachers, offering philosophy, medicine, mathematics, astronomy, and the arts alongside Buddhist studies. Its library and culture of debate made Nalanda not merely a place of instruction but a hub of knowledge generation residential, interdisciplinary, and globally connected, presaging today’s research universities.

The University of al-Qarawiyyin, founded in Fez in 859 AD by Fatima al-Fihri, is the oldest continually operating educational institution in the world. It evolved from a mosque into a centre of learning in theology, law, grammar, astronomy, and mathematics, later formalising degrees. In Europe, Bologna (1088 AD), Paris (1150s AD), and Oxford (late 12th century AD) refined governance, degrees, and academic autonomy, establishing enduring models for intellectual cultivation, professional signalling, and civic preparation.

Universities as Engines of Innovation and Trust

Universities today are often judged by outputs: degrees conferred, skills acquired, and research published. Yet this perspective is narrow, reducing a rich tradition of human cultivation to mere metrics. Higher education offers far more than credentials; it provides individuals with the tools to transcend poverty, violence, and other social constraints.

In Eastern Europe, for example, the collapse of communism was fueled in part by a generation of young people who had attended university, learning to think critically, organize collectively, and challenge authoritarian structures. The true value of universities lies in the cultivation of the whole person: the shaping of intellect, judgment, relationships, service, wisdom, and ethical discernment.

Nations with high concentrations of master’s and doctoral graduates consistently exhibit not only economic strength but resilience in the face of complex and unpredictable challenges. Investment in human potential, above all, remains the most reliable predictor of enduring national prosperity far more than any single technological measure.

Universities serve several enduring functions:

1. High-Trust Signals

Degrees indicate more than subject mastery. They signal discipline, cognitive endurance, peer benchmarking, and the capacity to operate under structured pressure. While advanced degrees continue to accelerate networks and credibility, organisations increasingly demand proof of applied execution and outcomes: live projects, venture creation, research with measurable impact. Degrees matter, and today they exist alongside evidence of competence and initiative.

2. Innovation Hubs

Universities today are far more than teaching institutions; they are vibrant innovation ecosystems where research, commercialisation, and industry collaboration converge. Through venture studios, AI-augmented or robotic laboratories, and doctoral programs embedded directly within public and private industry, universities are transforming knowledge into practical solutions that should help drive productivity, economic growth, and societal progress. Consider, for example, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) ecosystem: startups such as Dropbox and HubSpot emerged from research labs, while the C++ program that underpins Google Maps originated at UNSW. 

Long-term partnerships with companies such as Boeing, PwC, and emerging startups/scaleups integrate students and faculty into real-world problem-solving. These initiatives do more than produce papers; they generate ideas, solutions, opportunities, technologies, and future managers and leaders capable of shaping industries. In this model, the university becomes a living, dynamic platform where learning, experimentation, and entrepreneurship are inseparable, and knowledge is continuously tested, refined, and applied.

3. AI-Augmented Learning

Humans learn not only from information but from the people who guide them, inspire them, and challenge them to think beyond what they imagined possible. Every student remembers the teacher who transformed their understanding of the world, who demanded rigor, modeled curiosity, and instilled confidence. Educating is a profound responsibility, one that cannot be replaced or replicated by technology. AI can enhance this process, but it cannot substitute for human mentorship, judgment, or moral guidance, even with the promise of "human likeness".

Technology used properly, helps faculty personalise foundational instruction, adapting content to individual students’ needs and freeing educators to focus on debate, synthesis, simulation, and complex judgment. Assessment evolves beyond rote memorization toward dynamic problem-solving, producing graduates equipped to navigate uncertainty and complexity rather than simply recall information.

Consider, for example, the Harvard Business School’s FIELD program, where students combine AI-supported simulations with faculty-led mentorship. AI helps track individual performance and adapt exercises to each student’s learning curve, while professors guide teams through ethical dilemmas, strategic decisions, and real-world problem-solving. The result is a hybrid model where AI accelerates learning, but the educator remains central to mentoring the next generation of leaders in both skill and character.

In this model, professors are no longer just teaching content, they are architects of interdisciplinary reasoning, guides for ethical decision-making, and cultivators of the intellectual and moral faculties that will define their students’ careers and contributions to society. Technology amplifies their reach, but it is the human educator who ensures that knowledge is transformed into wisdom and capability.

4. Long-Term Ecosystems of Connection

Beyond curriculum and research output, a university’s most enduring asset is the relationships it cultivates. Knowledge can be acquired anywhere, but trust, belonging, and connection are scarce. You can see it in someone’s eyes when they proudly confess that they went to Princeton, Cambridge or Oxford. Universities create ecosystems where personal and professional networks are forged, extended, and amplified across decades. Alumni networks, global corporate partnerships, mentorship channels, research pipelines, and policy influence all function as bridges between the academic environment and the broader world, allowing graduates to navigate complexity and seize opportunity long after leaving the classroom.

Consider Stanford University’s approach in Silicon Valley. Beyond its rigorous curriculum, it fosters connections between students, faculty, and industry through structured mentorship, incubators, and venture networks. A student who joins a robotics lab might collaborate with peers across engineering, business, and design, while professors introduce them to venture capitalists, Social Impact and corporate partners. Decades later, these same alumni may co-found startups, advise governments, or launch research initiatives, all linked back to the relationships first cultivated within the university ecosystem. 

The Future University

The university of tomorrow will continue to confer degrees, produce PhDs, and train doctors, engineers, presidents and prime ministers, lawyers, artists, scientists, and executives. Interestingly, its value will increasingly lie in cultivating character, judgment, and the capacity to act thoughtfully in complex environments. Its defining features will be:

• Hybrid and modular learning, combining traditional degrees with microcredentials and continuous development.

• Industry-integrated programs, embedding students in real-world challenges.

• Research-commercialisation focus, connecting inquiry with application.

• AI-augmented delivery and assessment, enhancing, not replacing, human mentorship.

• Global and network-driven, recognising that influence and opportunity flow through relationships as much as through knowledge.

  
  

Enduring Insights

From Plato’s Academy, Constantinople, and Nalanda to Oxford, Princeton, and Hong Kong, universities have always been more than knowledge factories. They shape intellect, critical thinking, character, and ethical judgment. They create societies capable of innovation, resilience, and reasoned civic participation.

As Sir John Henry Newman argued, the pursuit of knowledge is inseparable from the cultivation of virtue. The challenge ahead is clear: universities must integrate practical competence with the enduring mission of human cultivation. Only then will they continue to see their citizens progress, and navigate complexity, contribute meaningfully to society, and sustain the prosperity of the nation.

Technical and Vocational Education

If universities cultivate scholars, innovators, and leaders, then technical and vocational education cultivates the skilled practitioners on which every modern economy depends. Not everyone will pursue a university degree; societies that recognise and empower alternative pathways to meaningful work and contribution are invariably stronger, more equitable, and more resilient. In Australia, this pathway is embodied in TAFE, Technical and Further Education, which annually serves hundreds of thousands of learners and offers nationally recognised qualifications across a broad range of trades and technical disciplines.

Unlike a narrow view of education that places university at the pinnacle and relegates trades to a second tier, the evidence across advanced economies shows that vocational education and training (VET/TVET) is integral to national prosperity. Technical education delivers practical skills that underpin economic productivity, fill essential workforce gaps, and enable social mobility for millions who might otherwise be excluded from stable employment. In countries with strong vocational systems, the prestige and economic outcomes of these pathways often rival degrees. 

Today, plumbers, carpenters and other trades in Australia routinely command hourly rates that exceed those of university graduates. This is not an anomaly but a signal because chronic shortages across the trades reflect long-standing structural failures in how vocational pathways have been positioned, funded, and valued. Examining how other countries design, invest in, and integrate vocational education into their national systems offers Australia critical insight into how these imbalances might be corrected.

Germany - The Dual System as a National Engine

Germany’s vocational system is often cited as the gold standard for industrialised economies. Its defining feature is the dual apprenticeship model, in which students split their time between classroom instruction at vocational schools and paid, supervised training within companies.

Key Characteristics

• Employer‑driven curriculum where industry associations define competencies and standards, ensuring alignment with current employer needs.

• Paid apprenticeships encourage students to earn while they learn, blurring the line between education and employment.

• National certification offers credentials which are consistent, recognised across the economy, and valued by employers of every scale.

  
  

Outcomes

• Low youth unemployment relative to other developed economies.

• A steady pipeline of highly trained technicians in manufacturing, engineering, electrical trades, and services.

• A cultural valuation of technical excellence that rivals academic achievement.

  
  

Lessons for Australia

• Greater employer co‑design of curriculum and competency frameworks.

• Formalised work‑based learning with wage‑linked apprenticeships.

• Nationally portable credentials that clearly articulate skill levels across industries.

Switzerland - Flexibility, Mobility, and a Highly Skilled Workforce

Switzerland’s vocational education system shares similarities with Germany’s dual model, but with even greater flexibility. Students can move between vocational and academic tracks, and many combine work and study over time.

Key Characteristics

• Modular pathways where learners can transition from apprenticeships into technical colleges and, in some cases, university degrees.

• Cross‑sector partnerships, assist vocational schools maintain formalised relationships with industry clusters in precision manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, and finance.

• High status for crafts and trades develop skilled craftspeople, from watchmakers to industrial technicians are celebrated and economically rewarded.

  
  

Outcomes

• Among the lowest youth unemployment rates in Europe.

• High technical competencies in advanced manufacturing and precision industries.

• Flexibility for lifelong learning and mobility across sectors.

  
  

Lessons for Australia

• Expand modular pathways that allow learners to switch between vocational, technical, and tertiary systems without redundancy.

• Strengthen recognition of prior learning (RPL) to credit workplace experience toward formal qualifications.

• Celebrate vocational excellence publicly to shift cultural perceptions.

Finland - Integration of Technical Education with Lifelong Learning

Finland prioritises flexible pathways, adult education, and robust teacher training for vocational educators. Its system emphasises quality teaching, personalisation, and social equity, with seamless transitions between vocational and higher education.

Key Characteristics

• Highly trained teachers and vocational instructors are educated to the same standards as academic teachers and often bring industry experience.

• Lifelong learning support where adults can re‑skill or up‑skill with subsidised courses tied directly to evolving labour markets.

• Individualised progression where students can tailor their learning trajectories across technical and academic pathways.

  
  

Outcomes

• Strong workforce adaptability in technology, health, construction, and services.

• High student satisfaction and low early school leaving.

• A labour force capable of adjusting to economic shifts without stigma.

  
  

Lessons for Australia

• Prioritise professionalisation and advanced training for technical educators.

• Integrate adult and second‑career learning as core components of the TAFE ecosystem.

• Build flexible curricular pipelines that reduce barriers between vocational and tertiary study.

Singapore - Strategic Alignment with National Economic Architecture

Singapore’s approach to technical education is tightly integrated with its broader economic strategy. Institutions such as the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) and polytechnics deliver targeted training aligned with national priorities: advanced manufacturing, logistics, digital services, and healthcare.

Key Characteristics

• Sectorised training centres with facilities that mirror industry environments (e.g., smart factories, healthcare simulation labs).

• Employer immersion where students undertake substantial workplace attachments with industry partners.

• Clear progression pathways allowing graduates to advance into specialised diploma, degree, and continuing education programs.

  
  

Outcomes

• High employability and relevance to strategic sectors.

• Workforce ready for digital transformation and automation.

• Skills matched to national planning objectives.

  
  

Lessons for Australia

• Align TAFE curriculum with national industry strategies (renewables, advanced manufacturing, digital, biomedical).

• Increase cross‑sector workplace placements as core curriculum elements, not afterthoughts.

• Build specialised centres of excellence that replicate real industry environments.

Canada - Regional Strengths and Indigenous Vocational Initiatives

Canada’s vocational education landscape is decentralised, with provinces shaping distinct strategies. Some regions, particularly in the skilled trades and healthcare support sectors, demonstrate innovative integration of apprenticeship, competency‑based assessments, and co‑investment with industry.

Key Characteristics

• Regional industrial alignment creates programs that respond to local labour markets from energy and resources in Alberta to advanced tech in Ontario.

• Indigenous and community‑led training models provide tailored pathways that respect cultural context and community economic priorities.

• Apprenticeship reform with streamlined credentialing and recognition of competencies even outside formal seat time.

  
  

Outcomes

• Vocational pathways that address regional economic needs with cultural responsiveness.

• Increasing parity in status between technical and academic pathways in certain sectors.

  
  

Lessons for Australia

• Empower states and territories to co‑design regional training priorities.

• Support Indigenous and community‑based training models that strengthen cultural identity and opportunity.

• Adopt competency‑based credentials that reflect mastery rather than time‑served.

  
  

Beyond Skills to Human Development

While technical and vocational education cultivates practical competence, its true value extends far beyond producing skilled workers. The goal is not merely proficiency in a trade or mastery of a specific technology; it is the development of the whole person, capable, disciplined, and adaptable, yet also able to exercise judgment, initiative, and entrepreneurial thinking. Modern economies demand more than manual or technical skill: they require individuals who understand workflow, efficiency, and quality, and who can anticipate problems, innovate within constraints, and contribute strategically to organisations and communities.

In Australia, TAFE and vocational pathways provide essential skills, yet tradespeople remain systemically underinvested in, with limited recognition of their potential beyond technical execution. While apprenticeships teach CNC programming, robotics, and practical trade skills, opportunities to cultivate judgment, ethical reasoning, leadership, or business acumen are often limited. The same is true internationally: in many countries, vocational education is treated primarily as a route to employment rather than as a platform for holistic human development.

Germany’s dual system, Switzerland’s apprenticeship pathways, and Singapore’s ITE integrate structured learning, problem-solving, and reflection alongside technical skill showing that tradespeople can develop professional judgment, initiative, and adaptability. When fully supported, vocational pathways can produce graduates who are not only highly skilled but capable of critical thinking,  innovation, leadership, and strategic contribution within industries and communities.

For Australia, the challenge is clear: to invest meaningfully in tradespeople, embedding mentorship, business literacy, ethical reasoning, and leadership training alongside technical competencies.Only then will vocational education move beyond simply supplying labour to cultivating highly skilled professionals whose expertise is recognised, properly rewarded, and respected for what it often is: complex, technically demanding, and at times physically dangerous work essential to the functioning of the economy.

What Australia Can Do Next

Australia’s vocational system centered on TAFE is rich in tradition and potential but requires strategic refinement:

• Elevate industry co‑design so that curriculum anticipates future workplace demands rather than reacts to current shortages. Curriculum and credentialing must reflect real employer needs, not abstract academic theory. Paid apprenticeships or workplace attachments anchor learning in real economic contexts.

• Subsidise and scale apprenticeships so they provide both meaningful earnings and rigorous skill development.

• Invest in educator development, ensuring that TAFE instructors are market‑connected, pedagogically skilled, and professionally empowered.

• Build national identity campaigns that reframe technical mastery as a respected, viable, and high‑return pathway.

• Expand flexible bridges between TAFE and universities, creating recognised competency transfer that supports lifelong learning.

  
  

Just as universities cultivate wisdom, judgment, and innovation, technical and vocational education cultivates the practical mastery, adaptability, and workforce readiness that sustain economies in the real world. Countries that invest in both strands without ranking one above the other build more equitable, resilient, and productive societies.

In the decade and century ahead, the future of education will be defined not by binaries, university or trades but by an integrated ecosystem in which every learner finds a pathway to purpose, contribution, and flourishing.