While the origin of “university” is guild or corporation, the modern definition is “an institution of learning of the highest level, having a college of liberal arts and a program of graduate studies together with several professional schools… and authorized to confer both undergraduate and graduate degrees.” When I worked at EDS, EDS University certainly did not fit that definition, being primarily, as you might suspect, the virtual repository of internal training. Many other large companies have such universities, one of the best known being the cunningly named Hamburger University, where thousands of McDonald’s employees attend classes each year. And soon there will be Apple University.
Not only is Apple starting Apple University, but they are getting a lot of press for plans that are vague in the extreme, leading to speculation. Of course, Apple University might be cast in the same mold as other corporate universities, but one suspects otherwise because they hired Joel Podolny, the dean of the Yale School of Management, as dean.
The fact that there is so much press means little, since, as far as I can tell, if Steve Jobs sneezes or buys a new turtleneck, it’s in the news. But then why bring in a “dean” whose departure from his current position at Yale is bound to attract attention?
And here I am writing about it too. I will admit to being curious about their goals, and also amused by the speculation. One comment was that the project “is either about marketing Apple systems to higher education or building an accredited online college program, not about educating its own employees. Apple already has an excellent Apple Management Training program (a sort of two-week Readers-Digest-condensed MBA) and sales training programs. But Apple doesn’t need a Yale Dean to run those.” I agree, and as I imagine the various types of programs this could be, come back to why someone with ivy league experience is needed for leadership. Another comment was that “this might be an audition for the role of Jobs’ successor”.
If Podolny trades in his tweed jacket for a black turtleneck, the latter comment will carry some weight. And it will be fascinating to see what Apple has planned once a more substantial announcement is made.
Apple has built a reputation for studying experiences with which there is general dissatisfaction, and reinventing them with its own unique aesthetic philosophy. A few examples include:
– the personal computer (Apple II, Macintosh, Mac OS X)
– portable music (iPod)
– the cell phone (iPhone)
– cable TV (Apple TV)
– desktop video production (Final Cut Studio)
– music stores (iTunes Store)
– electronics retail (Apple Store)
Consequently, nearly everybody who’s dissatisfied with some experience out of his or her control fantasizes that Apple will fix it. Personally, I’d like Apple to fix American politics, home automation, car repair, banking, music production, accounting, the power grid, the financial system, and military-industrial complex.
So why not education too?
Of course, because most of education isn’t really broken, it doesn’t serve as a good target for reinvention by the Cupertino firm. If we narrow the scope a bit though, you could easily envision Apple attempting to reengineer Distance Learning. Couldn’t you easily imagine an Apple courseware system, starting perhaps with an accredited undergraduate engineering program, and expanding into other majors, graduate studies, home-schooling, and professional certification? The technical pieces could easily be assembled from Apple’s building blocks: streaming video on your computer, Apple TV, or iPhone; streaming video conferencing a laiChat AV; PDF texts; iTunes distribution; and so on.
Of course, Apple dabbled tentatively with this field with its purchase of PowerSchool, but that didn’t seem to go anywhere. That’s why Apple needs a higher education professional to head up anything really ambitious. My wacky prediction is that hiring Joel Podolny is a step in this direction. But what do I know.
Is it true what I am reading? I am sorry but I really don’t feel comfortable for the idea. Because if Apple started it, I’m sure within months we will witness (vendors) Universities, and I am not willing to see so. I don’t deny the truth that I am really so happy as a result of the integration (at least taking place here in Egypt) between large software vendors (Microsoft, Oracle, Cisco) and the learning institutions. That integration is making a great move in the learning and technical aspects of our lives. But, I can’t imagine a (Microsoft University) for example!!!
Do you think higher education needs (Vendors) Universities? I don’t think so.
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