College courses with a 95 percent dropout rate would trigger alarm bells at most universities, but researchers at Harvard University and MIT says that’s potentially fine, at least in the case of some massive open online courses, or MOOCs.
Last year, Harvard graduates made less money per year than alumni from the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology — which costs about four times less than Harvard to attend.
Even elite universities like Harvard, with a $32 billion endowment, are reducing expenses. Among the cuts? Faculty subscriptions to academic journals that can cost $40,000 a year.
