Research Proposal

Working Title: Higher education in politics

Topic: I will discuss the ever growing higher education bubble and discuss the severity of the situation. After a thorough discussion of the bubble, which would be based from the class readings and videos, I would discuss the potential power that the politicians have in higher education. I will also name the people that benefit most from the current system and who would lose the most from a change in the system. I will discuss the changes that congress has had in higher education in the past and the effects of those changes and I will then discuss the current spotlight of higher education in politics and what is yet to be done and what can still be done. From my research I will develop a theory as to why, after all of the problems that arise, college has not been more of a political issue.

Research Question: With the impeding pressure of the higher education bubble why isn’t higher education reform more of a political issue?

Theoretical Frame: During the research in this topic I will compare the higher education bubble to the real estate housing bubble that took place throughout the years of 2007-2012 and through that I will analyze and predict the events that could take place in the instance that the higher education bubble were to bust. I would like to show that the issue of higher education is potentially too dangerous to continue to ignore. And that for this reason it should be higher on political priority list. I want to express an understanding of confusion in why the issue of higher reform is not higher on the priority list. Overall I would like to convey the issue of “look how bad this is, why isn’t there anything being done about it”.

Research Plan, Case or Additional Questions: Additional questions that present themselves is maybe what political issues are overshadowing higher education reform at the moment, as well as why isn’t the public doing more to notify congress to deal with the issue, and if they are then what groups are attempting to do something about it. I am planning on looking at case studies and books that deal with the higher education bubble and I also planning at looking at possible solutions and proposed solutions that have been explained and discussed by notable authors and economists about higher education reform. I will compare the theorized impeding dangers, and solutions to higher education reform and look at case studies of those affected and their changed attitudes towards education and the economy.