M a r t a O p i ł o w s k a
A STUDENT-PLAYER AS A PRODUCT
OF UNIVERSITY EDUCATION TURNING
A MASSIVE MARKET PRODUCT
1. Introduction
Nowadays, when the concept of a university level school as an enterprise becomes increasingly popular, and achieving a master’s degree is more available and com-mon, it is reasonable to talk about a student not only as a client, but as a player, as well. Th e analysis conducted below will be theoretical in character, due to the lack of available data that refer strictly to the discussed issue. However, I will foremost try to show, on the basis of the observable processes, that the off ered rationalised approach not only to higher education, but also to a student of a higher school in Poland, is legitimate. Moreover, I will draw attention to the fact that we are now facing not only a quantitative, but also qualitative change of the character of educa-tion in general, and of higher educaeduca-tion especially, which is based on the fact that university studies are treated more instrumentally by students.
2. Dominance of social demand
Th e fundamental factors for the process of university studies rationalisation were a rapid growth of the number of students, from lightly over 400 thousand in 1989/90, to almost 2 million now, as well as a considerable rise in the number of schools that off er the master’s degree. Th e educational reform of 1999 was also important, which by eliminating vocational schools indirectly contributed to
in-creasing the number of applicants to universities, which in total resulted in a mas-sive infl ow to higher education. It is clearly seen in the gross scholarisation indica-tor for this level of education, which in the academic year 1990/1991 was 12.9%, whereas in 2003/2004, it soared to the level of 46.4%, and the net scholarisation indicator was respectively 9.8% and 35% 1. Such an abrupt popularisation of
high-er education also results in a phenomenon called “a diploma infl ation”, which causes problems with fi nding work for the graduates.
Th e feedback connection of education and the job market is nothing new2, yet
it might seem that it is of special meaning in the conditions of popularisation of education. It is commonly noticed that universities educational off er is not compat-ible with the needs of the market, both as for the specialties, and the studies’ pro-grammes, as well3. He discussions of the fall in educational quality in higher
schools, and the rule of theory over practical experience in the studies’ programmes in most faculties results in a poor preparation of students for their future work. Of course, it can be questioned whether the function of a university4 is to educate
craft smen, it is a fact that in the situation of massive higher education, a higher school diploma is not a guarantee of a success on the job market. Possibly, it is the right situation, since what can be a better way of teaching students activeness and resourcefulness than forcing them to take care of their benefi t themselves, by clear and rational rules of a liberal and meritocratic job market?
Nevertheless, the shift of the bulk of responsibility for their own career into the hands of the youth has important consequences for the conditions of learning. Higher schools, coming towards an enterprise by the profi t-directed (largely fi nan-cial profi t) way of functioning, are not the only ones that compete with a consider-able use of marketing techniques for their clients in the conditions of the popula-tion boom entering the market of higher schools. Th e future graduates are also beginning to compete for the constantly shrinking, faced with the growing schol-arisation indicator, available work off ers. Th e most effi cient way to strengthen the
1 T. Chrościcki, M. Misiak, Szkolnictwo wyższe w Polsce, “Makroekonomia” [online] 2005, no. 12
(180) [access: 26.10.2007]. At World Wide Web: http://www.rk.pl/zajawka-nrk-pdf/1205/makrol. pdf
2 K. Denek, O nowy kształt edukacji, Toruń 1998, p. 115.
3 U. Sztanderska, Kształcenie a wymagania rynku, “Nowe Życie Gospodarcze” [online] 2005, no.
5 [access: 26.10.2007]. At World Wide Web: http://www.semforum.org.pl/Semforum/pliki/nowezy-cie_gosp-5–2005.pdf
4 Th e term “university” is used here as a substitute of more general terms, such as “a higher
school” or “a university level school” for stylistic purposes; therefore, it should not be here identifi ed with the specifi c type of a higher school.
chances of winning in this struggle (or in other words – game) for work and career opportunity is self-investment5.
It is also worth reminding here the idea of Ritzer of McDonaldization of soci-ety6. Th e idea emphasises the rules of the contemporary world that are supposed
to base on the scheme of rationalisation and calculation of profi ts, which is used in fast food restaurants. Ritzer, though, shows that this system can be used also in other institutions, including higher education. Eff ectiveness, calculation, predict-ability, and manipulation are the factors that constitute the key to success, how-ever, when it comes to the subject attitude to studying, the fi rst two seem the most prominent. Th e eff ectiveness of higher education can be refl ected in fi lling the blank space of CV. Th e style is free here – it is for a student to decide whether to devote more space for “education”, i.e. to specialise in getting certifi cates from courses, trainings, or workshops, including a few certifi cates of other faculties; or whether to invest in practice and apprenticeships that fi ll in the “experience” part; or maybe to attract the reader with the “interests” part and simply to fi nd time for both studies and a hobby. Th ere are numerous ways, and it seems that temporary students are called “a CV generation”7 for a reason. Calculation can be interpreted
in a similar way – as calculating the number of points for each of the items in the CV and making a balance of profi t and loss, which is typical for economic models of work. All the conditions show that nowadays the period of university studies is characterised more with pragmatism than with interests8. It can result from
sec-ondary socialisation (performed in secsec-ondary schools), which is experienced in the conditions of growing unemployment and salaries disproportionate with the qualifi cations of the employees, which created ambitions in young people to work on a more valued position.
Self-investment is a very eff ective way to take care of their own future and to avoid failure, since “modern students remain under social pressure of the respon-sibility of overtly positive self-presentation”9. Education has been for years very
important for them, but the consciousness of the growing competitiveness forces them to take care of future salary by increasing their resources and building up advantage over their competition. All the above leads to a conclusion that higher
5 K. Denek, op.cit., pp. 112–113.
6 G. Ritzer, McDonaldyzacja społeczeństwa, Warszawa 1997. 7 I. Dominik, Pokolenie CV, “Newsweek” 2006, no. 44.
8 R. Góralska, Studenci uniwersytetu końca XX wieku, Toruń 2003, p. 8.
9 E. Trubiłowicz, Studenci i ich świat – od stanu wojennego do Unii Europejskiej, Lublin 2006,
studies are becoming increasingly similar to a game, in which the main prize is work. To what extent does such an approach refl ect the reality? I will try to show that my point of view is entirely reasonable.
3. Usefulness of the game theory
Th e game theory is a mathematical theory of making decisions in a confl ict, or partial confl ict, of interests. It analyses the reality from the point of view of people involved in some action, who by analysing the matrix of salary or by calculating the profi t and loss choose the action that is most profi table for them. Th e path of behaviour that the players choose is called a strategy, and an individual choice is a decision that should be as useful for them as possible. Due to its rational charac-ter, the theory of games is used in economy, where it has received the Nobel Prize a few times, yet it has been gradually adopted also by social sciences, or even in the distant, as it might seem, biology10. However, fi rst of all, because of its
mathemati-cal, outer-sociological roots, it appears an interesting perspective of analysing phe-nomena that have been thoroughly described by social sciences.
Adopting an economic point of view by placing a university among enterpris-es that operate on a free market and cumulating the eff ects of the massive aspect of higher education, competition of universities and their consequences in the form of an increasingly rationalised approach of students to studying, we can transfer the model of competition also to the community of students. Such a situ-ation is enforced by the growing number of higher schools graduates, which indi-rectly causes a rise in the requirements of employers towards their future employ-ees, and thus introducing competition already among students. Nowadays, there is a clear emphasis on the need for fl exibility and on so-called “soft skills”, such as changing qualifi cations or the ability to learn fast – a phenomenon not yet popular over a dozen years ago. Th erefore, we can assume that the period of studies is still a prolonged moratorium for the experiments of youth, but it is also the time that one should plan their professional career. To plan, since it is diffi cult to predict what can happen to a fresh graduate. Such a perspective, unknown a few dozens or a dozen years ago due to a smaller number of students and the certainty of close connection of the educational path with the professional one, is now becoming forgotten. Th e struggle for the best scores is now called “a rat race”, and the
develop-10 P.D. Straffi n, Teoria gier, Warszawa 2001; M. Malawski, A. Wieczorek, H. Sosnowska,
ment of experience is now known as “CV building”. Next, professional work is a career that should be planned, e.g. by participating in competitions such as “Play to be a trainee”, which even in their names refer to the terms of the theory of games.
A project of a career should be carefully considered, according to the rule of rationality, which aims at avoiding actions that do not provide profi t and at con-centrating on the ones that provide various benefi ts. Over a dozen years ago, uni-versity studies were considered a matrimonial market, and most eff orts of young people were focused on that purpose, whereas for a few years, it has been visible that economic terminology has remained, but the metaphor of a market refers more to the sphere of work than to family life. To sum up, already at university should a student “fi nd” work, i.e. adopt a strategy that will make it possible for him or her to consciously build a CV that will make the best possible impression on an employer and to make a career.
A relatively new phenomenon, yet one that perfectly fi ts the project of planning a career and building a strategy for that purpose, is the work of a Biuro Karier [a Career Offi ce] that works near a university. Th e offi ces not only provide access to the current off ers of trainings and work, of which last year 13 578 people made use in the Offi ce in Toruń, but individual conversations with advisers, as well11. To
familiarise students with the job market, the Offi ces also organise meetings with representatives of companies, and Work Fairs, where a conversation “live” with an employer presents the possibilities awaiting for the most active collectors of items for their Cvs.
4. Trying to operationalise the issue
Ideally, a student is a player in a multi-player game for work, one whose sum is nonzero, i.e. whose “payouts do not sum up to zero”12, which means that all players
can have payouts above zero. A player, during this complicated game in which the prize is a good job aft er university, due to the variety of posts and salaries available on the job market competes with other students. Trying to outrun the competition, players can be more or less conscious of the game, which, however, does not elim-inate them as a participant. Depending on their attitude to the above issue, their
11 Biuro Karier UMK, Trochę statystyki z 2006 roku [online, access: 26.10.2007]. At World Wide
Web: http://www.biurokarier.umk.pl/biuro/statystyki/
identifi cation of studies with a game for work can achieve various sizes, and the choice of strategies is performed more or less consciously.
Th e game is of a nonzero sum, since the pool of prizes is not limited, and the winning of one graduate does not cause a total loss of another – the loser can choose from a wide off er of consolation prizes. Th e mechanism of rivalry, which is an inseparable element of a game, is emphasised by a more or less conscious choice of a strategy, i.e. of a path that leads to the highest prize possible. Since the game is of a nonzero sum, it might appear that all the strategies, i.e. the adopted ways of behaviour, provide a prize, that none of them leads to a complete failure. Nevertheless, by adopting particular strategies it is possible to win more than oth-ers, therefore it is rational to be aware of the game to eff ectively analyse the dealings of the competition and to consciously reach decisions.
Moreover, the choice of a particular strategy can be easier because the students’ game has the form of full information, which in this case means that decisions taken by the competition are not secret and unavailable. It is also possible to ob-serve the trends on the job market and in higher education and to adjust the strategy to the current conditions.
Th erefore, as a part of a specifi c procedure, there are decisions available, i.e. a choice of possibilities in a specifi c situation. However, a specifi c decision, just like a strategy, should not be accidental, but should result from an analysis of profi ts and losses, which can help in making the best possible choice. Profi ts are the pos-sible benefi ts resulting from the decision, whereas losses are the costs to pay to realise the adopted strategy. Th e costs can still be positive, since they can take the form of an investment, i.e. a short-term expenditure can be profi table due to the delayed, or maybe even later multiplied prize. I understand profi t fi rst of all as a possibility to fi nd an attractive work aft er university, yet just as well, it can take diff erent forms in the view of students, such as gaining experience, realising indi-vidual interests or passions, an opportunity to meet new people, to travel, to have fun, or to rest. Returning to the idea of Ritzer, it appears that each of the activities can be a functional item in a CV, which constitutes an important attribute of a play-er. How to deal with the problem of reaching a decision as to a specifi c strategy, then, if it is possible to achieve something with all of them? Also this question can be answered by the games theory, taking into consideration the meaning of a play-er’s preferences.
5. Theory of usefulness
Th e theory of usefulness, which is an inseparable element of the games theory, meets the need for individualism. It claims that some events can be interpreted as profi t for specifi c people, and as loss for others. Th erefore, personal preferences are of importance here, which can diff er considerably among players, which in turn is especially typical for games of nonzero sums. Zero one prizes, characteristic for games of zero sums, provide only one prize for one player – no mater who wins, the main prize is the same. Contrastingly, games of nonzero sums provide a whole set of possibilities, due to which all or most players can be satisfi ed with the results of the game. Moreover, multi-player games are also the most complicated schemes of reaching a decision (best prepared are two-player games of zero sums, such as the famous Prisoner’s Dilemma), therefore it is diffi cult to achieve in them one optimum score. Resultantly, a lot of, if not all players can be satisfi ed. Perhaps this last remark explains the fact that analysing studies in the category of strategy and competition is not so common, since the conditions of this game do not assume a strict division for the winners and the losers. Th is argument is also supported by the variety of motivations to venture in the eff ort of graduating with the Master’s degree13, among which the bigger possibilities of fi nding interesting work do not
always come fi rst, due to which it is possible to create prizes of various character, and consequently – a variety of preferences as to the strategy.
Looking from the perspective of a balance of profi t and loss, and taking into consideration the theory of usefulness, sacrifi cing free time to be a trainee can be rewarded in future with a better paid work which will off er a longer holiday and more attractive forms of leisure. An opposite situation can also take place, when instead of focusing on the courses that could secure better working conditions, a student works fi rst of all to achieve fi nancial profi t, and short-term eff ects are not a good investment, although, on the other hand, it is possible to make contacts also in this way, which can appear valuable in the future. Th ere will probably be also such players who will value leisure and student fun more than a white collar job and the above reasons will be strange to them. As it is observable, the factor of individual needs and preferences is of great importance.
Th e games theory is a concept that can help in understanding the behaviour of students that learn in the conditions of mass education and that defend themselves against the infl ation of their diplomas, as well as against the lower prestige ascribed
once to higher schools graduates. Th e above analyses are only hypotheses, but I believe that the possibility of their empirical test would result in a positive veri-fi cation.
Especially prolifi c in the cognitive sense is here surveying students with focused group interviews, which give a possibility of interaction among the subjects in a conversation, which can be helpful in observing processes that refer to a whole age group. Th e above form makes it possible to express opinions on a particular phenomenon, and to take a stand on the statements of other participants of the interview while it lasts, which is valuable, especially when a variety of opinions can be observed. In such a survey, it is possible to discover what are the prizes and profi ts that students expect from their own education and their university, and what they consider to be the most prominent costs. Th e players’ preferences out-lined in the above way could create an image of dominant strategies, i.e. strategies that provide the best possible prizes due to a specifi c plan.
B I B L I O G R A P H Y :
Biuro Karier UMK, Trochę statystyki z 2006 roku [online, access: 26.10.2007]. At World Wide Web: http://www.biurokarier.umk.pl/biuro/statystvki/
Chrościcki T., Misiak M., Szkolnictwo wyższe w Polsce, “Makroekonomia” [online] 2005, no. 12 (180) [access: 26.10.2007]. At World Wide Web: http://www.rk.pl/zaiawka-nrk-pdt71205/makro 1.pdf
Denek K., O nowy kształt edukacji, Toruń 1998. Dominik I., Pokolenie CV, “Newsweek” 2006, no. 44.
Góralska R., Studenci uniwersytetu końca XX wieku, Toruń 2003.
Malawski M., Wieczorek A., Sosnowska H., Konkurencja i kooperacja. Teoria gier w ekonomii
i naukach społecznych, Warszawa 1997.
Ritzer G., McDonaldyzacja społeczeństwa, Warszawa 1997. Straffi n P.D., Teoria gier, Warszawa 2001.
Sztanderska U., Kształcenie a wymagania rynku, “Nowe Życie Gospodarcze” [online] 2005, no. 5 [access: 26.10.2007]. At World Wide Web: http://www.semforum.org.pl/Semfo-rum/pliki/nowe życie gosp-5–2005.pdf
Trubiłowicz E., Studenci i ich świat – od stanu wojennego do Unii Europejskiej, Lublin 2006.
Wójcicka M., Wnuk-Lipińska E., Uniwersytet w warunkach kształcenia masowego, “Nauka i Szkolnictwo Wyższe” 1997, no. 10.
SUMMARY
Nowadays, when the concept of higher education as an enterprise is increasing in popular-ity and the master’s degree is more available and common than before, it is correct to speak of a student not only as a client, but also as a player. Th e analysis undertaken in this text has a theoretical character. It is an attempt to indicate, on the basis of the processes pos-sible to observe, that the introduced rationalised approach to both higher education and a student of a Polish university, college, or an academy is legitimate and that a change, not only quantitative, but also qualitative, is being eff ectuated in Polish higher education.
