Why universities will need to digitalise to survive

Why universities will need to digitalise to survive Dave Sherwood 27 February 2021 Universities, and the role they play in society, are under threat from the impact of the ongoing pandemic. While rarely a sector in financial crisis, university leaders in seven of the higher education systems in Europe now predict a fall in core national funding as a result of COVID-19, compounding the huge hits universities have taken on rental and commercial services and contractual research. Fourteen national university sectors in Europe have also predicted a fall in income from international students, with travel restrictions limiting student mobility. Estimates of losses to the United Kingdom university sector range from £3 billion (US4.2 billion) to £19 billion (US$26.7 billion) per year as a result of the coronavirus, while the picture is no less bleak across the pond. The University of Michigan alone anticipates losses of up to US$1 billion this year across its three campuses.