The Impact of the 4th Industrial Revolution on the Higher Education System: Rethinking the Role of Universities

The turbulence of the economy and a competitive arena has fostered new demands on higher education systems around the world. Over the past four years, recognized research organizations (the World Economic Forum, the OECD, the McKinsey Global Institute, etc.) and scholars exploring the future of work in a period of technological transformation each predict a leap in economic development until 2030. By one popular World Economic Forum estimate “65% of children entering primary school today will ultimately end up working in completely new job types that don’t yet exist” (2016). While the McKinsey Global Institute suggests that more than 20% of the global workforce could operate with the majority of its time away from the office - and be just as effective (2021). These evolutions require organizations to retrain, improve skills, or acquire new knowledge. This demand for new skills and additional knowledge therefore affects higher educational institutions and universities. We believe that to improve the effectiveness of educational policy it is worth researching: (a) the impact of new challenges on employment; (b) forecasts for labor market evolution; (c) the ways in which capability building could evolve over the next decade; and (d) teaching methods for Education 4.0. Consequently, we focus special attention on Science Education and Sustainability Science. This chapter, based on an exploratory qualitative methodology, offers an overview of the main reference theories and a case analysis.