This chapter introduces literature that predicts the future of massive open online courses (MOOCs) in higher education and argues that it is critical to understand faculty views of the future for this instructional form; it presents the results of a qualitative study investigating the views of faculty who have taught a MOOC.

Public higher education has relied on a variety of funding structures since the 1950s. Layzell (2007) describes five general approaches in contemporary use in the United States. "Incremental (baseline) budgeting" uses the current year budget as the base and then makes adjustments to account for expected changes in activities, revenues,…

Longitudinal data from seven institutions demonstrate the utility of comparative trend analysis of teaching loads. (Editor)

Noting the disappointing results of past experimentation with computer modeling technology in higher education, the author discusses developments which promise potential: communication between model builders and users, interaction between large- and small-scale models, interface with operating data systems, emphasis on outcomes, and continued…

The expectations and limitations of market research in higher education are reviewed, including its functions and roles, foci and types, constraints of current practice, promising developments, and needs. (MSE)

Increasing demands for accurate forecasts in such areas as student enrollment, energy expenditures, and facility capacity are placing new demands on the institutional researcher. A variety of forecasting models and methods are available, all to be used with caution in long-range forecasting. (Author/MSE)

Changes in the age, geographical, racial, and ethnic composition of the United States' population will make it increasingly difficult to project postsecondary enrollments. How postsecondary institutions will fare in the future will depend on their ability to forecast their willingness to serve new clienteles. (MLW)

A discussion, among several economists, is presented on the major changes in the international economy that have consequences for national, regional, and local economies, as well as implications for institutional planning and policy making. (MLW)

Determining the level of "real" resources over time is discussed. Measuring the impact of inflation on higher education, measuring the impact of workload changes, and identifying the proper base year are described. (MLW)

Information about materials on environmental scanning is offered. Suggestions about sources of data for scanning are provided, organized into six facets of the environment: demographic, economic, political, organizational, technological, and social-cultural. (MLW)

Matching faculty with projected staffing needs requires creation of a broad-based inventory of faculty talents and interests, but such a database also suggests a number of faculty placement alternatives, including more productive faculty use, increased industry outplacement, and combining academic and nonacademic employment or administrative…

The eclectic acquisition of microcomputers in higher education is not seen as unique to academe but rather part of a change that is a fundamental part of our era. (Author/MLW)

An important part of strategic or long-range planning is assessing the environment external to the institution. Many statistics are already compiled by external agencies. Some sources of information are identified, an assessment classification procedures is presented, and a sample of excerpts of the results of an assessment is provided. (MLW)

The Delphi technique, used in planning where convergence of opinion is desirable, is described, along with its limitations and the methodological problems that may arise with its use. (MLW)

Scanning the external environment will become more essential to colleges in the coming decade. Developing an environmental scanning system can identify important emerging issues that may constitute either threats or opportunities. The organizational features of a mature scanning process are described. (MLW)