Society 3.0—How Technology Is Reshaping Education, Work and Society

Higher education in the U.S. has traditionally prepared students for work and social success, but with families, work, and society itself undergoing revolutionary change, is this preparation sufficient to develop the 21st-century workforce? This book explores how evolving family structures, new ways of balancing work and personal lives, and rapid technological advancements will transform the ways that U.S. colleges and universities develop well-educated, career-oriented citizens. Society 3.0 will help higher education providers and industry leaders understand these potentially disruptive variables and design appropriate programs and career paths for tomorrow's workers. The book presents and explores the following insights: A wider range of family members, not just older children, now attend college, a decision that shapes — and is shaped by — 21st-century demographics. Older students, recognizing degrees as vital for competing in the global workforce, now outnumber those entering college before starting careers. Today's workers are increasingly likely to be women, working outside the office or self-employed, or applying their education to innovation and entrepreneurship as small business owners.

Technology is remaking the campus experience via smartphone learning apps, social networking among professors and students, and immersive engagement in virtual worlds—and even games. Society 3.0 will provide higher education and industry stakeholders a guide for understanding the emerging societal forces that are shaping the future.

Tracey Wilen-Daugenti is Vice President and Managing Director of the Apollo Research Institute and Visiting Scholar at Stanford University’s Media X program. She has authored several works on the future of higher education, including .edu: Technology and Learning Environments in Higher Education and a seven-book series on women and international business.