Toward a New University Paradigm in Higher Education

Abstract

The university model involving self-contained, compartmentalized disciplines has not changed in three stages of paradigm shifts for the modern university: (1) “teaching,” (2) “research” built on the first stage, and (3) “service” built on the second stage. However, an “interdisciplinary approach,” which is rapidly evolving toward a fourth paradigm shift, promises to bring radical transformation to a university paradigm bound to the traditional disciplines. In the model of this fourth stage, many of today’s well-known disciplines have disappeared and new disciplines have emerged under new names, structured in an interdisciplinary matrix. Overall, we are experiencing preparations for a new and fundamental paradigm shift. This study discusses how this new paradigm reflects on the university organization, cites examples of and barriers to its implementation, and offers recommendations for the future.