Undergraduate Education in the United States: An Economist's View

Abstract

It is very difficult to describe the characteristics of undergraduate education in the United States in absolute terms. To highlight the distinguishing characteristics of the American system of undergraduate education, it would be helpful to spell out the differences between it and those of other countries. In its early stages, the American educational system must have shared a lot of common characteristics with those in the European countries upon whose model its basic structure was built. It was through a long period's evolutionary process that the American educational system came to acquire its unique characteristics. Therefore, the distinguishing characteristics of undergraduate education in the States can be highlighted more vividly if they are presented in comparative and historical terms.

Unfortunately, however, my knowledge of the educational systems in European countries is too limited to be engaged in a serious comparative analysis. I do not have much knowledge about the current state of undergraduate education in European countries, let alone the history of its evolutionary processes. You must understand that I am just an economist, not an educational specialist nor historian, who happens to be drawn to this subject without appropriate preparation.