--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To finally reform higher education, we…" description: "\"To finally reform higher education, we should start by asking fundamental questions, such as, Why does it take four years to get a degree?\" — Charlie S..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47b/charlie-sykes-9529_education_to-finally-reform-higher-education-we-sh_2138826.jpg" --- # To finally reform higher education, we should start by… ![“To finally reform higher education, we should start by asking fundamental questions, such as, Why does it take four years to get a degree?” quote by Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47b/charlie-sykes-9529_education_to-finally-reform-higher-education-we-sh_2138826.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47b/charlie-sykes-9529_education_to-finally-reform-higher-education-we-sh_2138826.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47b/charlie-sykes-9529_education_to-finally-reform-higher-education-we-sh_2138826.jpg) > “To finally reform higher education, we should start by asking fundamental questions, such as, Why does it take four years to get a degree?” [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote challenges the traditional four‑year college model, urging a re‑examination of its necessity and efficiency. **In simple terms:** Question why degrees take four years. Key Takeaway Re‑evaluate degree length. Themes education efficiency reform Mood critical inquisitive Type analytical provocative When to use this quote - University planning - policy making - student advising - budgeting Key Concepts Higher education structure curriculum design cost-benefit analysis Questions to Reflect On - What alternatives could replace the four‑year model? - How do employer expectations influence degree length? A Different Perspective Four‑year programs may not suit all fields or learners. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Asking Fundamental](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asking-fundamental-2699884/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Education Start](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education-start-651362/) [Fundamental Questions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fundamental-questions-1107628/) [Higher Ed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/higher-ed/) [Higher education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/higher-education/) [Questions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/questions/) [Years Degree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years-degree-4443722/) ## Related quotes > [“Most people take four years to get a degree. Not me. I’m twice as ambitious. It took me nearly eight years to graduate.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/most-people-take-four-years-to-get-a-degree-not-me-i-m-twice-as/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [The professors - working steadily and systematically - have destroyed the university as a center of learning and have desolated higher education, which no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/the-professors-working-steadily-and-systematically-have-destroyed-the/) [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) > [Despite the evidence that we already have too many students in higher education, the hot new idea among the political class is to double…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/despite-the-evidence-that-we-already-have-too-many-students-in-higher/) [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) > ['Faces of Love' is asking about what the fundamental nature of love is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bae-suzy/faces-of-love-is-asking-about-what-the-fundamental-nature-of-love-is/) [Bae Suzy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bae-suzy/) > [I stopped asking myself questions like what the value of my stock was and started asking more fundamental questions of life and death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omar-amanat/i-stopped-asking-myself-questions-like-what-the-value-of-my-stock-was/) [Omar Amanat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omar-amanat/) > [“In the string style of education, the start of the string is often a question.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-mayshark/in-the-string-style-of-education-the-start-of-the-string-is-often-a/) [Loren Mayshark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-mayshark/) > [Environmental education should start in the cradle and be interrupted only when that man dies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariana-fulger/environmental-education-should-start-in-the-cradle-and-be-interrupted/) [Mariana Fulger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariana-fulger/) > [Education must start from birth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/education-must-start-from-birth/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [“First step is to read and write but the major Education start when we are able to translate and tranform on everything we reads,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olawale-robyns/first-step-is-to-read-and-write-but-the-major-education-start-when-we/) [Olawale Robyns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olawale-robyns/) > [The greatness of the human personality begins at the hour of birth. From this almost mystic affirmation there comes what may seem a strange…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/the-greatness-of-the-human-personality-begins-at-the-hour-of-birth/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [Education is the start of fulfilling your dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/education-is-the-start-of-fulfilling-your-dreams/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The Republicans have chosen to neglect young Americans who need assistance with the costs of higher education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-conyers/the-republicans-have-chosen-to-neglect-young-americans-who-need/) [John Conyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-conyers/) > [Student loans have been helpful to many. But they offer neither incentive nor assistance to those students who, by reason of family or other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/student-loans-have-been-helpful-to-many-but-they-offer-neither/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [Considering community support and cost-benefit analysis, I have supported earmarks for projects of high public purpose involving such areas as higher education, alternative energy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-fortenberry/considering-community-support-and-cost-benefit-analysis-i-have/) [Jeff Fortenberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-fortenberry/) > [Because I've never had any higher education of any sort, I've never held in awe those who have had it or have a sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-corbyn/because-i-ve-never-had-any-higher-education-of-any-sort-i-ve-never/) [Jeremy Corbyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-corbyn/) ## More by Charlie Sykes > [Mr. Trump understands that attacking the media is the reddest of meat for his base, which has been conditioned to reject reporting from news…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/mr-trump-understands-that-attacking-the-media-is-the-reddest-of-meat/) [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) > [Nothing annoys academics more than pointing out how little time they actually spend teaching students.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/nothing-annoys-academics-more-than-pointing-out-how-little-time-they/) [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) > [In 2008, conservatives ridiculed the Left for its adulation of Barack Obama, only to succumb to their own cult of personality eight years later.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/in-2008-conservatives-ridiculed-the-left-for-its-adulation-of-barack/) [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) > [It turns out that many of the Trump voters who had said they wanted to burn it all down meant it, and they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/it-turns-out-that-many-of-the-trump-voters-who-had-said-they-wanted/) [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) > [In 2010, conservatives won big majorities in the Wisconsin State Legislature, and I openly supported many of their reforms, including changes to collective bargaining…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/in-2010-conservatives-won-big-majorities-in-the-wisconsin-state/) [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) > [There was a time when the Republican Party could discuss possible reforms to our gun laws: Ronald Reagan himself endorsed the Brady Bill and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/there-was-a-time-when-the-republican-party-could-discuss-possible/) [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) > [I tried to distinguish myself from the Rush Limbaughs of the world, but I also understood that there were folks on the Left who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/i-tried-to-distinguish-myself-from-the-rush-limbaughs-of-the-world/) [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) > [Congress is a co-equal branch of government, with a long and rich history of standing up to the executive branch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/congress-is-a-co-equal-branch-of-government-with-a-long-and-rich/) [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) > [I have a confession to make. When I was a child, I was a chronic, repeat doodler.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/i-have-a-confession-to-make-when-i-was-a-child-i-was-a-chronic-repeat/) [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) > [Unless you have experienced it, it's difficult to describe the virulence of the Twitter storms that were unleashed on Trump skeptics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/unless-you-have-experienced-it-it-s-difficult-to-describe-the/) [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) > [Conservatives spent an awful long time ignoring things: the birthers, the bigots, the xenophobes, the alternative-reality media. We had assumed that they were postcards…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/conservatives-spent-an-awful-long-time-ignoring-things-the-birthers/) [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) > [There was always the paranoid strain in American politics, particularly on the Right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/there-was-always-the-paranoid-strain-in-american-politics/) [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) > [In the modern university, no act of good teaching goes unpunished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/in-the-modern-university-no-act-of-good-teaching-goes-unpunished/) [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) > [I have long admired Paul Ryan and thought of him as the future of the Republican Party.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/i-have-long-admired-paul-ryan-and-thought-of-him-as-the-future-of-the/) [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) > [Across the country, universities that had abandoned in loco parentis in the 1960s because it was too oppressive and intrusive have replaced it with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/across-the-country-universities-that-had-abandoned-in-loco-parentis/) [Charlie Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) [Explore all 72 Charlie Sykes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/) ## More Education quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) [Ted Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-martinez/) > [“In school you are taught to obey and not to think straight for your own good. Otherwise the world would be full of millionaires…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mwanandeke-kindembo/in-school-you-are-taught-to-obey-and-not-to-think-straight-for-your/) [Mwanandeke Kindembo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mwanandeke-kindembo/) > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Where I grew up, learning was a collective activity. But when I got to school and tried to share learning with other students that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/where-i-grew-up-learning-was-a-collective-activity-but-when-i-got-to/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [There's no authoritarian structure at Reed College, but the education is conservative. So what you have is a lot of students who are very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/there-s-no-authoritarian-structure-at-reed-college-but-the-education/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [“What's the best thing about being in college? Good teachers. They inspire you, they entertain you, and you end up learning a ton even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/what-s-the-best-thing-about-being-in-college-good-teachers-they/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [“If one has not a head of steel it will burst; if he has not within it a brain of liquid quicksilver, he will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ioannes-amos-commenius/if-one-has-not-a-head-of-steel-it-will-burst-if-he-has-not-within-it/) [Ioannes Amos Commenius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ioannes-amos-commenius/) > [“let us not teach / what we have learned badly / and not profited by”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-d-hilda-doolittle/let-us-not-teach-what-we-have-learned-badly-and-not-profited-by/) [H.D. (Hilda Doolittle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-d-hilda-doolittle/) > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [According to Plato, we don't learn anything. Our soul has lived so many lives that we know everything. Teachers and education can only remind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/according-to-plato-we-don-t-learn-anything-our-soul-has-lived-so-many/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“I only began to enjoy studying after I got through the educational system and became a so-called member of society. If something interested me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-only-began-to-enjoy-studying-after-i-got-through-the-educational/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you had made the acquiring of ignorance the study of your life, you could not have graduated with higher honor than you could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/if-you-had-made-the-acquiring-of-ignorance-the-study-of-your-life-you/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [How wonderful it would be, I thought, if only we could practice the teachings of the Buddha as he really taught them from his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/how-wonderful-it-would-be-i-thought-if-only-we-could-practice-the/) [Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/) > [English teachers tend to put more thought in the books than the author did](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/english-teachers-tend-to-put-more-thought-in-the-books-than-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When will society, like a mother, take care of all her children?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-mann/when-will-society-like-a-mother-take-care-of-all-her-children/) [Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) [Browse all 37,666 Education quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To finally reform higher education, we should start by asking fundamental questions, such as, Why does it take four years to get a degree?", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Charlie Sykes" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/to-finally-reform-higher-education-we-should-start-by-asking/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Education" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/to-finally-reform-higher-education-we-should-start-by-asking/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47b/charlie-sykes-9529_education_to-finally-reform-higher-education-we-sh_2138826.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47b/charlie-sykes-9529_education_to-finally-reform-higher-education-we-sh_2138826.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/47b/charlie-sykes-9529_education_to-finally-reform-higher-education-we-sh_2138826.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“To finally reform higher education, we should start by asking fundamental questions, such as, Why does it…” — Charlie Sykes", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Charlie Sykes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sykes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "To finally reform higher education, we...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/to-finally-reform-higher-education-we-should-start-by-asking/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sykes/to-finally-reform-higher-education-we-should-start-by-asking/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```