Higher education in Colombia has tried to copy external models without taking the country's characteristics into account. This reform ought to have considered two possible dichotomies that arise: quality versus coverage and profit versus social responsibility.

My personal perception is that in a country like Colombia there is a great lack of social commitment so that to permit the establishment of profit-making educational institutions would have more negative effects than positive ones. Quality education implies that when a student fails to fulfill the minimum academically required parameters, he or she must repeat the activity in which they did not achieve the necessary level. Our experience shows that even nonprofit universities, above all those aimed at the lower and middle socioeconomic segments, have problems in finding a balance between academic demands and financial results in terms of sustainability. This is becoming evident in the quality programs being offered by Colombian public universities in the regions, with the aim of strengthening them. I personally have had the opportunity to take part in a number of such programs, a very valuable exercise, but in some cases the students think that because a minimum number of students is required in order to preserve the formal agreement, there is no need for them to make an effort to guarantee their place in it. This perception derives partly from the reality that in certain regions there is a lack of trained professors to rigorously teach the courses or direct undergraduate theses. As a result, it costs more to develop these courses, in terms of the hiring and travel of trained professors, and these costs cannot be covered by the matriculation fees charged by public universities, which are normally lower than those of the private sector in accordance with the principle of fairness regarding access to education. Additionally, in various regions the students lack funds for access to private universities, which would only be able to carry out this type of program under a criterion of minimum financial results.

This shows how quality education implies investing more funds, whether public or private, and that is why it is paradoxical to talk about increasing coverage without making serious investments in the system. In other words, it leads us to ask about the source of these funds, considering that in a rational economic system whoever invests in an activity expects to profit from it. This becomes particularly relevant when referring to nonprofit educational institutions, because upon reviewing the supposed social responsibility of Colombian and foreign companies in Colombia, the social balance does not show representative social profits. A superficial look at the behavior of business culture in Colombia gives no cause for optimism about good results from an educational system based on the profit motive, because experience demonstrates that, above all, the financial results will have priority over the social impact.

The discussion continues and I really hope that Colombian society will understand the danger facing a quality educational system that has survived improvised educational reforms with difficulty. Fortunately, although the overall level that the Colombian educational system had 20 years ago has not been preserved, institutions that try to maintain internationally recognized quality standards have sustained themselves.

Edison Jair Duque Oliva

editor in chief

Fulltime professor, Universidad Nacional de Colombia.