For-profit colleges and the “bad apple” mythology in the US

A. J. Angulo

Chapter 21 in Handbook on Corruption in Higher Education, 2025, pp 348-361 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This study offers a recent history of the US for-profit college sector through the lens of “bad apple” mythology. The bad apple mythology, as defined in this study, casts systemic problems of waste, fraud, and abuse in terms of rare and individual actions by bad actors. Proponents of for-profits have argued that select institutions are to blame when problems emerge in the sector. Historical evidence suggests, however, that for-profit college corruption is largely systemic. The period under investigation stretches from the mid-twentieth century to the present. This study draws from a variety of primary and secondary sources ranging from federal reports and government statistics to congressional testimony, scholarly analyses, and press releases.

Keywords: For-profit; College; Higher education; Fraud; Corruption; History (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
ISBN: 9781035320233
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