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A single number now threatens to define whether a program survives: does it deliver an earnings premium over a high school diploma? We sit down with Phil Hill to unpack how federal accountability just shifted from dashboards to consequences, why the current metric is misaligned with how real labor markets work, and what leaders must fix before 2026.
We break down the design choices that matter—statewide medians versus sub‑state regions, demographic blind spots, and the absence of program cost and debt from the core test. Phil points to stronger models in state systems and long‑running research from Georgetown CEW, then lays out practical steps for negotiated rulemaking that would keep accountability sharp while avoiding collateral damage to open‑access colleges and regionally constrained programs.
The conversation turns to graduate loan caps and the end of easy cross‑subsidies. Expect new pricing discipline, tougher portfolio management, and experiments in financing that need safeguards to avoid a repeat of the 2000s. We also map the OPM shakeout: why some giants stumbled, how mid‑market firms are adapting, and where state‑level transparency rules are reshaping contracts. With generative AI accelerating change in curriculum, support, and marketing, universities need partners—and policies—that keep pace without losing sight of honest outcomes.
If you care about ROI, mobility, transparency, and the future of online learning, this is your field guide to the next era of higher ed policy. Listen, share with a colleague who owns program strategy, and leave a review telling us which metric you’d add—or drop.

https://onedtech.philhillaa.com/

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