Comparison of Non-Profit and For-Profit Schools

Running head: NON-PROFIT AND FOR-PROFIT SCHOOLS
NON-PROFIT AND FOR-PROFIT SCHOOLS
Name of the school:
Name of the university:
Author note:

1NON-PROFIT AND FOR-PROFIT SCHOOLS
Traditional schools have been present in the society for years, however along with the
rapid changes in society, several differences have been observed in the educational institutions as
well. ‘For-profit’ schools have become popular in recent days and attracted several debates by
scholars (Deterding & Pedulla, 2016). The present paper aims to compare and contrast the
traditional higher education institutions and for-profit higher education. The essay aims to
discuss the concept of both traditional higher education and for-profit higher education along
with a comparison between the two forms of higher education.
Traditional higher schools are different from for-profit schools in their mission, strategy
and goals. According to Gilpin, Saunders and Stoddard, 2015, while the for-profit schools run
like any other business and aim to make money, the non-profit schools aim to provide full
education. For-profit schools are educational institutions with investors and stakeholders. These
schools are owned and often run by private companies with stakeholders and investors to make
money. Since for-profits schools have investors and shareholders, they are with world-class
infrastructure and facilities providing every materialist necessity to students. However, these
world-class infrastructures come with a significant expense. On the other hand, non-profit or
traditional education institutions tuition fees are much lesser than for-profit schools as they are to
impart education. The only goal of non-profit educational institutions is to provide education.
The strategies for both types of educational system are different. The profit-making universities
have strategies focused only on making profits. To be enrolled in for-profit schools, students
often seek loan programs and financial assistance. However, the strategy adopted by non-profit
educational is to encourage more students to get an education at affordable cost (James, 2017).
The structure, system and processes differ drastically. For-profit schools offer more
skilled-based training and vocational education in various trades including automotive, design,