You Are Not My Customer

Abstract

I argue that it is degrading (and therefore insulting) for university administrators to refer to students as “customers” or “consumers” and to refer to instructors as “vendors” or “service-providers.” There is nothing inherently wrong with economic analysis, much less with economics as an academic discipline; nor is there anything objectionable per se about commerce or the commercialization of (mere) things; but economic terminology must not be allowed to encroach on institutions, practices, or relationships (such as the teacher-student relationship) that have special meaning and value.