Similar to A-HEC's philosophy on competition, the book positions competition as a good thing if it is not a "winner take all" competition that favors only the more advantaged students, but rather a force that encourages institutions to take responsibility for teaching, learning, and student success. Unfortunately, according to the book, the current direction of the market is not heading the way we want. There is a never ending focus on prestige that favors advantaged students and largely ignores advances in teaching and learning.

The book details progress that is being made in the "accountability/autonomy tradeoff" in which increasingly public institutions are asking for and getting more autonomy for which in return they must provide greater accountability. This set of compacts between individual institutions and the state are pointed to as critical in "creating a thoughtful market". Additionally, the book makes excellent arguments for institutions taking a greater role in student success (moving beyond access to graduation) and taking responsibility for student learning.

This book is a must read for anyone involved in or interested in higher education public policy. All leaders of public institutions should be aware of the issues and potential solutions discussed in this book.