In some fields (maybe not mathematics) the graduate students could spend more time doing original research, assisted by teams of undergrads. That would likely make for a more productive learning experience than traditional homework assignments.

▲

musicale 3 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Research tends to be deep but narrow - more like an internship than an undergraduate semester; courses can focus on teaching the fundamentals and background material in a broader and more systematic way.

▲

fn-mote 4 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

It’s an economic issue. Doing original research is not generating value for the institution, so they wouldn’t get paid. In fact, grad students are lucky they aren’t being asked to pay extra to be provided with research topics and lab time to pursue them. Maybe that’s another step in the monetization of higher education.

	▲	musicale 3 hours ago \| parent \| next [-]
		> grad students are lucky they aren’t being asked to pay extra to be provided with research topics and lab time to pursue them It depends on the field, but grad student wages in science and engineering are usually much lower than what industry would pay for similar work. Academic research is very cost-effective because most of the work is done by underpaid graduate students.
	▲	JumpCrisscross 4 hours ago \| parent \| prev \| next [-]
		> Doing original research is not generating value for the institution, so they wouldn’t get paid Literally how grants work.
	▲	nradov 3 hours ago \| parent \| prev \| next [-]
		If the undergrads are still paying tuition then the economics won't change. They'll just be paying for more practical experience instead of graded homework.
	▲	einpoklum 2 hours ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		> Doing original research is not generating value for the institution, so they wouldn’t get paid It is the _main_ activity which "generates value" for an institution, whose primary goal is conducting research.