In the future, historians and political scientists will carefully analyze the many factors leading up to the results of the 2008 election, including the negative economy. Zogby argues that Obama, whom he describes as “such an uncanny reflection of the new beige hue of the voting public: a mixture of races and ethnicities, with a strong dash of foreign exoticism thrown in for seasoning,” is far more in tune with the body politic than his competitors, and particularly with the youngest voters, “the most outward-looking and accepting generation in American history.”

The taxonomy Zogby uses for his age cohorts includes: The Private Generation (born between the years 1926-45), The Woodstock Generation (1946-64), The Nike Generation (1965-78), and The First Globals (1979-90). In particular, Zogby focuses on the First Globals, whom he characterizes as global, networked, and inclusive, and hence naturally drawn to a politician such as Obama.

Zogby is not alone in attempting to analyze this generation. Over the course of 10 years, Don Tapscott, a management professor at the University of Toronto , has written two books on the “net generation” (born between 1977 and 1997) and how they are changing the world. His research, also based on polling from 12 countries, supports a positive view of “growing up digital;” indeed, he finds this generation quite well equipped to handle, analyze and collaborate on the management of the massive amounts of information we are all exposed to today. His research portends well for the Net Generation's entrance into graduate and professional training, and in their later assumption of responsibility for positions of power and responsibility.

In a recent thoughtful essay, Council of Graduate Schools President Debra Stewart labels these students the “new millennials (1982-94)” and describes them as technologically savvy and easily bored, demanding consumers who want services to be customized, convenient, and fast; and as warm and outgoing but more organized and self-disciplined than previous generations. Stewart points out that “one third of these students will be a member of a minority group and their diversity will be global. All evidence points to a continuing flow of students into U.S. graduate programs from abroad. But the electronically flattened world of this cohort will also render the domestic student more globally aware.”

Dr. Stewart focuses on what graduate schools have done and need to do to meet expectations of the millennials. She notes that reforms that have included more curricular interdisciplinarity, emphasis on formalizing life-skills workshops, distance and online learning, and understanding career outcomes all position graduate schools to respond to the millennials. Stewart's analysis dovetails with Zogby's in the need for accountability (e.g., the standards and metrics for success for graduate programs the millennials consider) and for more sense of community in (student life centers, family leave) and globalization of graduate education (“the student who communicates globally will expect to study globally”).

This research and analysis is important to graduate admissions professionals because these students comprise a large cohort of graduate applicants and students. Zogby is not just a political pollster; indeed, much of his work involves customer surveys for corporate interests. Understanding how these students process information, what they anticipate in terms of technology, “authenticity” (Zogby's term), and connectivity, and what they hope to find in graduate programs is very important to our profession.

Brian Niles of Target X provided a cogent analysis of how to communicate with the millennials in a presentation for the NAGAP 2007 annual conference (see reference below). MySpace, Facebook, YouTube and helicopter parents must be taken into consideration in communicating with these graduate applicants. And as the Obama campaign astutely realized early on, text messaging and cell phones are very important in communicating with this age cohort, many of whom do not respond to email and have no land line. Thus, we need to shape our online recruitment and application processes, as well as our continuing student communications, to take these tools into account.

Zogby is part of a family that might be characterized as a perfect storm of generational attitudes and values in transit toward change. He is a Woodstocker, his parents (Private Generation) were first generation Lebanese immigrants who were also Catholics, and his children are First Globals. Zogby is a former teacher, a former Ph.D. student in history at Syracuse University who became disenchanted with the left while writing a dissertation on Earl Browder (a leader in the American Communist Party), and he gradually moved to the center as he changed professions.

Although there are limitations to Zogby's work and his polling techniques are sometimes controversial, many of the trends predicted in this book appear to be astute and based on sound observation. In the final analysis The Way We'll Be is a profoundly optimistic book. With President Obama's 78% approval rating early in his term, the nation appears to share that optimism. Zogby predicts that authenticity in politics will prevail; America in another dozen years will be “a more tolerant nation” that is more comfortable with limitations, minimalist lifestyles and less consumption. There will be increased commitment to the environment and global politics that is less judgmental and more inclusive. And those First Globals? They “are ready to go anywhere, experience everything and work and live in exotic places; and they pillage cyberspace for information that will allow them to do all of those things. If you can't market successfully to this amazing crew, find another line of work.”

Reviewed by Daniel J. Bennett, Assistant Dean, UCLA
Chair, NAGAP Education Committee