The article analyzes the prerequisites and consequences of the systemic crisis of higher education, highlights the key characteristics of the crisis phenomena in the system of education in Russia and on a global scale at the institutional and state levels. Applying the principles of the dialectical development of the educational system, the author reveals the contradictions between the evolutionary processes that trigger the development of society and education, postulating internal contradictions and conflicts in the coexistence of social and educational institutions. According to the author, the basic concepts of society and education are also antagonistic: knowledge and information, which are defined in the article, their roles and functions are described. The author pays special attention to the issues of trust in society towards the educational institutions, analyzes the reasons for the low level of trust. The article is based on the normative documents of UNESCO and the World Bank, analytical and scientific publications of Russian and foreign researchers. In connection with a new round of the crisis in higher education due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the article provides an analysis of the problems, describes the risks for universities during the period of functioning after the pandemic, suggests solutions to the crisis for the higher education system in the context of creating a new social and educational paradigms.