Marketisation of Universities

Abstract

AbstractThis chapter uses empirical evidence and critical debates on higher education marketisation to examine the ways in which new, market models in higher education have impacted both the educational and research functions of universities. Decreasing public funding, dual-track tuition systems, voucher financing, student loans, unbundling of university services, academic moonlighting, quality assurance systems, and other mechanisms transformed universities’ educational activities. At the same time, universities’ research function has been influenced by new policies of competitive allocation of research funding; research assessment on the basis of quantifiable indicators; linking academic pay with research productivity, and offering financial incentives for research output. These and other changes have supported the creation of quasi-markets within higher education and developed an environment of market competition between academics, students, and universities. More broadly, higher education institutional landscapes have been shaped by the emergence of new higher education institutions and the rebranding and expansion of existing institutions. Most countries chose a market route to universal higher education which has led to the increased differentiation between higher education institutions, reinforcing the established positions and reputations of former Soviet universities which tend to attract students with the highest test scores in the centralised admissions exams. These universities are also the most successful in obtaining research funding and producing large shares of national research output. Yet, because of limited autonomy, universities are not in the position to fully exploit the possibilities offered by free markets.