· Towards Unified and Stratified Systems of Higher Education? Systems Convergence and Organizational Stratified Differentiation in Europe (original) (raw)

Structural Changes in Higher Education Systems in Western Europe

This article gives an overview and analysis of structural changes of higher education systems in Western Europe, and how the various countries have changed their systems over the last four decades. Emphasis is placed on the development of a non-university higher education sector in most countries. The question to be discussed is the extent to which the various countries converge to a common structural model for the organization of higher education – either a binary system which is the most common model today, or a unified but hierarchical system as in the United Kingdom.

Diversification? Trends and explanations of the shape and size of higher education

Higher Education, 2008

Debates and policies in Europe as regards the diversity of higher education institutions and programmes have changed substantially over the years. When expansion of the rate of new entry students was expected to grow beyond 10%, diversification between types of higher education institutions became the most popular option, whereas no consensus emerged as far as the extent of diversity and the most desirable classifications are concerned. In the 1980s, attention shifted gradually towards ''vertical'' differences among institutions of formally the same type. Since the 1990s, more extreme modes of vertical diversity were more frequently advocated as options to embark into worldwide competition for ''world-class university''. The concurrent popular debates are criticized as blaming moderate vertical inter-institutional diversity, emphasis on intra-institutional diversity, efforts to put prime emphasis on a variety of profiles of any model other than extreme vertical diversity as counteracting ''quality'', although evidence for the superiority of the model praised is feeble. Keywords Expansion of higher education Á Diversity of higher education Á Higher education policies Á Levels of programmes and degrees Á Rankings Á Types of higher education institutions Á Ulrich Teichler • First, attention is often paid to the substance addressed, i.e. to knowledge. We must register, though, that this substantive core of higher education is addressed by specialists of the various disciplines as well as possibly by science researchers, but

Improving European Higher Education: From standardization to diversification

European higher education is made up of several higher education systems with distinct characteristics and historical traditions. Despite its rich cultural heritage European higher education continues to be criticized as not being able to accommodate the diverse societal and political expectations it faces. A lack of differentiation among institutions is seen as a major obstacle for achieving global excellence in teaching and research. The paper explores the rationale behind the diversification of European higher education and offers an overview of related policy initiatives in Europe. In addition, it looks at the coherence between these policy measures and the dynamics that shape the system's diversity. In this regard the analysis reveals certain inconsistencies between the available empirical evidence and the expected policy outcomes and proposes the diversification of founding sources.

Reform of Higher Education in Europe

Reform of Higher …, 2011

Nowhere today is higher education undergoing more substantial change than in Europe. As countries pursue policies designed to integrate their economies, political systems and social structures, it is becoming increasingly clear that higher education, research and ...