University Rankings, Diversity, and the New Landscape of Higher Education (original) (raw)
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Over the last two decades, enumeration has become a critical force in crafting the governmentalities of globalizing higher education. Whether in the glossy Web sites and documentation of the world’s ‘top universities’ or in more fine-tuned regional and subject guides, accreditation schemes, journal metrics or h-indexes, technologies for measuring and ranking academic performance have not only created new imaginaries of reputation but also started to reshape institutional behavior in the pursuit of enhanced performance. In this paper, we critically explore these governmentalities of globalizing higher education through a discussion of the competing logics and landscapes of reputation and ranking in two leading universities in South Korea. Our analysis draws attention to the ways in which university rankings have generated a new multi-scalar geography of institutional reputation, the mismatch between quality, reputation and ranking, and the new kinds of institutional behaviors that are emerging to respond to the proliferation of ranking systems. Through this analysis, our paper offers two critical contributions to the current literature on university reputation. Firstly, we offer a critique of the high-level metrics used in university ranking and their implications for the quality of institutions. Secondly, we also argue for more nuanced accounts of ranking and reputation by scholars of higher education and in particular a greater emphasis on their successes and failures, the competing logics and unexpected outcomes of ranking and their implications for the future of universities.
Rankings are the sorcerer’s new apprentice
Rankings are the sorcerer’s new apprentice
Global university rankings are a powerful force shaping higher education policy worldwide. Several different ranking systems exist, but they all suffer from the same mathematical shortcoming - their ranking index is constructed from a list of arbitrary indicators combined using subjective weightings. Yet, different ranking systems consistently point to a cohort of mostly US and UK privately-funded universities as being the ‘best’. Moreover, the status of these nations as leaders in global higher education is reinforced each year with the exclusion of world-class universities from other countries from the top 200. Rankings correlate neither with Nobel Prize winners, nor with the contribution of national research output to the most highly cited publications. They misrepresent the social sciences and are strongly biased towards English language sources. Furthermore, teaching performance, pedagogy and student-centred issues, such as tuition fees and contact time, are absent from the vast majority of ranking systems. We performed a critical and comparative analysis of 6 of the most popular global university ranking systems to help elucidate these issues and to identify some pertinent trends. As a case study, we analysed the ranking trajectory of Greek universities as an extreme example of some of the contradictions inherent in ranking systems. We also probed various socio-economic and psychological mechanisms at work in an attempt to better understand what lies behind the fixation on rankings, despite their lack of validity. We close with a protocol to help end-users of rankings find their way back onto more meaningful paths towards assessment of the quality of higher education.
The Impact of Higher Education Ranking Systems on Universities
This book, written by three generations of rankings academics with considerable experience from three very different regions of the globe, lifts the lid on the real impact of higher education ranking systems (HERS) on universities and their stakeholders. It critically analyses the criteria that make up the 'Big Three' global ranking systems and, using interviews with senior administrators, academics and managers, discusses their impact on universities from four very different continents. Higher education continues to be dominated by a reputational hierarchy of institutions that sustains and is reinforced by HERS. Despite all the opinions and arguments about the legitimacy of the rankings as a construct, it seems experts agree that they are here to stay. The question, therefore, seems to be less about whether or not universities should be compared and ranked, but the manner in which this is undertaken. Delivering a fresh perspective on global rankings, this book summarizes the development of HERS and provides a critical evaluation of the effects of HERS on four different major regions-South Africa, the Arab region, South East Asia, and Australia. It will appeal to any academic, student, university administrator or governing body interested in or affected by global higher education ranking systems.
Ranking and the Globalization of Higher Education, by Peter Smith
Since the 1980s, the idea of ranking universities has become increasingly widespread. Originating in national rankings systems in the USA, the rankings movement has become international. This paper examines the varied indices of university excellence that are employed in the main rankings systems; asks how valid they are as measures of university quality and the reasons they have become so popular;
The Uses and Misuses of Higher Education Rankings, M. Marope, P. J. Wells and E. Hazelkorn (Eds.),
2013
The growing impact of university rankings on public policy – and on students’ choices – has stirred controversy worldwide. This unique volume brings together the architects of university rankings and their critics to debate the uses and misuses of existing rankings. With voices from five continents, it provides a comprehensive overview of current thinking on the subject and sets out alternative approaches and complementary tools for a new era of transparent and informed use of higher education ranking tables.
The game of rankings in a quality world university space
CEIR. Creativity and Educational Innovation Review, 2018
The objective of this text is to proceed to an analysis of international classifications and their impact on two levels: a) their unexpected public success, and b) their decisive influence on higher education policy and strategy. We argue that defining quality assurance is crucial in order to legitimize choices about evaluation on a political and institutional level. In any case, it seems clear that rankings are a dubious construction but highly legitimized by the public and governments. So, under these circumstances, rankings are here and they will probably stay, together with the financial issues they create. Indeed, rankings are an interesting new global market product which universities seem to have to negotiatewisely. KEYWORDS Rankings. University. Higher Education Policy. Higher Education Governance. International Higher Education Competition.
Rankings and the Reshaping of Higher Education: The Battle for World-Class Excellence
2011
University rankings have gained popularity around the world and are now a significant factor shaping reputation. This second edition updates Ellen Hazelkorn's first comprehensive study of rankings from a global perspective, drawing in new original research and extensive analysis. It is essential reading for policymakers, managers and scholars.