This article examines the national and European policy contexts that shaped the Swedish internationalisation agenda in higher education since 2000, the policy ideas that were mobilised to promote it, and the national priorities that steered higher education debates. The analysis highlights how domestic and European policy priorities, as well as…

This systematic literature review provides a synthesis of what issues within disability have been researched, how universities respond to the issues to be inclusive to disabled students and the role of higher education environment and policy, in doing so. The review is motivated by the emphasis on inclusive and equitable quality education and…

To address social inequality, many western governments have sought to pursue principles of 'widening participation' as a key policy response in higher education. Though originally intended to complement social justice policy agendas, alignment of education policies with broader neoliberal policy frameworks has led policymakers, such as those in…

Framed within a Gramscian analytical perspective, this article contrasts the 'transparent neoliberalism' of one of its leading organic intellectuals, Friederich Hayek, with one of the key discourses of 'euphemized neoliberalism' in the UK: higher education's promise of social justice through social mobility. The article discusses the disjunctions…

This conceptual paper provides a critical analysis of the current convergence of major policy initiatives in Scotland to improve learning and teaching, promote greater equity and close the attainment gap through systems level leadership and change. It is neither an empirical study nor a literature review but synthesises across a range of fields --…

After climate change, rising economic inequality is the greatest challenge facing the advanced Western societies. Higher education has traditionally been seen as a means to greater equality through its role in promoting social mobility. But with increased marketisation higher education now not only reflects the forces making for greater inequality…

Policies to promote high participation in Higher Educations (HE) systems aim to deliver social justice and economic development through widening participation of under-represented groups. "Degrees of Success" provides a critical test of this through examination of participation and success of learners progressing to HE with a vocational…

Postsecondary education can offer individuals the opportunity to earn a livable wage and build a better life for themselves and their families, while also fostering a healthier and more democratic society. Yet, postsecondary education must do more to dismantle its own inequitable policies and practices, which play a role in perpetuating and…

This is the executive summary for the report, "Equitable Value: Promoting Economic Mobility and Social Justice through Postsecondary Education." The Postsecondary Value Commission's work offers three equity-centered tools to identify, measure, and address inequities in access, completion, and post-college outcomes: (1) a definition of…

Purpose: The paper explores the relationship between vocational education and training (VET), the labour market and social justice in the current conjuncture. Approach: The paper adopts an approach rooted in critical policy analysis. It consequently sets the discussion within the wider socio-economic and political context. Such an approach enables…

Contemporary meritocratic education discourse in England positions schools as 'engines of social mobility', responsible for enabling students' educational 'success' regardless of their circumstances. Building on critiques that characterise meritocracy as a neoliberal cultural motif that legitimates inequalities, and the capabilities approach, this…

This paper explores the value of explaining contextual admissions policy directives through the conceptual lenses of meritocracy and social reproduction. It is suggested that examining these concepts can assist in highlighting some of the ideological and practical complexities associated with contextual admissions whilst providing opportunities to…

This paper discusses the emergence of aspiration as a keyword linked to higher education equity policy in England and Australia since 1997. Aspiration serves multiple purposes when constructed as a problematic site in which policy must intervene. For example, it can be understood as a vector for new technologies of governance that operate through…

Marketisation and standards-based reforms are the two policy levers that have been promoted in education systems across much of the world in the past quarter of a century. The claim that is made on their behalf is that these mechanisms are the means whereby longstanding inequalities in the access to educational goods can be ameliorated. This paper…

This book presents the evidence gathered from original interviews to show how the aspirations of young people develop in light of their social circumstances. Those who attend independent schools will find that the relationship between what goes on at home and at school makes it socially almost impossible not to have achievable aspirations for a…