A nonuniversity is a short-term, short-cycle college or institute that provides vocational and technical training toward diplomas and certificates for compulsory school or high school graduates. Continuing education for adults is also commonplace in established systems, but preuniversities studies are offered almost exclusively in two-year…

This paper on Canadian universities and colleges presents information on the historical background, financing of higher education, provincial developments since 1969, national and international aspects, the control and government of institutions, teaching staffs, types of institutions, admission requirements, and student costs. Two systems of…

Training programs for college administrators in New Zealand, Canada, and the United States are evaluated for their design and content. Among the observations: traditionalism predominates; a perennial dichotomy of theory v practice exists; program strength is in staff quality; interpersonal competence is not adequately addressed. (MSE)

The evolution of the role of research and development units in Netherlands higher education in the last two decades is discussed in the context of its tasks, organization, and position in the university hierarchy; dissemination of research results; cooperation with other units and researchers; and the field of study. (MSE)

Trends in higher education research in England are noted, particularly the transition from a laissez-faire system to one characterized by greater control and planning. The two major areas of investigation, patterns of access to higher education and instruction, are noted, and two major research projects are described. (MSE)

In Western Europe, the advent of higher education as a self-sustaining field of research began two decades ago. The place of higher education research in academia, government policy formulation, and the type of inquiry undertaken in Sweden in comparison with counterparts in France and Britain are examined. (Author/MLW)

The paper discusses retention models for the nontraditional student population, including transfer students, older adult learners, commuters, part-time students, graduate students, women, students with disabilities, and ethnic minorities. Since 1975, leading research in the field of postsecondary student retention has been grounded on Tinto's…

The traditional European university is now extinct. The conditions in higher education that have succeeded it are highly unstable and therefore transitory, and its eventual replacement is now dimly perceptible on the horizon. The European university is of course an abstraction, meant to approximate the attributes of higher education in Germany,…

The contributions of various disciplines to the field of higher education and research studies are discussed in 10 seminar papers, which also review Burton R. Clark's work, "The Higher Education System: Academic Organization in Cross-National Perspective." Titles and authors are as follows: "Internal and External Regulatives in…

A study unit for an Open University course on the structure and administration of higher education in Great Britain is intended to complement a textbook and to provide over 10 hours of study. The instructional objectives for the unit include: (1) an understanding of the recent evolution of the higher education system in the United Kingdom,…

A review of Australian higher education research examines the institutional and social circumstances of the field of study and looks at such topics as participation, individual and group differences, senior high school retention, women's participation in higher education, recent enrollment downturns and recovery, economics and student finances,…

The organization of research in Norway, recent developments, postwar trends, and current trends in research are described. Current emphases include women's participation, higher education and work, curriculum development, instructional methods, and learning. (MSE)

This publication deals with two broad issues: (1) selection, equality, and reproduction of social hierarchies in higher education, and (2) development policies and the assessment of their effect on higher education. It contains the following 10 papers: "Ambitious Goals--Small Changes? On the Structure of Student Population in Finland in the…

The efforts of the West German Zentrales Institut fuer Fernstudienforschung, an institute developed in 1975 to study distance education, are discussed, including its major studies of distance students, methods and media, course development, student-teacher interaction, program administration, and other issues. (MSE)

Issues concerning the professional development of university administrators in Australia are discussed, including the lack of a body of knowledge about university administration; the need for a well-defined level of expertise, theory supporting administration's role, and political pressures for professionalization; and resistance to change. A slow…