Rising levels of external research funding represent not only an asset but also a challenge for universities. Academic leaders play a central role in managing the finances of their institutions, yet little is known about how they respond to the growing importance of external research funding. Through the lens of resource dependency theory, we…

Increasing reliance on market mechanisms in higher education is analysed both as one of the approaches to steering as well as in relation to the consequences of markets for quality and accessibility of higher education. This article goes beyond the normative considerations of market elements as inherently good or bad and the economic theory-guided…

It is often assumed within much of the academic literature and by many of those working in higher education that universities across Europe are homogenising, converging around an Anglo-American model as a result of neo-liberal pressures and the aim of creating a single European Higher Education Area. However, drawing on an analysis of 92 policy…

Module A of the OECD Higher Education Policy Survey (HEPS) 2022 elicited information on policies to promote digitalisation of higher education in OECD member and accession countries. In total, 30 jurisdictions responded, providing comparative information on various areas of digitalisation policy, from regulation and governance to financial and…

To obtain a better understanding of country-specific policies, a country-specific literature review was undertaken. The search entailed key-terms focusing on relevance and the three higher education relevance dimensions. The main outcomes of the country-specific literature review are discussed in this chapter. We do so by analysing the typically…

This brochure focuses on a selection of indicators from "Education at a Glance," selected for their particular relevance in the current context. Their analysis enables the understanding of countries' response and potential impact from the COVID-19 containment measures. The following topics are discussed: (1) the impact of the crisis on…

Higher education systems in Denmark and Poland are interesting not only due to their distinct stages of historical development, but mainly due to their size and complexity resulting in a particular policy. The main challenges faced by higher education and their corresponding policy directions have been grouped into the following categories: (1)…

In higher education systems that are partly tax funded, a country might not be willing to subsidize the education of international students who might leave after graduation. This paper analyzes how student migration affects governmental decisions regarding the private funding share of higher education for 22 OECD countries for the period of…

The country case studies are part of the empirical data collected for the "Promoting the Relevance of Higher Education" project. Before presenting the case studies, this introductory chapter describes how the 8 case studies were selected, the case study methodology, and provides an overview of the interviewed organisations and experts.…

This annex to the main report "Promoting the Relevance of Higher Education" includes the international policy literature study and the review of indicators. The objective of the literature study was to provide first insights into the policies that relate to the three dimensions of higher education relevance: personal development,…

This study aims to compare Turkey to the first three countries from each continent in terms of educational indicators in 2015 Human Development Report. In line with this aim, it is a case study utilizing document review method. Analysis of the data has been carried out on a single document which is United Nations Development Report (2015). To…

This annual report shows how fee and support systems (including grants and loans) work in higher education in Europe. It provides both a comparative overview of fees and financial support available to full-time students in 2016/17, and also includes individual country sheets outlining the main elements of national systems. In particular, the…

Owing to their common history, similarities in language and culture, long traditions in political collaboration and the shared Nordic societal model, an assumption is often made that the operational and regulatory context of universities is similar in the five Nordic countries: Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. In this article, we…

This study extends the comparative model of country groups to analyse the cross-national trends in the higher education expansion and opportunities. We use descriptive data on characteristics and outcomes of higher education systems in different countries groups, including the liberal market countries, the social democratic countries, the…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to discuss how funding systems influence higher education institutions and their strategies and core tasks. Design/methodology/approach: Taking the results of a comparative study between Denmark, Norway and Portugal as a point of departure, the paper identifies and analyses the main features of these state…