The term "neijuan" (in English 'involution') has captured feelings of perpetual competition and anxiety among university students in China preparing for their post-graduation careers. In this article, we develop a neo-Weberian reading of "neijuan" to construct a framework using positional conflict theory and the concept of…

This dissertation is a collection of three essays in Public Economics. The first chapter studies the optimal design of student loans as a lever to foster the inclusion of poor students in private colleges in Brazil. The second chapter delves into understanding the consequences of affirmative action as a tool to increase the participation of…

On average, students attending selective schools outperform their non-selective counterparts in national exams. These differences are often attributed to value added by the school, as well as factors schools use to select pupils, including ability, achievement and, in cases where schools charge tuition fees or are located in affluent areas,…

This paper synthesizes the characteristics of university rankings that cause pressure or 'harassment' on universities and analyses possible strategies for action that can be carried out in the real context of the three main university rankings (QS, THE, ARWU), suggesting the consequences for the so-called world-class universities and others (which…

This study, carried out in Chile, describes difficulties in the incorporation of employability as an objective in the training of psychologists. Prior research emphasized confusion of key actors about how to train and measure employability. To illustrate that confusion, we compared perspectives of university Psychology department heads and…

Ballet training is designed to develop creative, expressive artists. However, an explicit approach to technical instruction may not assist in the development of individual creativity and may encourage counterproductive perfectionistic goals. This paper describes a five-day intervention designed to enhance creativity in thirteen adolescent…

People attend postsecondary institutions for a variety of reasons and with a variety of expectations. Among the supposed benefits of a college education are greater earning potential and satisfaction with life (SWL). It is also widely assumed that a degree from a highly selective (or prestigious or elite) college is more valuable than one from a…

American Institutes for Research (AIR) conducted a three-year exploratory case study of four two-year graduate-level bridge programs designed to increase the number of historically underrepresented groups of individuals earning PhDs in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). This article presents findings from one component of a…

Globally, universities have an interest in recruiting the most talented students; however, limited attention has been given to how these students experience their transition and adjustment to university life. This mixed-methods study analyzes the academic, social, emotional, and institutional dimensions of gifted students' adjustment to university…

This study aims to add to the literature that explores the experiences of working-class students within elite higher education institutions. It has been undertaken at a time when there is a shift in higher education policy around access and widening participation: from applications and admissions to supporting students throughout the entire…

This essay examines the state of Digital Humanities work in the subfield of literature from the Spanish speaking world. It provides a case study of a multiyear digital mapping project conducted with undergraduate students at a highly selective liberal arts college. This project serves as a means of examining the digital state of the field and…

The purpose of this manuscript is to develop a taxonomy for the governance of elite business schools based on two factors: (i) their geographic dispersion and (ii) the coordination between the main campus, international branch campuses, research centers, and other business schools. The research question that drives this manuscript is: "Are…

Our paper analyses data from four Heads of elite fee-charging girls' schools in Scotland, focusing on how two social landscape changes -- changing pupil demographics and pressures on schools' charitable status -- may have reshaped the schools' institutional habitus. Following Bourdieu, we examine this question through the concept of habitus clivé.…

Parents around the globe are increasingly understood to contribute to educational inequality through their choice of schools. This important critique risks minimising the way choice systems may favour certain parents over others. A case study of Singapore and its primary school enrolment process helps illustrate how parent's interactions with…

Purpose: This study focuses on courses that prepare applicants for universities' highly competitive entrance examinations in Finland. The analysis clarifies the market-making practices and the construction of this field. Design/Approach/Methods: To understand these processes, we use Caliskan and Callon's five framings for studying marketization as…