Abstract
Through an analysis of the foundation of the so-called 'new universities' in the UK, this article offers an interpretation of the change process in higher education. The argument is that although change is driven by economic and social forces, it is the political interpretation of these forces that steers the change process and, therefore, determines the shape of new institutional structures and how they are supposed to perform their tasks. The article contrasts the original steering of the change process by state and quasi-state institutions with the more recent emergence of state-regulated market pressure as the force for change in higher education.
Highlights
Since 1945, English higher education has been in a constant state of flux, transforming from an elite university system into a system of mass tertiary education (Trow, 2007)
The potential loser was the University Grants Committee (UGC), which was a strong supporter of expansion but for a long time assumed that the existing system was capable of embracing the increase in numbers
Translating the pressures into viable universities In February 1957, the UGC was authorized by the Conservative Government to proceed with the Sussex venture ‘provided that the capital required could be fitted into the general capital programme’ (UGC, 1962: 93)
Summary
Since 1945, English higher education has been in a constant state of flux, transforming from an elite university system into a system of mass tertiary education (Trow, 2007). The potential loser was the UGC, which was a strong supporter of expansion but for a long time assumed that the existing system was capable of embracing the increase in numbers It was in the UGC’s own University Development, 1957–1962 report that a new variable was introduced into the equation: In the rapidly changing world of today, when the growth in scientific knowledge creates ever more difficult problems for the educator, there is need for constant experiment in the organisation of university teaching and the design of university curricula. They were committed to ensuring the transmission and enlargement of knowledge in innovative ways, allegedly more in tune with the academy’s contemporary needs
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