Competitive Higher Education Research Articles

Competitive Behaviour in Publicly Funded Academic Institutions

The need to compete is not limited to business organizations but is also one of the normal practices of publicly funded academic institutions. Reforming higher education and the adoption of neoliberal policies have transformed publicly funded colleges and universities and have forced them towards the market. The paper reviews and critiques: (1) Historical context of competition in higher education and the role of government in enhancing competition. (2) Competition and the use of competitive strategies in higher education.

Product development in higher education marketing

Purpose – During the last 20 years or so the changing environment in which universities operate has meant that commensurately more emphasis has been placed on marketing principles. In light of this emphasis, it is perhaps a little surprising that relatively little attention has been directed towards the processes by which universities develop their products, and the extent to which module and programme development processes are market informed and customer oriented. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – This paper adopts a case study methodology to examine early stage new product development (NPD) processes in UK higher education (HE) institutions. Findings – The findings reveal some potential shortcomings in the early stages or fuzzy front end of NPD in universities. In particular, there appears to be a lack of staff incentives, financial or otherwise, to innovate and introduce new ideas relating to module and programme development. Research limitations/implications – The issue of sample bias needs to be factored into however, given that these six institutions proactively engaged with this process possibly indicating a recognition or impetus on their part to learn how new programme development could be better understood. That the vast majority of the sample were teaching dominant institutions is also an interesting consideration as this will have an impact on the imperative to improve new programme development processes in an increasingly competitive HE environment. Practical implications – The paper discussed some of the implications for the corporate governance structures of universities and also emphasized the need for cultural change. In this respect, one of the biggest challenges facing universities is to break down or erode the barriers, which exist between academic and non-academic staff and create a “level playing field”. Originality/value – As the authors enter an era of higher student fees, the question of value for money combined with an associated increase in the expectations of university stakeholders, will have potentially quite marked implications for universities. Accordingly, the future viability of some degree programmes and, perhaps, even the long-term survival of some institutions may be dependent on the adoption of the sort of changes identified in this paper.

대학의 위기와 체육계열 학과의 실천적 과제

Is university restructuring for `reinforcing university education quality and competitiveness of higher education`? The fundamental problems of the on going university restructuring becomes crisis of university and moreover, Sports Related Departments faces huge crisis. This research analyzes university crisis and progress of Sports Related Departments. After conducting discussion about a directivity of Physical Education in university with a focus on role and direction of `Physical Education` which is for realization of `University``s ideal, Sports Related Departments proposed four practical tasks, which is for preventive improvement, not for prescriptive improvement. First, Effort to establish academical identity. Second, characterization strategy for each different region and university. Third, Reforming of Sports Related Departments related with prospect of the labour market. Last, Drawing up a plan for establishing Sports Related Departments` united system.

Translation of the UNESCO/OECD guidelines for quality provision in cross-border higher education into local policy contexts: a comparative study of Finland and Russia

This article analyses the localisation of the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO)/Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Guidelines for Quality Provision in Cross-Border Higher Education (2005) at the national and university levels in Finland and Russia. The article engages theoretically with research on the translation of management ideas that aim to account for the dissemination of international standards. Using qualitative content analysis, it examines the references to the guidelines in national- and university-level policy documents. The findings demonstrate different types of reception (albeit limited compliance with the UNESCO/OECD guidelines) in Finland and Russia in national legislation and local practices. However, given the increasing global competition in higher education and the related pressure to introduce international standards, it is anticipated that administrative changes concerning the quality assurance of cross-border education will continue in both countries in future years.

Country Competitiveness Relationship with Higher Education Indicators

This paper reports the performance of global competitiveness and higher education competitiveness between two groups of countries. The first group is formed by four Asian countries; the second one by four Latin American countries. Indicators from the World Economic Forum 2007-2015 are compared. The indicators with the nearest proximity were found in the management quality of the universities, where there was only a five-point difference in favor of the Asian group. The indicator with the widest gap came from the quality of math and sciences education where we found a difference of 104 points. This is congruent with the results of PISA 2012, which showed a difference of 152 points in math.

Global competition, coloniality, and the geopolitics of knowledge in higher education

While scholars have analyzed global higher education (HE) competition, they have largely failed to address how global spaces of equivalence are tied both to coloniality and to competition. Using the OECD’s International Assessment of Higher Education Learning Outcomes (AHELO) as a case study and drawing on concepts from coloniality including Fanon’s zone of being/non-being and Mignolo’s geopolitics of knowledge, we reveal how coloniality underpins the desire for global spaces of equivalence through: the desire for opportunity and belonging; and the desire for recognition and pride. We illuminate how the nature of global competition is not simply tied to market-based economic or political rationalities, but also operates under psychosocial dimensions interlinked with belonging in the international community. We argue that AHELO represents the mediation and internalization of a HE competition focused on teaching and learning, which reproduces coloniality by valuing characteristics of the enterprising, globally competitive institution.

Transnational academic capitalism in the Arab Gulf: balancing global and local, and public and private, capitals

This article contributes to the emerging theoretical construct of what has been called ‘transnational academic capitalism’, characterised by the blurring of traditional boundaries between public, private, local, regional and international, and between market-driven and critically transformative higher education visions. Here we examine how these issues are reflected in higher education policy in the Arab Gulf, asking: what kinds of capital are being constructed and traded? By and for whom? What is the relationship between higher education competition, governance and the public good? We find contradictory trends, which we see as strategic ambivalence pointing to country-specific readings of similar regional markets and attempts to hedge bets between rival forms of apparent capital. The exploration offers a counterpoint to more widely cited examples, hereby helping to shape new paradigmatic ‘glocalised’ understandings of this field.

The Potential of Higher Education Competitiveness in Perspective Good Corporate Governance in Indonesia

It is inevitable that the intensity of competition among universities is getting tougher and stronger, so that the organization of higher education required to become good corporation. The practice of good corporate governance (GCG) has potential to create sustainable competitiveness for all organizations including universities. This study aims to determine the governance profile college accredited by ranking well in East Java. Some aspects that were examined include aspects of academic culture, organizational structure, managerial capability, and utilization of information technology. Analysis was performed using a qualitative analysis interactive model by conducting depth interviews with directors and officers of college, which is a key informant. Research conducted at five universities with accreditation ratings are good in East Java Indonesia include University of Airlangga, University of Brawijaya, State University of Malang, Islamic State University of Malang and Institute of Technology (ITS). The results showed that the superior accredited colleges tend to have a strong academic culture, effective organizational structure, managerial capacity and utilization of information technology.

What factors influence Vietnamese students’ choice of university?

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to report the factors that influence Vietnamese students’ choice of university in a little researched context where the effects of globalization and education reform are changing higher education. Design/methodology/approach – A quantitative survey was completed by 1,124 current or recently completed university students in Vietnam. Marketing approaches are drawn upon to inform the exploration and understanding of student choice and decision making. Findings – The factor analysed data showed the nine key factors influencing student decisions, in order of significance, as facilities and services, programme, price, offline information, opinions, online information, ways of communication, programme additions, and advertising. There are significant correlations in the Vietnamese context between the factors of price and facilities, and services and programme, and differences between genders and types of students in choosing a university. Research limitations/implications – Whilst this paper is a starting point, more research is needed in the Vietnamese context with deeper levels of analysis including the differences between types of universities and fields/disciplines, in addition to wider sampling. Practical implications – A greater understanding of the Vietnamese context helps to inform marketing practices in a country experiencing increasing competition in higher education. Social implications – Findings from studies in other contexts many not be directly transferrable to Vietnamese universities suggesting the need for a contextual understanding of these factors and a suitably nuanced marketing response. Originality/value – This paper identifies the need for cultural understanding of little researched contexts and calls for further research which does not assume all cultures and contexts will have the same underlying Vietnamese model of university choice.

Many choices, one destination: multimodal university brand construction in an urban public transportation system

Amidst global competition in higher education, colleges and universities adopt strategies that mimic and adapt business practices. Branding is now a widespread practice in higher education; multimodal advertisement is a manifestation of emerging branding strategies for universities. While the visibility of brands in higher education has grown substantially in recent years, its empirical study has lagged. This article reports on the findings from a study that employed social semiotic and multimodal analysis to explore text and visual rhetoric as brand construction strategies in publicly displayed university advertisements. After analyzing photographs representing advertising campaigns from 16 different universities displayed in an urban public transportation system, I suggest that universities construct their brand identity through messages that emphasize multiple choices and convenience, but construct success primarily according to corporate standards and values.

Quality Matters for Turkish Higher Education

The paper examines global developments in quality assurance (QA) in higher education and the imperatives that are driving these. It argues that universities need to respond to the growing calls for accountability, national and international competition in higher education, availability of quality open courseware and expectations that graduates should demonstrate the generic attributes required for the twenty-first century. The paper discusses how quality should be monitored and measured. It posits that quality can never be taken for granted, but has to be continually worked for. It also suggests that innovators in on- and off-campus pedagogy and e-learning need to evidence that they can achieve better outcomes than the more time-honoured approaches. At a time when Turkish universities are becoming increasingly engaged in QA and there is an ongoing debate on the governance issue, the paper is designed to raise issues for further consideration by managers and academics.

Trends in American Academic Work and Careers

tutoring, distinction between formal and informal learning would get blurred. Private tutoring costs will occupy a significant proportion of household expenditure on education. Efforts to control or monitor private tutoring are likely to meet with only limited success. Several measures could be taken to cope with the growing incidence of private tutoring. These could include making teachers in the formal school system more accountable and the schools qualitatively more competitive; reviewing the selection criteria for entry to higher education institutions; and, finally, supporting students from poor households and in rural areas so that they are better prepared for entry to reputed and highly competitive higher education institutions. Since it is not feasible to control supplementary private tutoring and perhaps not even desirable to curb it, considering that it might be raising the country’s average levels of achievement, the best option is to adopt a coping strategy that takes care of its negative consequences.

Australian higher education reforms – unification or diversification?

The higher education policy of the previous Australian government aimed to achieve an internationally competitive higher education sector while expanding access opportunities to all Australians. This policy agenda closely reflects global trends that focus on achieving both quality and equity objectives. In this paper, the formulation and implementation of the policy are examined according to the policy cycle approach, drawing on additional theories and analytic frameworks as applicable. The analysis explores why such an ambitious policy approach was taken, how it was implemented and factors affecting its achievability. Indicators suggest the policy was not delivered successfully within the term of the Labor administration. It also highlights an ongoing policy trend to unify the higher education sector, despite evident divisions within the sector and between levels of government administration. The paper concludes with recommendations to diversify the system so that the equity and quality policy agendas can be implemented concurrently.

Price-Increasing Competition: Evidence from Higher Education

In monopolistically competitive industries, increased competition may lead to price divergence as some firms raise prices to differentiate their higher quality products. We test for priceincreasing competition in higher education using the expansion of for-profit institutions. We observe two-year nonprofits competing directly with for-profits on price. However, we find evidence of price-increasing competition among public schools. As for-profits offering four-year degrees expand, four year public schools raise their paid prices; the largest increases occur at the lowest quality institutions, those that would gain the most by sending a quality signal. This increase in paid price allows the public schools to segment the market and capture the more price-inelastic students.

Setting the Stage: Global Competition in Higher Education

In this chapter, the issue editors set the stage for the chapters that follow by delineating recent developments in higher education and common strategies for creating globally competitive higher education institutions. The editors consider social justice concerns that arise with global competition and contend that contextualized priorities can and should mediate global trends.

A Critical Analysis of Global Competition in Higher Education: Synthesizing Themes

In this final chapter of the volume, the editors synthesize key themes that emerge from the preceding chapters. They also highlight the contributions the authors make through emphasizing critical perspectives and the tension between global and local forces.

Development Prospects of the Organizational and Legal Status of Education System in the Republic of Armenia

In the recent decade the education system of the Republic of Armenia has been actively integrated into the spirit and principles of the Bologna declaration one of the essential requirements of which is the assurance of freedom and autonomy for the universities (higher education institutions, hereof HEIs) and accordingly conformity of the post-secondary education and scientific research system with the ever changing needs of society and interest groups as well as with the scientific progress and development of higher education competitiveness. The status of governmental nonprofit organization of the state universities of the RA partially hinders the independence and institutional autonomy defined by the state laws to some extend. Firstly, the obstacles relate to the limitation of the financial and economic opportunities and rights of the universities accordingly blocking the comprehensive implementation and efficiency of reformations.

Attributes of successful university brands in the USA

Increasing adoption of modern marketing techniques by colleges and universities coupled with challenging economics has created significant competition in higher education. Institutions that avail themselves of current research and best practices in regard to brand management will be in the best position to succeed. This paper looks at factors that can help create a successful university brand. The use of a consumer-driven revealed preference ranking metric provides a testable method for location and brand experience attributes. The results provide support for particular attributes of a successful university brand. This analysis extends the understanding of university brands and develops a greater understanding of successful university brand components, particularly within the USA. Implications for future research and suggestions for practitioners are discussed.

The Mediating Effects of School Reputation and School Image on the Relationship between Quality of Teaching Staff and Student Satisfaction in Higher Education in Hong Kong

Aims: With the rapid expansion of Hong Kong’s higher education sector since the evolution of its knowledge-based economy in the 1980’s, the size and number of government-funded and self-funded higher education institutions in Hong Kong has increased substantially. With the launch of the Qualifications Framework (QF) in 2008 by the Hong Kong’s Education Bureau, the quality of qualifications in the vocational and academic sectors has become ever more explicit. In order to help maintain high academic standards and promote a healthy competitive market, the question of how students perceive post-secondary learning institutions is an important issue for stakeholders. Study Design: This study employed cross-sectional and quantitative study. Methodology: A quantitative research framework was developed to empirically test seven hypotheses by adopting a cross-sectional approach and employing a questionnaire survey. The research was taken in Hong Kong between 2012 and 2013 of Higher Education Institutes. As the primary customers of higher education, full-time students enrolled in postOriginal Research Article British Journal of Education, Society & Behavioural Science, 4(11): 1557-1582, 2014 1558 secondary programmes offered by government-funded and self-funded higher education institutes in Hong Kong, were randomly selected as the targeted participants. Two thousands students were sent the questionnaires of this research and 1,170 valid responses were received, which represented a response rate of 58.5%. The collected data was analysed using a number of statistical methods. Results: Results of the analysis show that the quality of teaching staff has a positive and significant influence on student satisfaction, school reputation and school image; that school reputation and school image have direct influence on student satisfaction; that school reputation and school image play a mediating role in the relationship between quality of teaching staff and student satisfaction, and also form a subordinate variable termed ‘school branding’. Conclusion: The research contributes to the higher education debate and provides unique student-perceived insights into student satisfaction and the quality of teaching in Hong Kong’s higher education sector. It also provides suggestions for future research to improve service quality and competitiveness in higher education markets.

Competitive Unionism: Good, Bad, or Indifferent for Contigent Faculty?

In this article I will examine the various arguments that have been made for and against union competition in higher education from the point of view of contingent faculty in particular and will include examples of how this competition has affected faculty. Drawing from parallel experiences in other labor sectors, I make the argument that the debate on competitive (or dual) unionism is largely misplaced and that a new analysis needs to focus on how any tactic or strategy serves contingent faculty’s need for a democratic, social-movement unionism. I conclude with an argument for what has been called the inside-outside strategy, working within existing larger groups, but also building independent formations of specifically contingent faculty.