University Expansion in a Changing Global Economy
This is a study of higher education in the world's four largest developing economies—Brazil, Russia, India, and China. Already important players globally, by mid-century, they are likely to be economic powerhouses. But whether they reach that level of development will depend in part on how successfully they create quality higher education that puts their labor forces at the cutting edge of the information society.
Using an empirical, comparative approach, this book develops a broad picture of the higher education system in each country in the context of both global and local forces. The authors offer insights into how differing socioeconomic and historic patterns of change and political contexts influence developments in higher education. In asking why each state takes the approach that it does, this work situates a discussion of university expansion and quality in the context of governments' educational policies and reflects on the larger struggles over social goals and the distribution of national resources.
"The book has several boldly standing advantages as compared to some previous works addressing similar issues. Of these advantages the approach taken by the authors, the structure of the book, its high level of cohesion, strength of the argument, and the depth of analysis are perhaps most significant . . . The results of this large scale comparative research will be of interest to those who deal with international higher education trends and reforms and to those who are just aspiring for major reforms and joining the global educational policy exchange."—Ararat L. Osipian, Higher Education
"This is an essential book for understanding how the university system—the central institution of the knowledge economy—is both transformed by and transforming our increasingly globalized world. Unique in its scope, research, and relevance to policy, University Expansion in a Changing Global Economy will be mandatory reading for students and policy makers everywhere."—Manuel Castells, University of California, Berkeley
"University Expansion in a Changing Global Economy is, without question, the most comprehensive analysis of the rapidly changing higher education realities in the emerging BRIC superpowers. It combines thoughtful analysis with current data and useful comparisons, and reveals that each of these countries faces significant challenges as they seek to build 'world-class' higher education systems."—Philip G. Altbach, Boston College
