The privatisation/commercialisation of higher education

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dc.contributor.authorBeaton, James Benjaminen_US
dc.date.accessioned2024-08-13T00:07:41Z
dc.date.available2024-08-13T00:07:41Z
dc.date.copyright1998en_US
dc.date.issued1998
dc.degree.departmentDepartment of Sociology
dc.degree.levelMaster of Arts M.A.en
dc.description.abstractThe objective of the research was to determine if privatisation/commercialisation of higher education was occurring, and if so to what extent, in Canada, New Zealand, the United States and Sweden. The overall hypothesis was that higher education is becoming more privatised/commercialised in Canada as well as internationally. The analysis was conducted by examining a series of sub-hypotheses: (1) Public spending on education differs by welfare state type; (2) Public spending on education is being reduced and this is part of an international trend; (3) Higher education systems are becoming more reliant on non-governmental sources (i.e. students and corporations) for revenues; ( 4) The political orientation of government to higher education is changing toward commercialisation on national and international levels Each of the sub-hypotheses was analysed by considering various indicators such as state expenditure on education, tuition fees, sources of higher educational revenue and political economic trends for each country. The indicators and trends were discussed in terms of teaching, research and access. There was limited evidence to support the hypothesis that higher education spending depends upon welfare state type. The hypothesis that there have been spending reductions and this is part of an international trend was not supported. What was found was that the character or nature of state spending has changed with expenditure increases, reductions or reallocation on some indicators following no consistent international trend. The hypothesis that higher education systems are becoming more reliant upon non-governmental sources (i.e. students, corporations and private gifts) was supported by the data for New Zealand, Canada and the United States. There was evidence to support the hypothesis that in Canada, New Zealand and United States the political orientation of higher education is emphasising commercialisation and privatisation. This takes the form of an economic utilitarian view of higher education that focuses on practicality, relevance and output. The overall hypothesis that higher education is being commercialised and privatised in Canada as well as internationally is conditionally supported. The complexity of privatisation and commercialisation is such that these processes are occurring while state spending is increasing, decreasing or being reallocated. The privatisation and commercialisation of higher education is multifaceted in that it involves corporate partnerships, increased tuition costs, reduced or reallocated state expenditure and regulatory mechanisms that impose business principles or output measures upon higher education institutions.
dc.format.extent210 pages
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/1828/17195
dc.rightsAvailable to the World Wide Weben_US
dc.titleThe privatisation/commercialisation of higher educationen_US
dc.typeThesisen_US

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