By Oladipo Osuntubo, Doctoral Researcher at Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh
Higher Education in most countries has experienced remarkably consistent reforms in management and finance in the past few decades. These reforms are remarkable because they follow consistent patterns in countries with very different socio-political, welfare and economic systems and university traditions. Furthermore, they can be seen in countries at very different stages of technological and industrial development. This is a relatively global phenomenon with countries such as Nigeria, Chile and the UK (particularly England) adopting practices which include:
- reduction of, or total elimination of, subsidies by the state;
- introduction or increase in tuition fees paid by students;
- encouragement of competition between universities as a way of improvement;
- deregulation of university sectors to allow private-for-profit providers.
My research involves a comparative examination of contemporary reforms in Higher Education as described above in the context of new public management (NPM) reforms and human capital theory. A cross-national study between Nigeria and Scotland is being conducted because in the context of tuition policies for undergraduate study, these two countries appear to operate policies at two ends of the continuum: with tuition charged for most Nigerian students and none charged for home /EU students in Scotland.
A key focus is the implications of user charges for access by considering the tuition element of undergraduate study as well as the theoretical and practical justifications for reforms. Other themes to be explored include drivers of reforms in Higher Education funding including potential influences of international bodies like international financial institutions and a critique of some of the rationales for market type reforms.
A qualitative approach is being adopted within this study. Currently I am conducting interviews with academics, university finance officers and government policy-makers from both Scotland and Nigeria. Interviews typically take no longer than 40 minutes.
It is hoped that the findings will inform ongoing debates in the reform of Higher Education in Nigeria and Scotland including:
- the implications of user charges or reduction of subsidies for access;
- challenges of policy transfer;
- rationales for state investment in Higher Education; and
- a critique of theoretical and ideological justifications for reforms.
If you would be available and willing to take part in this research study please contact me directly at OOsuntubo @ qmu.ac.uk
