Theoretical and Conceptual Reflections on Higher Education Admission Regimes from an Internationally Comparative Perspective

In many countries, access to high socio-economic status (SES) positions is often contingent upon obtaining a university degree. As upper secondary educational attainment levels rise, competition for university admission intensifies. Under these conditions, inequalities in higher education may grow if the supply of study opportunities does not keep pace with the increasing demand. Access to higher education varies significantly across countries, as do their respective admission systems. This covariation suggests a potential relationship between social inequality in university access and the admission procedures employed in different nations. However, empirical research into the inequality effects of various admission systems remains limited.

This presentation addresses the challenges and potential solutions for studying admission regimes in a comparative context. Admission regimes are defined as the set of rules and processes that govern the allocation of individuals to universities. Drawing on a literature review of case studies and expert interviews with scholars specializing in educational inequality, we identify four key dimensions—supply, eligibility, selectivity, and organizational form—that characterize higher education admission systems. After examining these dimensions, each with its own set of subdimensions, we analyze how these factors may limit opportunities in degree programs and influence institutional or degree choices.

Our analysis explores how specific features and rules of admission systems might mediate or moderate the primary and secondary effects in educational decision-making processes. First empirical findings indicate that certain institutional features are correlated with aggregate inequality patterns across countries. Further analyses will focus on the individual-level processes that might drive this aggregate correlation. The presentation concludes with a problematization of the chosen approach, the categorization of country-wide regimes and potential fallacies that have to be reflected before further investigation.