Expansion Of Higher Education: Demand, Supply and Differentiation Of Universities

Russian experience of expansion of higher education offers to understand the specific lessons. Demand and supply were drivers of changes.

Part of the national economy has formed a demand for knowledge, qualifications. On the other hand, the mass demand has been formed by employers on a more or less socialized young people whose core competency is the relative ability to learn new subjects and skills of communication. This demand has brought primarily by the service sector and trade, which began to develop explosively now. Mentioned qualities became seen as a result of staying in higher educational institution. Specialty, for which there was teaching is not important for the employer, a possession of a higher education diploma is essential as a certificate of appropriate training. Seller of clothes, for example, should not have a diploma of trade manager, he may have engineer or teacher degree, but availability of a diploma is mandatory.

Demand (both kinds) of the labor market was transmitted into families. The educational system has responded by supply adequate to the families’ demand. Now the increment of human capital is developed in some universities; implementation of the signal function, the production of certificates about staying in educational institution take place in other universities.

A second kind demand has led to growth of correspondence departments. There are lower requirements to students at those departments; learning there requires less time and efforts. Thus, it is easier to get a diploma. So enrolment in those departments became set equal to enrolment in full-time departments and surpassed it. Expansion of higher education turned out mainly expansion of the correspondence education.