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Nordic Fields of Higher Education. Structures and Transformations of Organisation and Recruitment

Monday, 16 July 2018: 17:30-19:20
Location: 714A (MTCC SOUTH BUILDING)
RC04 Sociology of Education (host committee)

Language: English

There is much evidence suggesting that a special model for higher education has developed in the Nordic countries during the second half of the twentieth century. This model is characterized by largely publicly-owned systems, which are relatively closely regulated by the state, include high levels of public funding and no tuition fees, and have strong influences from egalitarian traditions. In such models, higher education has also been seen as an important pillar in the welfare system, not only through the emphasis on broad and equal access, but also by educating the professionals needed for the development of the welfare state.

During the last three decades higher education systems in the Nordic countries have undergone important changes. The Bologna process has been implemented. The number of students has increased drastically, partially through the establishment of new institutions. Internationalization has become a more integrated part of the national systems and an increased emphasis on efficiency, competition and market orientation has been apparent. In short, the systems appear to have been transformed from cohesive and standardized systems, administered largely within the state, into more diverse and complex national and international higher education landscapes.

To the session we invite papers that consider these current changes of the traditional Nordic model of higher education by focusing on organisational aspects and student recruitment patterns, as well as the interplay between the two.

Session Organizers:
Mikael BÖRJESSON, Uppsala University, Sweden and Agnete VABØ, Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences, Norway
Oral Presentations
The Economic Lives of Students. the Relation between Economic and Educational Capital at Different Places in the Landscape of Swedish Higher Education
Martin GUSTAVSSON, Stockholm Centre for Organizational Research (Score), Sweden; Andreas MELLDAHL, Uppsala University, Dept. of Education, Sweden