Higher Education as an agent of change

Higher Education as an agent of change

1 – Introduction
2 – Meaning of Higher Education
3 - Attributes of Higher education
Relevance
Universal Appeal
Quality
4 - Higher Education Brings Change

Technology
Industry
Business
Literacy
Poverty Alleviation
Research work
Diversification
Mindset of the People
Stops brain Drain
Brings out the best
Future Building
Job Creation


5 – Role of University in Higher Education
6 – Role of higher education in European revolution
7 – Role of Higher Education in turn around of Indian Economy
8 – Higher Education and China’s Industrial Development
9 - State of Education Higher Education In Pakistan till 2001
10 – Higher Education Commission of Pakistan performance
11 – Criticism of HEC’s performance
12 – Reality about HEC’s Efforts
13 – Higher Education and its importance for Pakistan’s Future
14 – Conclusion
















Criticism of HEC
Former minister Ishaq Khan Khakwani on Monday blasted the outgoing chairman Higher Education Commission, Dr Attaur Rehman, for what he termed the massive misuse of billions of rupees during his eight years in office.A fiery Khakwani demanded a special audit of the HEC accounts. He wondered where those billions were spent, which were given to Dr Rehman by General Pervez Musharraf for the uplift of higher education.“One may rightly expect from someone like Dr Rehman, who was in office for eight consecutive years, to turn around the whole system of higher education, particularly when the government was pumping billions into the accounts of the HEC. But after spending Rs 26 billion, he could not even set up a single foreign university”, he regretted.Sharply reacting against the praises for the outgoing HEC chairman, Ishaq Khan told The News that he was amazed to see that no one was questioning Dr Rehman about those six foreign universities, which he had planned to set up in Pakistan.Mr Khakwani alleged that those billions which could have changed the whole education system were spent by Rehman on foreign trips, TA/DA and holding of seminars in five-star hotels.He said the Dr Rehman‚Äôs influence during the previous government could be judged from the fact that the whole education ministry got only Rs 6 billions in budget for the whole country but the HEC alone got more than Rs 26 billions. He said that the huge amount was given to Dr Rehman to improve the educational standards for only 3 per cent students.Khakwani alleged that more than Rs 200 million might have been spent alone on TA/DA of only few top guns of the HEC.He recalled that during one of the federal cabinet meetings, he had critically evaluated the claims of the HEC and the whole cabinet had clapped after he had finished his arguments. Khakwani said he had told Dr Rehman in a cabinet meeting that instead of setting up six foreign universities he should have established only one. But he regretted that even today when Dr Rehman is going home nobody was asking him about those six foreign universities.He demanded of the auditor general of Pakistan to conduct an audit of the HEC accounts so the people should know where those billions were spent.On the other hand, Dr Attaur Rehman defended his position while talking to the News. “We often differed in opinions on the issues concerning the HEC”, Dr Rehman said, adding he did not want to discus those differences with the media at this stage.Dr Rehman said the HEC accounts had always been audited and rejected the charges of financial irregularities against him. About the six foreign universities, he said projects of setting up four such universities were approved hardly four months back. ‚ÄúChina, Italy, Austria and Germany are ready to set up universities here,‚Äù he said, admitting that no foreign university was operating in the country presently.When asked why the Americans and British universities did not set up their camps here, he said they were not ready to establish universities in Pakistan.On his performance as the chairman HEC, he said one should note how much the international institutions had appreciated the uplift of the higher educational during his eight years in office.

HEC’s performance
“As many as 47 new universities had been established and 18 new campuses of universities have also been established during the six year period of HEC’s existence,” he said. University enrolment has almost tripled from 135,123 to 363,700 during this 6 year period of HEC thereby providing far more opportunities of our youth to acquire higher education.“It has been alleged that 6 foreign universities were planned to be set up in Pakistan but not a single one has been established. Actually, it was only in February 2008 that 4 projects for the establishment of universities in collaboration with Germany, Italy, Austria and China were approved. Subsequently, the new government established a Cabinet Committee to review the programme and to consider if funding could be made available for it. The Cabinet has yet to make a final decision in this respect and so the programme has been essentially frozen, largely due to the serious financial situation of Pakistan. How could money have been wasted for this programme when not a single new building for these universities has so far been built or faculty hired? The need to establish foreign universities in Pakistan has been questioned. It needs to be understood that without a critical number of world class engineers and scientists, Pakistan cannot hope to compete in the highly competitive global economy. Our students would be exposed to high quality faculty from foreign countries, follow their curriculum, pass their examinations and get degrees from top universities from Germany, France etc. They would therefore reach international standards of education, science and engineering in a very short period. India produces over 400,000 engineering graduates annually while Pakistan produces only about 8,000 engineering graduates. The Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) set up in 1960s helped to transform India and ushered in an IT revolution—-as a result India presently earns tens of billions of dollars in exports of software. India has also decided to expand its present programme of IITs and also significantly increase the number of Indian Institute of Science so that it could compete with advanced countries. It has been claimed that HEC programmes have not had any major impact on higher education. This is completely incorrect as proved by the following facts: (a) In a recent USAID Report (still in draft form) it is stated that: “We are very impressed with the breadth, scope, and depth of the reforms implemented by the HEC since 2002. No other developing country we know has made such spectacular progress.” (b) The world’s top science journal “Nature” in an editorial published on 28th August 2008 acknowledged “the solid foundations” built by HEC during the last 6 years under my Chairmanship and urged the new government to continue to support this important sector to prevent us from going back to the “Stone Age”. (c) The World Bank was asked by Government of Pakistan to carry out the performance audit of HEC. A 128 page report published by the World Bank has praised the excellent initiatives by HEC. (d) The British Council in another recent comprehensive report published earlier this year has praised my own leadership as Chairman HEC in the following words “I have worked in many countries in South America, the Middle East, North Africa, and in Russia and India, over the last six years. None in my view, with the exception of India , has the potential of Pakistan for the UK university sector, largely because of the dynamic, strategic leadership of the Chairman of HEC” (e) “Science Watch” published by the Thomson Reuters group have recently given Pakistan the “Rising Star” status in five fields of science and engineering, the highest number achieved by any country in the world. (f) The enormous emphasis laid by HEC on research has resulted in 400% increase in research output in international journals from Pakistani universities. The research output in international journals originating from Pakistani institutions has grown from a only about 600 research articles in year 2002 to over 1714 by the year 2006 and 2407 articles in 2007. (g) During the 56 year period (1947-2003) not a single Pakistani university could qualify to reach the ranks of the top 600 universities in the world. Today 3 of Pakistani universities are in this category with the National University of Science and Technology standing at a very respectable number 376.(k) Previously our degrees were not recognized internationally as we had only 16 years of study programmes before students obtained the Masters degrees. HEC introduced a 4-year undergraduate programme which is being implemented in a phased manner over a 3 year period. This will result in international recognition of Pakistani degrees. (h) A huge emphasis has been placed on quality of education. National rankings of our universities were published, thereby generating competition.. Quality Assurance Cells have been established in different universities and student evaluation of teachers’ performance introduced. (i) Video-conferencing facility has been provided in 28 universities with the key feature of live interactive lectures from technologically advanced countries. (j) A major national research grant programme was launched. The National Research Programme for Universities (NRPU) facilitates research pursuits of researchers. The year saw the approval of 195 projects in Agriculture, Food Sciences, Archeology, Biological Sciences, Engineering, Computer Science, Mathematics and Pharmacy for funding over a maximum period of three years. There is tangible excitement in the air where faculty members are working in their state-of-the -art and well equipped laboratories. (k) Strict financial discipline is maintained by HEC. All its programmes have been regularly audited by government auditors as well as private international auditors. It is also the first government institution which fully implemented SAP accounting system thereby being completely transparent in all transactions. (l) A major programme of post- doctoral training in top foreign universities has been initiated which has already benefited some 200 faculty members. (m) A strict project monitoring system was introduced and quarterly reports are sent to Planning, Finance and the Chancellors of public sector institutions. (n) A transparent process of appointment of Vice- Chancellors was introduced based on open advertisement and final recommendation by a search committee comprising eminent scholars. It has been stated in an earlier article which appeared in the newspaper that too much money has been spent on higher education at the cost of lower level education. This is incorrect. Less than 15% of the entire education budget is spent on higher education. According to international norms at least 25-30% of national budget should be spent on higher education. During the last two years per student expenditure has actually gone down by about 30% due to inflation and the tripling student enrolment. Has HEC made a difference in the last 6 years as compared to performance of the erstwhile UGC in the previous 56 years. One needs only to talk to any Vice-Chancellor of a public sector university or visit hundreds of new institutions established during the last 6 years to get a fruitful answer. One is at liberty to turn a blind eye to HEC’s achievements, but they will not cease to exist. What is presented above are undeniable facts and in the final analysis what matters is not what my supporters or critics say, but the opinions of neutral international experts mentioned above who have carried out a detailed analysis of the Higher Education sector in Pakistan and paid glowing tributes to our achievements. To identify me with President Musharraf or any other past government is incorrect, although I must acknowledge the tremendous support provided to HEC by General Musharraf. I am a scientist and not a politician. I received four Civil Awards (Tamgha-i-Imtiaz, Sitara-i-Imtiaz, Hilal-i-Imtiaz and Nishan-i-Imtiaz) from successive governments of General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, Mohtarama Shaheed Benazir Bhutto and Mr. Shaukat Aziz. I have tried to serve my country honestly and to the best of my abilities and will continue to do so Inshallah in the years to come.

The Higher Education Commission, set up in 2002 under the Pevez Musharraf-led government as a body to regulate higher education in the country, seems to be running into increased trouble as a result of budgetary cuts by the new government. A development grant of Rs4 billion, due this month, has reportedly been cut to Rs2 billion. The HEC budget had also been slashed earlier, with some quarters suggesting this may have been one factor in the decision by the former chairman of the body to step down. The HEC has been a somewhat controversial setup. The policy of spending a huge percentage of the country's limited education budget on higher education, accessible to a tiny minority in a nation where literacy still stands at little above 50 per cent has been questioned by many. Very few of the children who enroll at schools are able to make it to colleges, especially given that the dropout rate for primary school is almost an astonishing 50 per cent (among the highest in the world). The argument then goes that Pakistan needs to focus on improving education at the primary level as a key priority. This having been said, the HEC has to its credit some achievements. In a situation where standards have slumped so sharply that employers report encountering post-graduates unable to describe global warming or write even a short paragraph with originality and coherence, the HEC's efforts to push up the level of dissertations and of scientific research is commendable. So are its' efforts to tackle the menace of plagiarism, with several cases involving academics uncovered at prestigious universities. For these reasons, it would be wise to keep the body intact and ensure it can continue its role – even while directing more attention to the state of education at lower levels.

Higher Education and its role in European development

– The Role of Higher Education" focused on the future role of higher education from the point of view of a large industrial concern, underlining the importance of lifelong learning and the importance of graduates with both professional skills and broad
personal competencies. main dimensions of the World Higher Education are relevance, quality, internationalization,
and finance and management.

No chain being stronger than its weakest link, higher education should be a strong part of a strong educational system, as well as play a key role in opening new futures by contributing, in close collaboration with other partners, to the innovation chain. Similarly, higher education institutions have a key role to play in European society by contributing to equitable and sustainable development and to the culture of peace. They should act critically and objectively on the basis of rigour and merit, actively promoting intellectual and moral solidarity by serving individual needs. In a world of in-depth transformations, higher education institutions are expected to act responsibly and responsively. They are to foresee, anticipate, and influence changes in all quarters of society and be prepared and able to differentiate and to adapt accordingly.
Given the growing individual demand for higher learning and the resulting pressures on higher education institutions, there is a need for ever more institutional diversification, for new policies of access to higher education, and for a structured development of lifelong learning. In order to better respond to the needs of diversification, a wider and more imaginative institutional profiling is expected to occur within higher education systems, thus leaving less room for categorization of institutions. At the same time, more programmatic diversification within the institutions is required. Lifelong learning for personal and professional development, for career change, transferable skills, and matching supply and demand for highly trained personnel is essential. Higher education institutions must be able to offer corresponding courses in continuing education and in alliance with employers and other social partners so as to ensure that they are widely available and contribute to a coherent system of higher education. Thus it is essential to define the links in the overall "educational chain" and the relations between them so that individuals can independently manage their learning at whatever level.
In response to this increasingly differentiated demand, coherence means flexibility with regard to: access, content, breadth, depth, and duration of programmes, means of delivery, examination, and validation. Thus, new policies of access should be designed on the basis of merit and equal opportunities, expanding student profiles, and reaching out to hitherto underprivileged groups of society.
Higher education institutions should pay increased attention to promoting strategies for the conceptualization and the management of educational innovation, particularly with reference to organization of contents, learning materials, teaching methods, and graduates' personal profiles as a response to the multiple challenges of their environments.

The shift from teaching to learning implies self-managed learning, a coaching role for the teacher, professional support services, investment in new delivery, and quality assurance mechanisms, especially in off-campus operations. It should also lead to a new definition of scholarship balancing discovery and transmission as well as the integration and application of knowledge. A crucial lever for change is a creative and well-defined personnel policy which opens up teaching as a career, supported by appropriate staff development programmes. Particular attention should be paid to the promotion of opportunities for women, including in top positions in higher education. It also involves a new approach to curriculum development taking into account multi- and interdisciplinarity and flexibility of choice, but in a coherent system which allows for modularization, credit transfer, the validation of work experience, and the organization of the academic year in semesters both at national and international level.
Modern information and communication technologies have major implications for the provision of education and training and require a fundamental restructuring of the ways in which teaching and learning objectives are delivered. Higher education institutions have a key role to play in exploiting, for themselves and together with other partners, the potential of innovative information and communication
technologies for academic development. Given the increased demand for higher education and its democratization, there is a pressing need to share good practice and to ensure academic quality standards by incorporating a culture of quality and the instruments for quality assurance at both systemic and institutional level. The new roles both of the teachers and of the students as well as the changing
relationship to government and world of work imply the definition of a new and explicit "educational contract" between the different partners, setting out rights and responsibilities for all concerned. It will be especially important to ensure that the voice of the students is heard at all stages of the learning process. The paradigmatic shift from teaching to learning requires an investigation of the desirability of establishing a European Centre for Teaching and Learning to act as an observatory of good practice and innovation bringing together higher education institutions and their stakeholders at local, national, and international level.

Research, seen as the process leading to the systematic development of new knowledge, is central to the effectiveness of all higher education, while the type of research and the resources and time allocated to its promotion may vary according to the mission statement of the institution and its position within a coherent system of higher education. Accordingly, uniformity of research missions should give way to differentiated institutional policies focused on achievable and competitive performances. Research is important for the contribution of higher education to the innovation chain, by a strategic mobilization of multilateral co-operation between city and regional governments, higher education institutions, industry, and business. In addition, it contributes to a constant supply of qualified young researchers. At the same time, a strong link between research and teaching opens opportunities for involving good researchers in the teaching process. Multi- and interdisciplinary research is required more and more to solve pressing societal problems, thus also contributing to sustainable human development. There is, however, increasing concern about the ability of the public purse to provide
adequate finances to meet these escalating needs. To ensure continued high quality research, governments need to provide adequate funding for basic research infrastructure, but within a competitive framework. Research funding allocations should be based on quality criteria and transparent auditing procedures. Care should be taken to avoid a mismatch between stakeholders' needs for interdisciplinary research and governmental/peer processes of research, audit, and funding, which may be focused on single disciplines. Research in the social sciences and the humanities should not be neglected. Support mechanisms at national and international level to stimulate and sustain research groups in less developed systems of higher education should be strengthened in order to support institutional development rather than exacerbating brain drain phenomena. Institutions are encouraged to develop Codes of Practice together with their partners for resolving questions of intellectual property regarding the results of externally funded research. Similarly, Codes of Ethics for the choice and conduct of research projects should be elaborated. Strategies for diversifying funding sources should be actively sought. Institutions attracting research funding in this way should ensure that their services are realistically costed and priced and that a percentage of this extra income is used to build up an internal development fund for emerging projects or poorly funded areas. Networking with corporate laboratories, multinational corporations, especially at regional level, has a particular role to play in enhancing the quality and scope of institutional research as well as its resource base. In a labour market which is dynamic and heterogeneous, universities should not base their long-term orientations on labour market or manpower planning, but on social demand. They therefore have to prepare their students for meeting the challenges of an intrinsically uncertain labour market. In addition to their professional qualifications, graduates require a broad set of attributes in terms of personal and transferable skills and competencies in order to increase their employability in a knowledge society. To sustain a well-rounded individual development, full participation of stakeholders, in particular representatives of students, teachers, the world of work, and public authorities in higher education policy formation, and curriculum development is essential. As intelligent providers, higher education institutions need to develop their knowledge of markets, anticipate needs, be aware of competition, and invest in processes of quality assurance. Students have to prepare for an increasingly diversified market, from employment in large industrial concerns to small enterprises, from working in the public sector to the service sector, and not forgetting individual entrepreneurship. There is a special need for the promotion of more constructive relations of higher education institutions to the world of small and medium size enterprises as the sector employing the largest number of graduates.
Higher education institutions should provide systematic information in schools and enterprises to guide student choices, provide placements as an integral part of degree courses, and offer research training in a work environment, as well as career guidance services at all times. Higher education institutions are as much concerned with the creation as with the transmission of cultural values. Although it is misleading to speak of "European" values per se, in the specific European context and in terms of the European university tradition, a framework does exist in terms of cultural unity through diversity. This means agreeing to disagree in order to pursue open, critical, and
constructive dialogue. As a consequence, higher education institutions have a key role to play, not only as centres, but also as incubators of cultural diversity and of multiracial harmony and understanding. This means they have a particularly important role to play in
creating a civil society and in preparing young people for shaping and living in a democratic society, a place where higher education plays an active role in public debate on ethical and policy questions. These values should permeate all higher education curricula; their transmission, especially as far as ethical considerations are concerned, should not be limited to special courses. Special emphasis should be placed on language training, multidisciplinarity, and independent and critical learning associated with teamwork. With
the help of higher education institutions, this process should start in primary and secondary education. Attention should be paid to incorporating the European dimension as an integral part of teaching and research and of sustaining the diversity of the learning experience through student and staff mobility. This means strengthening existing provision for the recognition of degrees and diplomas, in particular through the implementation of the UNESCO/Council of Europe Joint Convention, and supporting the further development of a coherent credit transfer system. Furthermore, all efforts should be made to remove practical, administrative, and legal obstacles to academic exchange at institutional, national, and international level. In this respect, the importance of networking and true international partnerships for co-operation in teaching, research, or service is paramount. A constructive partnership between government, business and industry, and higher education institutions is a critical element in the implementation of an Agenda for Change in Higher Education. The role of government is expected to shift from bureaucratic control to policy steering, stable funding formulae, quality monitoring, project-based investment, and providing a cushion against the wider excesses of the demands of the free market. Business and industry should be encouraged to define more clearly their needs as clients and to work together with higher education institutions as training providers. Higher education institutions should be entrusted with a greater institutional autonomy, thus enhancing their capacity for change, for acting responsibly, effectively, and entrepreneurially as "learning organizations", while making them more accountable in terms of performance. Inter-institutional alliances should be a substantial lever for institutional change and development. In view of the common assumptions on trends affecting future university development in Europe, the growing systematization of institutional management is a welcome development as is the corresponding awareness of the need for internal strategic planning and rethinking, both for intrinsic reasons and in response to initiatives from national higher education planners.

The Importance of Higher Education

In the last decade, Canada’s universities produced more than 1.25 million bachelor’s graduates, 225,000 master’s graduates and almost 40,000 PhDs. These graduates bring critical thinking, communications, problem-solving, creativity and research skills as well as the specialized knowledge of their fields of study to the workplace. The labour market clearly values these individuals and rewards their knowledge and skills; over their lifetimes university graduates earn $1 million more on average than do those without a postsecondary education. The focus of the federal contribution to higher education has been on direct financial assistance to students through vehicles such as the Canada Student Loans Program and in financial transfers to the provinces, which in turn provide operating grants to the institutions in their respective jurisdictions. The federal government announced a variety of significant measures in its 2004 budget with respect to student assistance. AUCC welcomed the announced package of student assistance measures, but joins a number of other organizations representing the postsecondary education community in stressing that the existing transfer mechanism is proving inadequate. The TD Economics study concludes that “the system is no longer well placed to serve the future needs of Canadians.” In brief, Canadians are demanding access to higher education opportunities at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Meeting this challenge will require solutions that address quality, access and capacity. AUCC projected in 2001 that there will be a need for at least 200,000 more university spaces during the decade 2001- 2011 to respond to growing demand. However, the demand for university degrees is growing even faster than predicted. There were 748,000 full-time university students in Canada in 2003-04, an increase of 100,000 students in just two years. Early indications for 2004-05 suggest that the number of students has grown by an additional 20,000. Despite growing provincial government investments in recent years, enrolment growth means that government spending per student has dropped from about $9,700 in 1994 to $8,600 in 1999 and to about $8,000 in 2004. For the future, the fundamental challenge is two-fold: to ensure that no academically qualified Canadians are denied the opportunity to benefit from a university education, and to ensure that universities have the necessary capacity to provide quality higher education
to increasing umbers of students. While it is important to make university education affordable for students, it is also necessary to ensure that universities have the physical and human infrastructure they need to provide a high-quality education. AUCC and others have offered a number of suggestions about how the federal government could help meet this challenge of strategic importance to all of Canada. For example, six organizations wrote a joint letter to the Prime Minister in December 2003 urging him to work with the provinces to address the capacity issue. We recognize that all interested parties must continue to examine the issues and to work cooperatively to find creative solutions. In this regard, we are encouraged that provincial ministers of education have responded by declaring through the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada (CMEC) their intent to focus on postsecondary education issues, as well as literacy and Aboriginal education, and to discuss these issues with the federal government. In particular they note their interest in funding for infrastructure costs, the indirect costs of research, and increased access. In response, the federal Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development, Joe Volpe, stated: “I look forward to working with CMEC on our shared concerns in the areas of literacy, Aboriginal education and post-secondary education capacity. These are key priorities for the Government of Canada as well. We have a strong record of collaboration with provincial/territorial governments on student financial assistance. I look forward to building on this success.”

The Importance of University Research and Knowledge Transfer
Canadian university research takes place in a highly competitive global context. While federal investments in research have increased significantly in recent years, our position relative to other countries has changed only slightly, due in part to increased funding on the part of other countries as well. Universities are important venues for research, performing more than one third of all research done in the country. As performers, universities draw on relationships with federal and provincial government partners, the private sector, the not-for-profit sector, and foreign investors; no other research venue has comparable breadth and depth of expertise and strategic coordination services. The crucial importance of university research in Canada’s overall research effort is demonstrated by the growing investments in university research by all sectors in recent years, including federal and provincial governments and the private sector.
At the same time, universities house the nation’s most comprehensive and extensive knowledge banks. They are a constant and consistent source of new knowledge, skills and ideas and maintain the critical mass of researchers, facilities, infrastructure and research
administration resources to perform this unique role. As a former president of Harvard University has observed, “All advanced nations depend increasingly on three critical elements: new discoveries, highly trained personnel, and expert knowledge….universities are primarily responsible for supplying two of these ingredients and are a major source of the third.”2
Given the scale of recent federal investments in university research, it is entirely appropriate to ask about the impacts of those investments, both in terms of the knowledge created by research activities and also in terms of the transfer and application of that
knowledge to Canadian society. There exists a broad consensus that university research has had a range of impacts and contributions, and that these diffuse through society over an extended period of time. While it is too early to offer precise measurements of these impacts and contributions, especially in the short term, it is already possible to discern certain significant trends and impacts. Examples of these include:
A competitive and innovative business environment
University research results in patents, products and jobs for Canadians. To date there have been 680 spin-off companies from universities and affiliated institutions, producing over $2.5 billion in revenues and employing over 19,000 individuals. Beyond this direct effect, however, university research can also lead to improved productivity as well as contributing to regional economic development. Universities as institutions have a significant impact on their communities in terms of economic activity and job creation, as was acknowledged recently by the mayors of Canada’s largest cities. Through mechanisms such as research chairs, centres of excellence, institutes and investigator-led projects, universities are catalysts for innovation across the full spectrum of industries.
A healthy population and a sustainable health system
Many features of the health care system upon which Canadians rely are the product of university research. The diagnosis, treatment and prevention of disease is an important element of university research, while our universities train the next generation of health practitioners of all kinds. Between 1991 and 2000, Canadian universities graduated more than 100,000 health care professionals who play a pivotal role in health care delivery in urban and rural communities across Canada. At an economic level, university graduates from all disciplines are less likely to place demands on the health care system, while they contribute a disproportionately large share of the taxes that fund the system.3 While Canadian data are not available, the National Institutes of Health in the U.S. have estimated that the rate of return on publicly funded health research is in the order of 25 to 40 percent.
A highly qualified and adaptable workforce
Universities produce the highly qualified workforce that Canada’s growing knowledgebased economy needs. The number of positions held by workers in these kinds of occupations doubled to 25 percent between 1971 and 2001. University graduates are the pool from which Canada’s research community draws; fully 95 percent of those innovators listed in the recent “Top 40 Under 40” feature of the Report on Business hold university degrees, most from Canadian institutions. Graduates also play a seminal role in managing Canadian organizations of all kinds. According the most recent census data, 44 percent of all senior management positions in Canada are held by university graduates, a significant proportion given that university graduates represent only 19 percent of the working-age population.
An informed and engaged citizenry
University graduates form the “civic core” of our society and are likelier to be informed and engaged citizens. They are more likely to exercise their right to vote and have a higher rate of volunteering or participating in community groups and charitable organizations, for example by contributing an average of 166 hours annually as volunteers. At the same time, university researchers are frequently called upon to provide expert insight and commentary on the issues of the day, whether through the media or in advising government by appearing before Parliamentary committees or other bodies.
A cohesive, diverse and just society
It is important to recognize that university research also has a broader impact on the lives of Canadians. Research provides the tools and direction to promote social inclusion and cohesion and can help Canadians to understand and appreciate the diversity of our communities. University graduates are leaders in creating the social capital required to build a more inclusive and fair society; likewise, university research promotes the better understanding and improved application of a wide range of social services such as child and adult welfare, immigration, justice and policing. Universities also lead more than 50 cultural research networks that study and promote Canada’s cultural diversity.

Thriving and safe communities and cities
Universities are key contributors to many thriving cities and communities across Canada. They serve as catalysts of economic development and renewal and help to improve the safety of our communities through the development of public health measures and a 3 University graduates make up 16 percent of the population over 18, yet contribute almost 33 percent of better understanding of social issues. The Canadian Policy Research Network notes that educational institutions are one of five core factors making important contributions to urban quality of life.
Responsive and responsible government
Governing Canada in a responsive and responsible manner depends on both university research and on the graduates that universities produce. University graduates form the core of the federal public service and account for 54 percent of all senior government managers and officials who oversee the programs and policies that have an impact on Canadians’ daily lives. University research informs public policy development in a wide array of fields, while government departments rely on university expertise for advice and on graduates to staff key positions in the public service.
Universities as a Window on the World
Canadian universities are well-positioned to make a valuable contribution to the federal government’s commitment to enhance Canada’s role and influence in the world, while at the same time providing a window on the world for Canadians. With over 3000 active international partnerships around the world, Canadian universities are already significant actors in Canada’s international relations and these activities underpin a range of foreign policy objectives including fostering global peace and security, finding solutions to global development challenges, promoting Canadian values abroad and building stronger diplomatic, scientific, commercial and trade partnerships, particularly with countries of strategic interest to Canada. AUCC and its members have been actively engaged in the international policy review process and have submitted a discussion paper to Foreign Affairs Canada (FAC) which provides an overview of the breadth and depth of Canadian universities’ international activities. The paper also highlights strengths and challenges with respect to a more effective leveraging of these activities to serve Canada’s international policy goals. One challenge that is particularly pressing is the need to engage a critical mass of Canadian students from a broad range of backgrounds and from all parts of the country in the work/study abroad opportunities offered by Canadian institutions. New data shows that less than one percent of Canadian students participate in an international learning experience for credit at their Canadian university. Lack of financial resources remains the most significant barrier to addressing this situation. At the same time, Canadian universities are poised to help meet the Prime Minister’s challenge to leverage Canada’s R&D capacity to address development needs. The data presented in AUCC’s international policy discussion paper clearly illustrates that Canadian universities have the commitment, expertise, experience, and relationships required to help make this goal a reality.


Higher education is education provided by universities, vocational universities. Higher education includes teaching, research and social services activities of universities, and within the realm of teaching, In most developed countries a high proportion of the population (up to 50%) now enter higher education at some time in their lives. Institutions of higher education include not only colleges and universities but also professional schools in such fields as law, theology, medicine, business, music, and art. They also include teacher-training schools, community colleges, and institutes of technology. At the end of a prescribed course of study, a degree, diploma, or certificate is awarded.
Higher education has developed in numerous ways since the end of World War II. Throughout the world, issues such as autonomy and accountability, the impact of technology, the growing role of markets and the privatization of higher education, the role of research and teaching, various efforts toward curriculum reform, and the massive expansion that has characterized higher education systems in most countries have all played important roles in the development of higher education. Universities are international institutions, with common historical roots, and at the same time are embedded in national cultures and circumstances. It is worthwhile to examine the contemporary challenges to higher education in comparative perspective, as most issues affect academe everywhere.
Postsecondary education has expanded since World War II in virtually every country in the world. The growth of postsecondary education has, in proportional terms, been more dramatic than that of primary and secondary education. Writing in 1975, Martin Trow spoke of the transition from elite to mass and then to universal higher education in the industrialized nations. While the United States enrolled some 30 percent of the relevant age cohort (18 - 21 year olds) in higher education in the immediate postwar period, European nations generally maintained an elite higher education system, with fewer than 5 percent of the population attending postsecondary institutions. By the 1960s many European nations educated 15 percent or more of this age group - Sweden for example, enrolled 24 percent in 1970, with France at 17 percent. At the same time, the United States increased its proportion to around 50 percent, approaching universal access. By the mid-1990s many European countries, including France, Germany, and the United Kingdom, enrolled around 50 percent of the relevant age group, and the proportion in the United States increased to three-quarters. While Europe and North America are now relatively stable, middle-income countries and countries in the developing world have continued to expand at a rapid rate.
In the Third World, expansion has been similarly dramatic. Building on tiny and extraordinarily elitist universities, higher education expanded rapidly in the immediate post-independence period. In India, enrollments grew from approximately 100,000 at the time of independence in 1947 to over 6.5 million in the 1990s - although India enrolls just 7 percent of the relevant age group. China enrolls a similar number, though this represents only 5 percent of its young people. China, especially, is engaged in a dramatic expansion program. Expansion in Africa has also been rapid, with the postsecondary student population growing from 21,000 in 1960 to 437,000 in 1983, but with growth stagnating in the 1990s as a result of the economic and political difficulties experienced by many sub-Saharan African countries. Recent economic difficulties in much of sub-Saharan Africa have meant that per-student expenditure has dropped, contributing to a marked deterioration in academic standards. Enrollment growth has also slowed.
Expansion is also a hallmark elsewhere in the non-Western countries. The situation is complex. In some countries, including the larger Latin American nations, the Philippines, and some others, enrollment rates have reached 30 percent or more. In most of the low-income nations, however, enrollments lag far behind. However, growth continues to be rapid in much of the Third World, with accompanying strains on budgets and facilities - and deterioration in standards. Expansion in the Third World has, in general, exceeded that in the industrialized nations, at least in proportional terms. It should be noted that there are significant variations among Third World nations - some countries maintain small and relatively elitist university systems, while others have expanded more rapidly. Among the highest rates of expansion, and now of participation, are in those newly industrialized countries such as South Korea and Taiwan.
There are many reasons for the expansion of higher education. A central cause has been the increasing complexity of modern societies and economies, which have demanded a more highly trained workforce. Almost without exception, postsecondary institutions have been called on to provide the required training. Indeed, training in many fields that had once been imparted on the job has become formalized in institutions of higher education. Whole new fields, such as computer science, have come into existence, and many of these rely on universities as a key source of research and training. Nations now developing scientific and industrial capacity, such as Korea and Taiwan, have depended on academic institutions to provide high-level training and research expertise to a greater extent than was the case during the first industrial revolution in Europe. Not only do academic institutions provide training, they also test and provide certification for many roles and occupations in contemporary society. These roles have been central to universities from their origins in the medieval period, but have been vastly expanded in recent years. A university degree is a prerequisite for an increasing number of occupations in most societies. Indeed, it is fair to say that academic certification is necessary for most positions of power, authority, and prestige in modern societies. This places immense power in the hands of universities. Tests to gain admission to higher education are rites of passage in many societies and are important determinants of future success. Competition within academe varies from country to country, but in most cases an emphasis is also placed on high academic performance and tests in the universities. There are often further examinations to permit entry into specific professions. The role of the university as an examining body has grown for a number of reasons. As expansion has taken place, it has been necessary to provide ever more competitive sorting mechanisms to control access to high-prestige occupations. The universities are also seen as meritocratic institutions that can be trusted to provide fair and impartial tests to measure accomplishment honestly and, therefore, determine access. When such mechanisms break down - as they did in China during the Cultural Revolution - or where they are perceived to be subject to corrupt influences - as in India - the universities are significantly weakened. The older, more informal, and often more ascriptive means of controlling access to prestigious occupations are no longer able to provide the controls needed, nor are they perceived as fair. Entirely new fields have developed where no sorting mechanisms existed, and academic institutions have frequently been called upon to provide not only training but also examination and certification. Expansion has also occurred because the growing segments of the population of modern societies demand it. The middle classes, seeing that academic qualifications are necessary for success, demand access to higher education. Governments generally respond by increasing enrollment. When governments do not move quickly enough, private initiatives frequently establish academic institutions in order to meet the demand. In countries like India, the Philippines, and Bangladesh, a majority of the students are educated in private colleges and universities. At present, there are powerful worldwide trends toward: (1) imposing user fees in the form of higher tuition charges, (2) increasingly stressing private higher education, and (3) defining education as a "private good" in economic terms. These changes are intended to reduce the cost of postsecondary education for governments, while maintaining access - although the long-term implications for the quality of, access to, and control over higher education remain unclear. In most countries, higher education is heavily subsidized by the government, and most, if not all, academic institutions are in the public sector. While there is a growing trend toward private initiative and management sharing responsibility for education with public institutions, governments will likely continue to be central to funding postsecondary education, although the private sector is currently the major source of growth worldwide. The dramatic expansion of academic institutions in the postwar period has proved very expensive for governments and has led to a diversification of funding sources. Nonetheless, the demand for access has been an extraordinarily powerful one.
China
In 2002, there were slightly over 2000 higher education institutions in PRC. Close to 1400 were regular higher education institutions (HEIs). A little more than 600 were higher education institutions for adults. Combined enrollment in 2002 was 11,256,800. Of this close to 40 percent were new recruits. Total graduate student enrolment was 501,000.
In 2005, there were about 4,000 Chinese institutions. Student enrollment increased to 15 million, with rapid growth that is expected to peak in 2008. However, the higher education system does not meet the needs of 85 percent of the college-aged population.
Since 1998, 10 universities have been targeted by the Chinese government to become “world-class” - including Peking and Tsinghua Universities. To achieve that goal, the government promised to increase the educational allocation in the national budget by 1 percent a year for each of the five years following 1998. When Chinese president Jiang Zemin attended the hundredth anniversary ceremony at Beijing University in 1998 and the ninetieth anniversary ceremony at Tsinghua University in 2001, he emphasized this ambitious goal of advancing several of China's higher education institutions into the top tier of universities worldwide in the next several decades. In the meantime, China has received educational aid from UNESCO and many other international organizations and sources, including the World Bank, which recently loaned China $14.7 billion for educational development. Since 2007, China has become the sixth largest country in hosting international students. The top ten countries with students studying in China include: Korea, Japan, USA, Vietnam, Thailand, Russia, India, Indonesia, France and Pakistan. The total number of international students studying in China often range around two hundred thousands.
Only 30 percent of faculty hold postgraduate degrees. This is a consequence of the lack of an academic degree system in China until the 1980s. Recently, internationally-trained scholars have entered the faculty with the goals of both improving quality and strengthening ties to other institutions around the world. The state recognizes the need for more home-grown professors. In Spring 2007 China will conduct a national evaluation of its universities. The results of this evaluation will be used to support the next major planned policy initiative. The last substantial national evaluation of universities was in 1994. This evaluation resulted in the 'massification' of higher ecucation as well as a renewed emphasis on elite institutions.