Advertisement

Higher Education Policy

, Volume 27, Issue 2, pp 239–257 | Cite as

Democratizing Higher Education and Access to Science: The Portuguese Reform 2006–2010

  • Manuel Heitor
  • Hugo Horta
Article
First Online:

Abstract

The democratization of higher education through strategically driven science policies and higher education reforms is documented in this paper. These represent complementary policy actions oriented towards strengthening social, cultural and economic dimensions that allow higher education institutions (HEIs) to grow and to train graduates able to adapt to increasingly uncertain job markets. Drawing from the main achievements in Portugal during the period 2006–2010, our central argument focuses on the need to open higher education to all as a means to sustain a strong and specialized knowledge base. The results are related to the role of HEIs in fostering socially robust knowledge and supplying talented people and researchers to society in globalized socio-economic contexts.

Keywords

access strengthening academic research autonomy diversity public policy 
This is a preview of subscription content, log in to check access.

References

  1. Amaral, A. and Magalhães, A. (2008) ‘Market Competition, Social Accountability and Institutional Strategies’, in A. Vaccaro, H. Horta and P. Madsen (eds.) Transparency, Information and Communication Technology — Social Responsibility in Business and Education, Charlottesville: Philosophy Documentation Center, pp 205–226.Google Scholar
  2. Barr, N. (2004) ‘Higher education funding’, Oxford Review of Economic Policy 20 (2): 264–283.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  3. Barr, N. (2009) Financing tertiary education for quality and access. Paper presented at the Student Loans for Promoting Access, Quality and Mobility in EU Education and Training Conference; 22–23 January, Luxembourg.Google Scholar
  4. Barnett, R. (2000) ‘University knowledge in an age of supercomplexity’, Higher Education 40 (4): 409–422.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  5. Barnett, R. (2003) Beyond All Reason: Living With Ideology in the University, Buckingham: SRHE.Google Scholar
  6. Bhandari, R. and Blumenthal, P. (2011) International Students and Global Mobility in Higher Education: National Trends and New Directions, Houndmills, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  7. Conceição, P. and Heitor, M.V. (1999) ‘On the role of the university in the knowledge economy’, Science and Public Policy 26 (1): 37–51.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  8. Costa, A.F., Caetano, A., Martins, S.C. and Mauritti, R. (2009) Estudantes do Ensino Superior e Empréstimos com Garantia Mútua, report commissioned by SPGM — Sociedade Portuguesa de Garantia Mútua, Lisbon: CIES.Google Scholar
  9. Damian, G.C. and Danciu, A. (2011) ‘National and regional competitiveness in the crisis context’, Theoretical and Applied Economics 11 (564): 67–78.Google Scholar
  10. Delicado, A. (2009) ‘Scientific controversies in museums: notes from a semi-peripheral country’, Public Understanding of Science 18 (6): 759–767.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  11. Enders, J. and De Boer, H. (2009) ‘The Mission Impossible of the European University: Institutional Confusion and Institutional Diversity’, in A. Amaral, G. Neave, C. Musselin and P. Maassen (eds.) European Integration and the Governance of Higher Education and Research, Higher Education Dynamics, Dordrecht: Springer, Vol. 26, pp 159–178.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  12. Estermann, T., Nokkala, T. and Steinel, M. (2011) University Autonomy in Europe II — The Scorecard, Brussels: European University Association.Google Scholar
  13. European Commission (2011) Progress towards the Common European Objectives in Education and Training (2010/2011) — Indicators and Benchmarks, Brussels: European Commission.Google Scholar
  14. Gago, J.M. and Heitor, M. (2007) ‘A Commitment to Science for the Future of Portugal’, in J.M. Gago (ed.) The Future of Science and Technology in Europe, Lisbon: Portuguese Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education, pp 403–416.Google Scholar
  15. Goetz, S.J. and Rupasingha, A. (2003) ‘The returns on higher education: estimates for the 48 contiguous states’, Economic Development Quarterly 17 (4): 337–351.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  16. GPEARI (2011a) Fluxo de Doutorados, Observatory for Science, Technology and Qualifications, Lisbon: GPEARI.Google Scholar
  17. GPEARI (2011b) Produção científica Portuguesa, 1990–2010: Séries Estatísticas, Lisbon: GPEARI.Google Scholar
  18. Hasan, A. (2007) Independent Legal Status and Universities as Foundations, Lisbon: Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education.Google Scholar
  19. Heitor M. and Horta H. (2011) ‘Science and Technology in Portugal: From Late Awakening to the Challenge of Knowledge Integrated Communities’, in G. Neave and A. Amaral (eds.) Higher Education in Portugal 1974–2009: A Nation, A Generation, Dordrecht: Springer, pp 179–226.Google Scholar
  20. Heitor, M.V., Horta, H. and Mendonça, J. (2013) ‘Developing human capital and research capacity: science policies promoting brain gain’, Technological Forecasting and Social Change. Accepted for publication.Google Scholar
  21. Horta, H. (2010) ‘The role of the state in the internationalization of universities in catching-up countries: an analysis of the Portuguese higher education system’, Higher Education Policy 23 (1): 63–81.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  22. Huisman, J. (2009) ‘Coming to Terms with Governance in Higher Education’, in J. Huisman (ed.) International Perspectives on the Governance of Higher Education — Alternative Frameworks for Coordination, New York: Routledge, pp 1–9.Google Scholar
  23. Kim, R.B. (2008) ‘Transformation of an emerging economy to a knowledge-based economy — Korean case’, Global Business Review 9 (1): 159–156.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  24. Leišytė, L. (2011) ‘University commercialization policies and their implementation in the Netherlands and the United States’, Science and Public Policy 38 (6): 437–448.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  25. Lieberwitz, R.L. (2005) ‘Confronting the privatization and commercialization of academic research: an analysis of social implications at the local, national, and global levels’, Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies 12 (1): 109–152.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  26. Marginson, S. (2011) ‘Higher education and public good’, Higher Education Quarterly 65 (4): 411–433.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  27. MCTES (2011) Science, Technology and Tertiary Education in Portugal, Report to the OECD, Lisbon: Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education.Google Scholar
  28. Melguizo, T. and Strober, M.H. (2007) ‘Faculty salaries and the maximization of prestige’, Research in Higher Education 48 (6): 633–668.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  29. Moses, I. (1986) ‘Promotion of academic staff’, Higher Education 15 (1–2): 135–149.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  30. Neave, G. and Amaral, A. (eds.) (2012) Higher Education in Portugal 1974–2004, Dordrecht: Springer.Google Scholar
  31. OECD (2010) OECD Economic Surveys: Portugal 2010, Paris: OECD.Google Scholar
  32. Papayannakis, L., Kastelli, I., Damigos, D. and Mavrotas, G. (2008) ‘Fostering entrepreneurship education in engineering curricula in Greece. Experiences and challenges for a technical university’, European Journal of Engineering Education 33 (2): 199–210.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  33. Pfotenhauer, S.M., Jacobs, J.S., Pertuze, J.A., Newman, D.J. and Roos, D.T. (2013) ‘Seeding higher education reform through international university collaborations: a study of the MIT Portugal program’, Higher Education Policy 26 (2): 217–242.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  34. Sanyal, B.C. and Johnstone, D.B. (2011) ‘International trends in the public and private financing of higher education’, Prospects 41 (1): 157–175.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  35. Sin, C. (2012) ‘Loose policy and local adaptation: a comparative study of masters degrees in the context of the bologna process’, Ph.D. dissertation, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Lancaster University.Google Scholar
  36. Tolofari, S. (2005) ‘New public management and education’, Policy Futures in Education 3 (1): 75–89.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  37. UNESCO (2009) The Impact of the Global Financial and Economic Crisis on the Education Sector, Paris: UNESCO.Google Scholar
  38. Välimaa, J. and Hoffman, D. (2008) ‘Knowledge society discourse and higher education’, Higher Education 56 (3): 265–285.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  39. van Vught, F. (2008) ‘Mission diversity and reputation in higher education’, Higher Education Policy 21 (2): 151–174.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  40. Woodhall, M. (2007) Funding higher education: the contribution of economic thinking to debate and policy development, The World Bank, Education Working Paper Series 8, http://siteresources.worldbank.org/EDUCATION/Resources/278200-1099079877269/547664-1099079956815/Funding_HigherEd_wps8.pdf, accessed 16 April 2012.
  41. Zhang, L. (2009) ‘Does state funding affect graduation rates at public four-year colleges and universities?’, Educational Policy 23 (5): 714–731.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

Copyright information

© International Association of Universities 2013

Authors and Affiliations

  • Manuel Heitor
    • 1
  • Hugo Horta
    • 1
  1. 1.Center for Innovation, Technology and Policy Research, Instituto Superior Tecnico, Technical University of LisbonLisbonPortugal

Personalised recommendations

Cite article

Buy options