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This paper is a summary of my doctoral dissertation; it investigates the recent developments and reforms launched by Cameroon Higher Education policymakers to upgrade and align this sector to the needs of the country's socio-economic development and suggest strategies built from China's successful experience. This qualitative work was done in the broad discipline of comparative education and therefore compared and shared some best practices that China has accumulated in reforming its HE system. As a developing country assuming a different development model or certain independence from the Western model, China constitutes an example that can only inspire Cameroon differently. Considering this systemic difference with the West, including in its Higher Education (HE) system, the adoption of successful Chinese practices in this research provides new and original perspectives on HE. Findings from document analysis and participants' perceptions have shown in the study that Cameroonian authorities, in their recent HE policies have stressed on professionalization, curriculum reform, university entrepreneurship, and on university's third mission. On the Chinese side, strategies in reforming its HE sector were elaborated around prioritization of the HE sector development, a vigorously governmental promotion of the National System of Innovation (NSI), a strategic structuration and organization of the HE sector in poles for more efficient investment, the introduction of market model mechanisms in resources distribution, management, and a permanent effort to align HE to the national development strategies and needs. Among the strategies suggested for Cameroon, this research has insisted on strengthening the NSI, strategic restructuring of HE in poles, the development of public vocational and technological HEIs, and a substantial financial allocation based on market-type mechanisms.

The global landscape of higher education is an uneven field where players like nation-states are placed in hierarchical and centre-periphery relations. This paper focuses on the global field of international student mobility (ISM) and investigates China's place in the field using an analytical framework consisting of three key categories of 'capital': "economic," "human," and "symbolic." Drawing on existing scholarship and author's first-hand ethnographic research, the paper examines the case of China as both a source and a destination of ISM, and analyses the flows and accrual of these three forms of capital as consequences of outbound and inbound student mobilities. Analyses show that in a global ISM field characterised by asymmetries and inequalities, China's place is arguably "semi-peripheral" economically and symbolically. It is argued that this country-focused macro perspective complements existing ISM scholarship's emphasis on social reproduction at individual and private levels.

This conceptual and descriptive study examines the critical issues, challenges and priorities for European higher education (HE) leaders, drawing upon the theory, practice and experience of leaders inside and outside the open and distance learning (ODL) field. Focussing on the emerging vantage points of the 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR), global trends and the post-pandemic HE landscape, the article discusses their impact on organisational architecture and the emerging leadership roles for driving organisational values, change and sustainability. The authors argue that to maintain institutional stability and agility, leaders must interpret the current zeitgeist to set priorities, build decision-action packages and embrace a new organisational architecture: one characterised by flexible structures, a clear vision of the desired future, a culture of trust and openness, a comprehensive and deep understanding and optimum application of employee skill and talent, and the effective implementation of digital tools and curriculum structures in pedagogically meaningful ways. Leaders must be adaptable, agile and innovative, with the capacity to understand, identify and support the forms of leadership appropriate to their strategic objectives and institutional culture. The paper concludes by targeting critical priorities and actions that leaders must navigate to create innovative and dynamic futures for their institutions.

For-profit, post-secondary institutions significantly increased in numbers within the last two decades. In the United States, many for-profit colleges and universities offer distance-learning-based and self-paced-based academic and vocational programs from certificate to doctoral degree level to non-traditional, returning, evening and adult students who cannot enrol at one of the on-campus, day-time programs for traditionally-aged and full-time students. A large number of for-profit colleges and universities employ different strategies to maintain effective numbers of student enrolment and collect enough budget for financial health. This literature paper explains the overview of for-profit colleges and universities in the United States including donation and income sources, enrolment management, employment management and customer-oriented service with the question of how for-profit colleges and universities can survive in the current, rapidly changing environment containing many different competitors. The literature review also provides a brief section about how nursing programs at the for-profit colleges and universities continue their operation in the current financial and educational environment.

The aim of this paper is to explore the influence of strategic planning in improving the quality of education. The quality of education is directly linked to the effort expended in making arrangements or preparations of educational objectives and determining the requisite resources to facilitate the training, instruction or study that leads to the acquisition of skills or knowledge. Education at secondary sector is of particular importance because it seeks to augment the general intellectual skills acquired at primary level, which are also relevant to any productive occupation including subsequent education. In Kenya, the Decentralized Education Management Activity initiated by the Ministry of Education in 2012 in partnership with USAID embarked on capacity development among education managers at the district and school level to enable them prepare and implement strategic plans. This notwithstanding, education at secondary level continues to experience unique challenges which are more often attributed to deficiencies in planning. Lack of emphasis on careful planning and implementation of plans could have implications for institutions in the current competitive environment. This paper is based on literature search on educational administrators' perceptions of strategic plans, formulation, implementation and their effects on the quality of education. From literature, the vital role of strategic planning in enhancing quality of education is underscored; evidently, some schools have strategic plans in spite of the constraints in their formulation. Strategic planning is viewed as a tool that enables stakeholders to increasingly contribute to the school's strategic objectives which result in long-term sustainability and improvement in quality of education.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to provide a decision support model for optimizing the composition of portfolios of market-driven academic programs, primarily in schools offering market-driven academic programs. This model seeks to maximize financial performance during a desired planning time period while also achieving targets for other non-financial dimensions of the portfolio (e.g. mission alignment, student demographics and faculty characteristics) by deciding the types of programs to be added, redesigned and/or removed for each year of the planning period. Design/methodology/approach: This paper introduces an integer linear program (i.e. mathematical optimization) to describe the portfolio optimization problem. Integer linear programs are widely used for optimizing portfolios of financial and non-financial products and services in non-educational settings. Additionally, in order to use an integer linear program for the model, qualitative data must be incorporated into the quantitative model. To do so, this paper first discusses two methods of quantifying qualitative information related to market-driven program dimensions in the following section. Findings: The paper provides empirical insights related to the impact of this model through an illustrative case from a school offering market-driven academic programs at a prestigious private university in the USA. The results of the case highlight the potential positive impact of utilizing a similar model for planning purposes. Financially, the model results in almost double financial surplus than without the model while also achieving higher scores for all non-financial dimensions measured for the portfolio analyzed. Originality/value: This paper provides a unique and impactful model for decision support in strategic planning for market-driven academic programs, an area of intense discussion and focus in higher education today.

Aim/Purpose: ICT integration into classroom pedagogical practices is considered an essential aspect of learning processes in developed countries but there are issues in developing countries regarding funding, infrastructure, access, and teacher skills and professional learning. This article presents some aspects of the findings of a study in one remote region within a developing country after the implementation of a wide-scale ICT initiative. This study investigates issues for implementing ICT in schools in relation to teacher and school leader attitudes, access and ICT use, and improvements needed in Papua which is one of the most remote regions of Indonesia. The paper frames these issues within the context of successful online learning initiatives in developing countries and foreign aid implementation literature, with these aspects being under-researched, especially in significantly remote developing country locations. Background: Developing countries like Indonesia have progressively introduced online learning into school management and classrooms within government planning frameworks and with initial support from foreign aid providers. While there is research available regarding ICT implementation in more urbanized contexts within developing countries, there is a gap in terms of large-scale research which is focused on more remote regions and is supported by foreign aid. Methodology: Mixed methods including surveys and interviews were used to investigate research questions concerning teachers' and principals' attitudes, ICT access and use, and perceptions about improvements needed. SPSS software was used for surveys and descriptive analysis, and interviews were analysed through manual coding processes. Contribution: ICT access and e-learning in schools are increasingly becoming relevant in developing country contexts, and this research paper is a preliminary large-scale study that makes a contribution through highlighting issues experienced in more remote locations. This includes specific internet and power issues and transport inaccessibility problems, which highlight the need for locally-based and ongoing coaching of teachers within schools and regions. The paper also draws on the literature about online learning in developing countries and foreign aid towards some possible success directions in isolated contexts, an under-researched area. The importance of education systems establishing ICT skills levels for students integrated across subjects, for well-coordinated planning involving partnerships with hardware and internet providers, as well as the need for school leaders being trained in establishing teacher peer support groups for ongoing coaching, are learnings for Papua and other remote locations from the comparative developing countries literature Findings: The findings highlight teachers' and school leaders' positive attitudes to ICT in education, although the results indicate that ICT was frequently applied for administrative purposes rather than for teaching and learning. Principals and teachers highlighted some improvements that were needed including systematic training in computer skills and professional learning about the integration of ICT with teaching and learning, especially in relation to pedagogical practices, as well as the need for improved infrastructure and equipment. Recommendations for Practitioners: The study highlights issues and potential success factors as evident in remote regions of developing countries that have achieved recognition for wide-scale ICT implementation in schools. This includes issues in relation to policy makers and education authorities working with foreign aid funders. Of significant importance is the need for coordinated and collaborative strategic planning including in relation to sustained professional learning towards student-oriented ICT pedagogies and skilling principals to establish a positive culture and teacher peer coaching. Particularly relevant to developing countries in remote locations is the importance of additionally addressing specific infrastructure and maintenance issues. Recommendations for Researchers: Regarding ICT and its use for student learning, more research is needed in developing countries and, in particular, in more remote locations where specific issues, differing from those encountered in capital cities, may be evident for teachers and principals. Impact on Society: Teachers and principals in remote locations of Indonesia such as Papua have generally positive attitudes about the benefits of online learning but need greater ICT access for students in the classroom and also professional development regarding pedagogical practices to support students in learning effectively through online processes. Future Research: Updated and more detailed comparative research with other developing countries, especially those with remote locations, would be beneficial to more comprehensively identify Papua's current stage of development and to design appropriate future interventions.

This paper elaborates on innovations which have been effected in universities in Nigeria, using a somewhat young university as a paradigm. The innovations discussed include private ownership of universities, innovative funding strategies and innovative quality assurance practices. These include innovative planning (strategic planning); innovative programme contents; innovations in human and material resources development; innovative admission procedures; innovative carrying-capacity regulations; and innovative programme appraisal procedures and standards. The paper concludes by maintaining that innovation augurs well by improving programme standards and quality of products.

Purpose: The working hypothesis of the paper is that modern universities are peculiar for low sustainability to the changes of external environment due to low effectiveness of applied approaches to the diversification of their activities. The purpose of this paper is to verify the offered hypothesis by the example of modern Russia and develop an innovational approach to the diversification of modern university's activities on the basis of remote education, which has to expand the possibilities of modern universities in the sphere of diversification of their activities. Design/methodology/approach: This research is based on the hypothetical and deductive principles with application of the method of trend analysis, which allows studying dynamics of the number of universities in modern Russia; method of classification, which allows distinguishing the main approaches to the diversification of modern university's activities; method of comparative analysis, which allows comparing these approaches and determining their advantages and drawbacks; method of statistical analysis, which allows evaluating the effectiveness of these approaches; method of analysis of causal connections, which allows determining the logic of this innovational approach to the diversification of modern university's activities and determining its advantages as compared to existing approaches; method of modeling the state and development of socio-economic systems. The information and evidential basis of the research are statistical materials of the Federal State Statistics Service and the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation. The research covers the time interval of 2005/2006-2016/2017. Findings: It is substantiated that remote education opens additional possibilities in the sphere of diversification of modern university's activities. The developed and presented innovational approach to the diversification of modern university's activities on the basis of remote education is peculiar for higher effectiveness -- as compared to the existing approaches -- due to such advantages of remote education as minimum expenditures of labor and financial resources, potential large volume of market and obtaining advantages from "scale effect." Originality/value: The unique peculiarity and originality of the offered approach consist in the fact that remote education, which is a direction of diversification of university's activities, is not an alternative but addition to the main educational services that are provided in the traditional form. Due to this, university enters a new market segment and strengthens its positions in the current market segment, which doubles its effect by increasing the sustainability of market positions of university.

Using the stories of two autonomous public schools in Australia, this paper demonstrates how commercialisation can simultaneously position schools as both consumer and for-profit producer. Drawing on Foucault's articulation of discourse as that which constitutes and makes available what is possible to be said, done and imagined, the paper illustrates how the current marketised articulation of education is allowing for new possibilities of commercialisation in schools. Together these stories demonstrate that there are creative ways that these schools have embraced their autonomy, while relying on market solutions to acquire the resources they deem necessary for their students and their communities. However, it also shows how these resources and the attainment for them are inextricably constituted by the market orientation of education more broadly and how this presents potential dangers for what schools may be and become as a result.

The higher education context that our CUMU institutions must navigate is complex and begets challenges resulting from the distinct mission our institutions seek to uphold. The implications of these challenges give rise to impacts on everyone within the institution and consequently our constituents within the cities we seek to serve. Bringing together literature, emerging research, and points from discussions at the 2016 CUMU conference, this paper analyzes challenges and their implications and highlights the strategies being employed to navigate them. We consider the tensions inherent in the urban-serving university's identity, the cost of serving urban regions, and the state structures that provide funding. All of these tensions have implications for commitment to mission, access for historically marginalized students, and the experiences of faculty within the institution. We also discuss strategic initiatives and efforts that reflect collaboration, strategic alignment, and innovation. This work is of value for those working within urban-serving universities, those who work to uphold their mission in higher education, and policy makers that shape the context of these institutions' work.

Purpose: Modernization of Russian higher education is carried out with the purpose of its successful integration into the global educational environment. However, the contemporary management model of most Russian universities demonstrates a low efficiency level. The purpose of this paper is to identify the problems of organizing the universities' strategic development and to seek the opportunities to achieve strategic competitiveness of Russian universities. Design/methodology/approach: The basic research methods included the following: content analysis, expert evaluations, analysis of the modern concepts of universities strategic management, comparative analysis of high school practice of strategy development, and government regulations in historical perspective. Findings: The major result of the study is the conclusion that the most important problem of the competitiveness of Russian universities is the lack of strategic flexibility. We can say that there is a structural nature of the management crisis affecting the whole system of university education. Over the past 25 years, there has been a radical change in the basic institutional conditions for the development of higher education institutions in Russia: the volumes and changed model of financing; the market landscape and the regional environment; the conditions and the nature of the interaction with international partners, etc. At the same time, in most cases, the platform of this system and standards of internal policy have remained unchanged. Russian education practically lost its individuality. This paper shows the experience of strategic management at leading federal and regional universities of Russia, analyzes the implementation of their development programs, and gives examples of best practices in the use of strategic planning tools. Originality/value: The relevance and value of the paper is the following: for the first time, thorough attention has been paid to the accumulated potential of Russian universities, which has been formed over a long evolutionary path and now can be positioned as an important management resource in the organization of strategic management for enhancing the global competitiveness of the national system of higher education.

Purpose: Much justification for third sector involvement in education advances from the notion that attributes from business and non-profit fields could benefit state-run public schools. The purpose of this paper is to explore this issue by examining theoretical underpinnings and expectations for third sector participation in public education systems, particularly with respect to educational innovations and improvements, and the structural opportunities, incentives, and impediments for such innovation. Design/methodology/approach: The question is how third sector participation shapes the rate, nature, and types of innovations in education as schools interact in response to competitive pressures. This conceptual analysis of the third sector examines the political-economic features and structures of the sector in fostering innovation, with reference to the US sector that was specifically positioned to enhance the innovative capacity of publicly funded education. Findings: The analysis indicates that educational innovations are not necessarily more prevalent in or because of the third sector, and that there are obstacles to their creation and diffusion. Moreover, schools often respond to competitive incentives in ways unanticipated by policymakers, such as school marketing rather than instructional improvement, sometimes in ways detrimental to goals set out for public education, such as social sorting. In fact, instead of the third sector simply developing or incentivizing innovations, there is evidence that this sector has adopted innovations developed in the state sector. Originality/value: The analysis suggests that a third sector based more on a professional, as opposed to a competitive, model may better facilitate the development of innovative capacity in education.

Declining state revenue, increased expenditures and rising costs at public universities are critical issues that are further heightened by the current economic environment. In an effort to address the challenges associated with reduced revenue and rising costs, this theoretical paper will explore how public institutions can leverage the resource dependency theory framework for strategy formulation and increased resource capacity. The organization of the paper begins with an introduction that sets forth the topic parameters and rationale of the paper. This is followed by a literature review that provides an overview of pertinent fiscal issues and strategies that were designed to mitigate these issues in public higher education. The authors then introduce the resource dependency theory and its linkage to public higher education based upon an understanding of the institution's interdependence with the external environment. Based upon the resource dependency theory, the authors discuss strategies that can garner greater resources and serve as a guide for university administrators and leaders during strategic planning efforts.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore how universities attempt to balance meeting their traditional mission of education, research and community engagement while remaining economically sustainable. Design/Methodology/Approach: A survey was conducted in 2014 of university executives and found that universities in Australia are rapidly transitioning from public supported institutions to an organizational form much more like social enterprise, with all of the organizational, marketing and ethical ramifications. Findings: Australian universities were found to be focused on maintaining financial viability and that the most significant source of future revenue for Australian universities is perceived to be from international students. Originality/Value: The findings have tremendous public policy and ethical implications--suggesting a shift in the classification of university education from what was generally considered a public good to what is increasingly perceived as a private good in the contemporary market place, with the increasing importance of international students.

Universities are currently under considerable pressure to reach their stakeholders' expectations. Management tools that use strategic plans, key performance indicators and quality assurance methods are increasingly deployed. This paper aims to demonstrate how resource allocation can be aligned with institutional strategic plans with a very simple multi-objective optimisation method. The method has been tested and successfully implemented at the Université Libre de Bruxelles. It has been designed for a certain specific context (public university with human resources managed at the institutional level) but could be easily adapted for other contexts.

States have adopted a variety of policies to encourage universities to expand research production, with the hope of supporting economic growth and competitiveness. This paper considers whether a state-level initiative succeeded in influencing university-based research outputs among regional public universities. We test whether the Texas Research Incentive Program increased research production at a set of state universities as measured by total research spending, federally-funded research spending, the number of scholarly publications, and the share of publications published in high impact factor journals. Using a novel dataset and difference-in-differences analytic strategy, we found that TRIP adoption was associated with a 19%-25% increase in research expenditures at emerging research universities in Texas relative to a matched set of comparable universities. However, TRIP did not influence federally-funded research expenditures or journal publication outputs. We also show that federally-funded research expenditures influence publication outputs — both in amount and quality — and that number of full-time faculty influences both federal research expenditures and publication outputs. We discuss contributions to the literature on regional public universities, loose coupling, and research production, as well as implications for policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many changes in Israeli higher education have occurred during the last two decades as the country evolved from having less than 20 higher education institutions to having more than 65 institutions. The number of students has risen from about 100,000 to more than 250,000. From a semi-monolithic system that consisted mainly of research universities, the Israeli higher education system developed into a two-tier system. In spite of these dramatic changes, still more than half of the relevant age group cannot pass the academic requirements for admission to higher education. A vibrant academic system should cope with social and economic changes alongside academic issues. This paper analyses the current higher education system in Israel and its historical background. It analyses the main factors that brought structural changes in recent years and outlines the weaknesses of the current system. Finally, it contextualizes the existing educational funding formula and focuses on various socioeconomic indicators that may be combined into a new funding model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research Summary: We postulate that resource allocation decisions consistent with dynamic capabilities can improve financial performance, but that governance moderates the relationship between resource allocation flexibility and financial performance. Using more than a decade of data on US public universities, we find that flexibility has much more impact when matched by lower levels of governance that allow greater expenditure autonomy for university executives and administrators. Managerial Summary: Organizations are increasingly subject to conflicting demands imposed by their institutional environments. Given the importance of governance arrangements, we apply strategic management concepts to public universities and investigate the effect of external governance arrangements on university performance. We show that universities that reallocate resources more regularly are more likely to run larger budget surpluses. This is far more likely to be true at universities where external governance arrangements allow greater executive discretion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]