Policy and Politics of Higher Education

Manchmal ist der Abstand zwischen Wissenschafts-und Wirtschaftslobby gar nicht groß. Knapp zwei Schritte sind es, von Tür zu Tür, auf einem Bürokorridor in der Brüsseler Rue du Commerce 31, zwischen Max-Planck-Gesellschaft und dem Bundesverband der Deutschen Industrie (BDI). Auch Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft und Leibniz-Gemeinschaft sowie zwei andere Forschungsgesellschaften sitzen unter diesem Dach -zusammen mit zwei Dutzend Wirtschaftsverbänden im Haus der "German Business Representation". Nicht nur in der gemeinsamen Kaffeeküche kommen sich Wissenschafts-und Wirtschaftslobbyisten näher -auch bei Technologie-, Forschungs-und Bildungspolitik kiebitzt man bei den Kollegen. So wie sich Strukturen und Management von Wissenschaftseinrichtungen Unternehmen angenähert haben, so beginnt sich auch ihre Interessenvertretung an der Praxis der Wirtschaft zu orientieren.

Intergovernmental regional cooperation is one of the defining characteristics of political Europe. This article investigates it in the area of higher education and research. Specifically it explores what types of intergovernmental regional alliances exist and to what extent their member countries coordinate their higher education and research policies. The article focuses on six most prominent and most formalized intergovernmental regional alliances: the Benelux, Norden–The Nordic Cooperation, the Visegrád Group, the Franco-German Cooperation, the Western Balkans, and the Baltic Cooperation. There has been much research devoted to study of policy diffusion from the European to the national level, but the intergovernmental regional level has largely been ignored. This article argues that there clearly exists a multi-level governance system in the area of higher education and research, in which regional intergovernmental alliances also perform policy coordination. Therefore, the politics of European higher education policy-making cannot be fully understood by ignoring intergovernmental regional cooperation.

Abstract: This comparative study of two cases draws upon alternative theories of policy change to explore the dynamics of tuition policy formation in Canada. The research examined five key dimensions in the policy episodes: (a) goals of policy change, (b) the politics of policy formation, (c) policy coalitions and their stability over time, (d) influence of elected officials and
non-elected policy actors, and (e) the effects of environmental conditions such as changing public opinion, change in government, and provincial fiscal climate. Analysis revealed important agenda-setting activities, as well as insights into how policy coalitions influence decision-making in this policy arena.

Using two conceptual frameworks from political science—Kingdon’s (2003) multiple streams model and the advocacy coalition framework (Sabatier & Jenkins-Smith, 1993)—this case study examines the detailed history of a major tuition policy change in Ontario in 2004: a tuition freeze. The paper explores
the social, political, and economic factors that influenced policymakers on this particular change, to shed light on the broader questions of the dynamics of postsecondary policymaking. The study found that the Liberal Party’s
decision to freeze postsecondary tuition fees was a function of stakeholder relations, public opinion, and brokerage politics, designed for electoral success. The policy implementation strategy was intended to facilitate the cooperation and interests of the major institutions; within the broader policy community,
student-organized interest groups and other policy advocates were aligned in a policy preference, a critical component for successful change.

Given the impacts of policy-making in higher education and the need for improved data to support empirical research and theorizing in comparative public policy research in Canada in higher education, the research questions posed in this paper are: What are the tuition policy choices of Canadian political parties?  What is the general affect of political ideology of governing parties on tuition policy choice? What patterns and relationships can be observed through this preliminary comparative analysis of these policies across provincial jurisdictions?  This paper provides a modest but important empirical contribution to further scholarship in Canada through description of provincial government approaches to regulating tuition fees in Canada.

At least three insights arising from the analysis. First, Canadian tuition policy can be characterized as highly regulated. Second, national political parties show little consistency in policy positions over time, suggesting that partisan commitments to tuition policy are not simply explained either by party preferences or by ideological orientation. Third, unexpected results suggest that electoral or opportunistic dynamics are informing these policy outcomes.