International Organizations and Higher Education Policy: Thinking Globally, Acting Locally?

Higher Education operates in an increasingly global context, and yet the examination of what drives and moves the field has remained largely focused on domestic campus leaders, national governments and institutional actors. International Organizations and Higher Education Policy expands the analysis to include the global drivers behind higher education policy, including a full array of influential organizations such as the World Bank, UNESCO, OECD, WTO, bilateral aid agencies and major private foundations. The significance of these organizations is especially pronounced in the developing world, where the expansion of higher education is happening in conjunction with the broadening influence of globalization.

International Organizations and Higher Education Policy critically analyses the impact that these influential organizations have at different levels of policy development and implementation around the world. It examines their role in higher education institutions, examines the strength of these relationships, and exposes both the positive and negative implications.

This edited volume is composed of scholars and members of these organizations from around the world. They address:





How international organizations represent the interests of the developed world and subsequently have an impact on the developing world.

How these organizations drive and shape the global agenda for higher education

How higher education as an international industry is subject to a myriad of influences, from the international to the regional level

What ethical issues emerge when international organizations intervene in national policy-making processes.

Roberta Malee Bassett is currently serving as a higher education specialist with the World Bank, in Washington, DC.

Alma Maldonado-Maldonado is assistant professor at the Center for the Study of Higher Education at the University of Arizona.