The emergence of three university models : institutional and functional modifications in European higher education

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WORKING

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EUI Working Paper ECS No. 91/5

The Emergence of Three University Models.

Institutional and Functional Modifications

in European Higher Education

Claudius Gellert

European University Institute, Florence

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As from January 1990 the EUI Working Paper Series is

divided into six sub-series, each sub-series will be numbered

individually (e.g. EUI Working Paper LAW No 90/1).

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EUI Working Paper ECS No. 91/5

The Emergence of Three University Models.

Institutional and Functional M odifications

in European Higher Education

Cl a u d iu s Ge l l e r t

BADIA FIESOLANA, SAN DOMENICO (FI)

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European University Institute Badia Fiesolana 1-50016 San Domenico (FI)

Italy © The Author(s). European University Institute. version produced by the EUI Library in 2020. Available Open Access on Cadmus, European University Institute Research

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T his p a p e r is a n outcom e of th e project: The C han g in g F u n c tio n s o f th e E u ro p e a n U niversities

(Sponsored by th e T ask Force H u m a n R esources, E d u ca tio n , T raining a n d Y outh, C om m ission of th e E u ro p e a n

C om m unities) © The Author(s). European University Institute. version produced by the EUI Library in 2020. Available Open Access on Cadmus, European University Institute Research

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1. In tro d u c tio n ; E xpansion an d D iffe re n tia tio n 1

M ost E u ro p e a n co u n tries, like o th e r ad v an ced W estern societies, hav e se e n a n u n p re c e d e n te d e x p a n sio n of th e ir In stitu tio n s of h ig h e r e d u c a tio n over th e la s t q u a rte r of a century, a n d c o n tra ry to m a n y pred ictio n s, th is p ro ce ss of grow th h a s n o t y et sto p p e d in several system s. In m a n y of th e m th e n u m b e r of p o st-se c o n d a ry s tu d e n ts q u a d ru p le d over th a t period. S taff in u n iv e rsitie s a n d o th e r in stitu tio n s of h ig h e r ed u c atio n , a s well a s g o vernm ent fu n d s for te a c h in g a n d re se a rc h , in c re ase d a t a sim ilar ra te . New u n iv e rsitie s a n d o th e r form s of ad v an ced le arn in g w ere s e t u p . New disciplines or su b -d isc ip lin e s em erged. O u td ated s tr u c tu re s of in stitu tio n a l au th o rity a n d g overnm ent w ere being challenged. A dm ission to te rtia ry levels of ed u c a tio n a n d tra in in g in m o st n a tio n a l sy stem s ch a n g ed from a restrictiv e elite-m ode to varied p a tte r n s of m a s s h ig h e r e d u c a tio n .2

T his developm ent h a d b e e n in itiated o n th e b a s e of so u n d a n d ex p a n d in g n a tio n a l econom ies. D u rin g th e sixties a n d early seventies, m o s t W estern in d u s tria l sy stem s grew a t a ste a d y rate , th u s im proving th e n a tio n a l GNPs a s well a s th e overall s ta n d a r d of living, w hile th e r a te s of inflation a n d th e u n em p lo y m e n t figures rem a in e d a t a com fortably low level. U nder s u c h circ u m sta n c e s, early calls b y e d u c a tio n ists, rep re se n ta tiv e s from in d u strie s, a n d po litician s for a con sid erab le ex p a n sio n of ed u c atio n al o p p o rtu n itie s o n all levels, w ere soon tran sfo rm ed into n atio n al policy p ro g ra m m e s. The arg u m e n ta tio n u n d erly in g th e se initiatives re s te d o n two m a in political co n sid eratio n s. The first, th e so-called ’m a n p o w e r-req u irem en t a p p ro a c h ’, co n siste d in th e conviction of em ployers a n d p o liticians th a t th e n a tio n a l p o te n tia ls of highly qualified m an p o w er h a d to grow if th e respective co u n trie s w ere to com pete su c ce ssfu lly o n th e w orld m a rk e t in tim es of rapidly c h a n g in g technologies. The second concep tio n re la te d to overall e d u c a tio n a l a n d social aim s, a n d w as th u s te rm e d th e ’social d e m a n d a p p ro a c h ’. Its s u p p o rte rs m a in ta in e d th a t th e trad itio n al e d u c a tio n sy stem s prim arily served sm all societal elites, by being highly selective, a n d th a t large p ro p o rtio n s o f gifted ch ild ren never got a c h a n c e to develop th e ir ta le n ts. T h u s post-co m p u lso ry e d u c a tio n sh o u ld b e reg a rd e d a s a general civil right.

T hese goals w ere co n seq u e n tly im p lem en ted by m o st n a tio n a l g o vernm ents w ith th e help of th re e political m e a su re s in p a rtic u la r: first, th e a u th o ritie s engaged in long-term p ro p ag a n d a activities, in o rd er to en co u rag e ever-increasing p ro p o rtio n s of th e ’e d u c a tio n a l rese rv e’ to e n te r se co n d a ry a n d te rtia ry ed u catio n p ro g ram m es. S econd, th e y in tro d u c ed or im proved com prehensive sy ste m s of m e a n s-te ste d g ra n ts for p u p ils a s well s tu d e n ts . And finally, th e tra d itio n a l hom ogeneity of th e h ig h e r ed u catio n s tr u c tu r e s w as rep la ce d b y diversified in stitu tio n a l settings.

1 I w ish to th a n k M rs. D. D etrtng for h e r a s s is ta n c e in th e p ro ject w ork, from w h ic h th is p a p e r ste m s.

2 C. G ellert: T h e L im itatio n s of O pen A ccess to H igher E d u c a tio n in th e F ederal R epublic o f G erm an y ”, in: H igher E ducation Policy, vol. 2, no. 1 /1 9 8 9 , pp. 32-34.

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This p ro ce ss of differentiation, w h ich is still co n tin u in g , w as possibly th e biggest ch a n g e in h ig h e r e d u c a tio n sin c e th e In tro d u c tio n of th e re se a rc h fu n ctio n th ro u g h th e G erm a n u n iv e rsity m odel. In som e c o u n trie s 'first-tier colleges’ w ere ad d e d to co n ventional u n iv ersities, offering th e ir s tu d e n ts ’sh o rt-cy cle’ degrees. The m ajo rity of s ta te s how ever o pted for a different altern ativ e, w hich w as to be ad d e d to th e tra d itio n a l u n iv e rsity sector. T his new n o n -u n iv ersity m odel of h ig h e r e d u c a tio n (in th e following called th e ’n o n -u n iv ersity se c to r’: NUS) em erged a n d e s ta b lish e d itself a s a se p a ra te se g m en t w ith in th e h ig h e r ed u c a tio n system . In m o st n a tio n a l sy stem s it w as ch a ra c te riz e d by th re e aim s a n d p u rp o se s in p a rtic u la r: Its In stitu tio n s were su p p o se d to be p rac tica lly a n d vocationally oriented, th u s fulfilling th e n e e d s of th e econom y b e tte r th a n u n iv ersities; th e y w ere m e a n t to offer e d u c a tio n a l o p p o rtu n itie s to form erly d isa d v an tag ed social s tr a ta , th u s im proving eg a litarian ism a n d dem ocracy w ith in society; a n d finally th e y w ere expected to b e c h e a p e r th a n tra d itio n a l u n iv ersities, th u s su p p o rtin g n a tio n a l gov ern m en ts in th e ir d esire to ex p a n d th e ir sy stem s of ad v a n ce d learn in g . By th e e n d of th e sixties, m o st E u ro p e a n co u n trie s h a d e sta b lish e d s u c h NUS’s. A nd b y now th e y are generally accep ted a s p laying a m ajo r role w ith in th e n a tio n a l sy stem s of h ig h e r e d u c a tio n .3

T h u s, th e s tr u c tu ra l a n d fu n ctio n al ch a n g e s o cc u rrin g w ith in th e W e ste rn u n iv e rsity sy stem s have b e e n m anifold a n d co n sid erab le. However, m a n y of th e se ch an g es, p a rtic u la rly th o se of a qualitativ e k in d w h ich c a n n o t easily b e m e a su re d in n u m b e rs a n d p e rc e n ta g e s, hav e largely rem a in e d d u b io u s a n d opaque. For in sta n c e , m a n y d e b a te s ce n tre o n th e perceived th r e a t of th e u n iv e rsitie s b ecom ing prim arily te a c h in g in stitu tio n s, a n d th e n o tio n of th e m b ein g above all re s e a rc h c e n tre s is som etim es tre a te d alm o st like a sa c re d principle. A part from th e fact, how ever, w hich is easily forgotten, th a t th e E u ro p e a n u n iv e rsity initially a n d for m o st of its h isto ry h a s b e e n a p lace of tra in in g for p ra c tic a l p u rp o se s, a n d th a t th e re s e a rc h fu n ctio n in m a n y sy ste m s w as in tro d u c e d only a b o u t a c e n tu ry ago, th e scope a n d n a tu r e of th o se c h a n g es, o r th e ir im plicatio n s for th e overall fu n ctio n in g of h ig h e r ed u c a tio n is difficult to d eterm ine. A sim ilar s itu a tio n p revails w ith reg a rd to th e u n iv e rsitie s’ a n d o th e r te rtia ry in s titu tio n s ’ role of p ro fe ssio n a l train in g . T here ex ists g rea t u n c e rta in ty , w ith in a n d o u tsid e th e u n iv ersities, w h a t th is fu n ctio n is o r s h o u ld be, w h e th e r it is to follow th e ex p e ctatio n s of th e la b o u r-m a rk e t or not, o r w h a t th e s e ex p e ctatio n s are, for th a t m a tte r. B asic differences in th e p erc ep tio n of reality, a n d even m ore so in its e v a lu a tio n exist w ith in n a tio n a l sy stem s, a s well a s b etw een th e m . The sa m e ap p lies to th e fu n ctio n of p erso n a lity developm ent, w h ich is well acknow ledged in th e B ritish, p a rtic u la rly th e E n g lish sy stem , b u t h a rd ly co n sid ered in c o u n trie s like F ra n ce or Italy.

O f co u rse , it is n o t possible h e re to provide a n y definite a n s w e rs w ith reg a rd to th o se q u alitative c h a n g e s in E u ro p e a n h ig h e r ed u c atio n . The p u rp o se of th e p re s e n t c o n sid e ra tio n s is to 3 OECD: A ltern a tives to U niversities in H igher E ducation, P aris: OECD 1991 (in th e p ress). © The Author(s). European University Institute. version produced by the EUI Library in 2020. Available Open Access on Cadmus, European University Institute Research Repository.

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d eterm in e th e ex ten t of m ajo r s tr u c tu ra l differences in E u ro p e an h ig h e r e d u c a tio n a n d to an a ly se a n u m b e r of re c e n t developm ents w ith in th is In stitu tio n a l fram ew ork. F or th is, we sh a ll first briefly look a t som e m ajo r h isto ric al ro o ts of h ig h e r e d u c atio n s tru c tu re s. T his will, second, p u t u s in a b e tte r positio n to a tte m p t a classificatio n m odel of te rtia ry e d u c a tio n in E u ro p e for fu rth e r descriptive a n d an a ly tica l p u rp o se s.4 This will b e followed, th ird , b y som e th e o re tic al co n sid eratio n s of pro b lem s w h ich o cc u r in th e an a ly sis of p ro c e sse s of in stitu tio n a l diversification. Finally, a n d fo u rth , som e o f th e a c tu a l developm ents a n d m odifications w hich could b e observed in th e E u ro p e a n sy stem s of h ig h e r ed u c atio n will b e highlighted.

2 . H isto rica l D im en sio n s and Conceptuad T ransform ation s

A lthough th e E u ro p e a n u n iv e rsitie s since th e first fo u n d a tio n s of Bologna a n d P aris w ere for m o st of th e ir h isto ry in s titu tio n s of p ra c tic a l tra in in g a n d learn in g , th e y have u n d erg o n e m a jo r m odifications d u rin g th e la s t one a n d a h a lf c e n tu rie s w hich have c h a n g ed th e ir self-definition a n d publicly perceived p u rp o se s in fu n d a m e n ta l w ays. Above all, th e re se a rc h fu n ctio n h a s a s s u m e d a c e n tra l role. Therefore th is function, in o rd er to u n d e r s ta n d re c e n t a n d ongoing tra n sfo rm a tio n s of E u ro p e an p la ce s of h ig h e r learning, re q u ire s p a rtic u la r con sid eratio n . In th e following, we will briefly d escribe th e co n c ep tu al origins of th e re s e a rc h fu n ctio n in G erm any, w hich will th e n b e com pared w ith two m ajo r h isto ric a l m odifications of th a t m odel, th e E ng lish a n d th e A m erican ones. This does n o t m e a n to deny th a t th e F ren ch m odel w ith Its te n d en c y to w ard s in stitu tio n a l se p a ra tio n of r e s e a rc h a n d te a c h in g is ju s t a s parad ig m atically rele v an t a s th e following selection of u n iv e rsity sy stem s, a s will b e po in ted o u t later.

In th e G e rm a n -sp e ak in g rea lm of h igher e d u c atio n th ere h a s alw ays existed a tra d itio n of a fu n ctio n al u n ity of te ac h in g a n d re se a rc h , i.e. th e te ac h in g c o n te n ts w ere su p p o se d to b e a direct r e s u lt of th e pro fesso rs' rese arch . The concept of th e "unity of r e s e a rc h a n d teaching" m a y th u s b e d escribed a s th e norm ative e x p e ctatio n th a t th e pro fessio n al role of acad em ics sh o u ld be defined in s u c h a w ay th a t th e o cc u p atio n al a s p e c t of te ac h in g is closely in te rtw in ed w ith a n d directly b a s e d on th e ongoing pro cess of re s e a rc h of th e Individual academ ic. The idea, in its original form , n o t only m a in ta in s th a t u n iv e rsity te a c h e rs sh o u ld be involved in re s e a rc h a t all, b u t th a t th e specific in sig h ts a n d o u tc o m es of th e ir respective re se a rc h activities sh o u ld directly becom e th e s u b s ta n c e a n d c o n te n ts of th e ir teaching. W ithin th is tra d itio n o f th in k in g , th e q u estio n w h e th e r or n o t university te a c h e rs h a d to b e re se a rc h e rs w as n o t only to be com firm ed in g en eral te rm s (in th e se n se th a t a n y re se a rc h w ould do), b u t w ith a 4 Cf. C. G eliert: ’In s titu tio n s- u n d S tru k tu rfo rs c h u n g ü b e r d a s

H o c h sc h u lsy s te m ’, in: D. G o ld sc h m id t e t al. (eds.): F orschu n g sg eg en sta n d

H ochschule. Ü berblick u n d Trendbericht. F ra n k fu rt: C a m p u s 1984, p p. 217-231.

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stric t d e m a n d for Im m ediate u tilisa tio n of re s e a rc h re s u lts for te a c h in g p u rp o se s.

T his aim w as clearly fo rm u lated b y th e G erm a n p h ilo so p h e rs of Idealism a n d th e P ru s s ia n a d m in istra to rs w ho w ere resp o n sib le for th e fu n d a m e n ta l reform of th e u n iv e rsitie s in th e b eg in n in g of th e n in e te e n th c e n tu ry .5 For th em , th e tra in in g of s tu d e n ts to becom e civil se rv a n ts, te a c h e rs, doctors, etc., h a d to ta k e th e form of a seem ingly p u rp o se-fre e p ro ce ss of se a rc h in g for tr u th . This req u ired , o n th e one h a n d , a large degree of in d e p en d e n ce for th e u n iv e rsitie s from s ta te in te rfe re n ce .6 O n th e o th e r h a n d , it p re su p p o se d a n in te rn a l reo rg an iz atio n of u n iv e rsitie s in s u c h a w ay th a t s tu d e n ts a n d p ro fe sso rs could p u r s u e a n u n d e r s ta n d in g of "objective tru th s" in a com bined effort. W ilhelm von H u m boldt, w ho called th is aim B ildung durch

W isse n sc h a ft (ed u catio n th ro u g h academ ic know ledge)7, w as

convinced th a t th e tra d itio n a l re la tio n sh ip of a u th o rity b etw een p u p ils a n d te a c h e rs h a d to b e rep la ce d b y th e u n d ire c te d a n d free co o p eratio n b etw e en s tu d e n ts of different levels of know ledge: "Therefore th e u n iv e rsity te a c h e r is n o t a n y longer te a c h e r, th e s tu d e n t n o t a n y m ore j u s t learn in g , b u t th e la tte r re se a rc h e s h im self a n d th e p ro fe sso r only d irec ts a n d su p p o rts h is re se a rc h ."8 In c o n tra st, for in sta n c e , to E ngland, n o t th e s tu d e n t, b u t th e s u b je c t w as to receive p rim a ry a tte n tio n . As H um b o ld t p u t it: "The re la tio n sh ip b etw e en te a c h e r a n d s tu d e n t ... is changing. The form er does n o t exist for th e sa k e of th e la tte r. They a re b o th a t th e u n iv e rsity for th e sa k e of science a n d s c h o la rsh ip .”9

S ince th e se a rc h for tr u th w as n o t to b e re s tric te d b y c o n sid e ra tio n s of tim e, im m ediate o cc u p atio n al p u rp o s e s or s ta te control, p ro fe sso rs a s well a s s tu d e n ts h a d to b e en a b le d to te a c h a n d le a rn w h a t th e y w ere in te re ste d in. W hile th is led to th e s tu d e n ts ’ "freedom of learning"AO it also h a d th e m ajo r co n seq u e n ce for u n iv e rsity te a c h e rs th a t a n in te re s t in new , i.e. th e discovery of "objective" know ledge am o n g s tu d e n ts (the "co rese arch e rs") b ec am e th e c e n tra l a s p e c t of th e ir p ro fessio n al (self-) definition.

The a c tu a l developm ent of th e G erm a n u n iv e rsitie s d u rin g th e n in e te e n th c e n tu ry in som e re sp e c ts confirm ed th e in te n tio n s 5 Cf. C. G eliert: Society, Politics a n d U niversities in E ngland a n d G erm any (forthcom ing).

6 Cf. F. S ch le ie rm a c h e r: 'G elegentliche G ed a n k e n ü b e r U n iv e rsitä te n im d e u ts c h e n S in n ’, (1808), in: E. A n rich (ed.), Die Idee d e r d e u ts c h e n U niversität, D a rm sta d t: W isse n sc h a ftlic h e B u c h g e se llsc h a ft 1956, p. 272; cf. J.G . F ich te,

Säm tliche W erke, Berlin: Veit & C om p. 1 8 4 5 /4 6 , vol. VIII, p. 203.

7 T he te rm s "science” a n d "scientific" a re u s e d in th e b ro a d se n s e o f th e G e rm a n w ord W isse n sc h a ft w h ic h in c lu d e s th e m e a n in g o f "academ ic know ledge". 8 W. v. H u m boldt: G esa m m elte Schriften, vol. XIII, B erlin: B e h r 1920, p . 261; - Q u o ta tio n s from G e rm a n te x ts a re m y tra n s la tio n .

9 W. v. H u m boldt: S chriften zu r Politik u n d zu m B lld u n g s w e se n , W erke, vol. IV, S tu ttg a rt: C o tta 1964, p. 256.

10 T he freedom to se le c t freely from w h a t w a s offered in v a rio u s d isc ip lin es, to c h a n g e u n iv e rsitie s w h en ev e r th e y liked, a n d to ta k e th e ir fin al e x a m s w h e n th e y felt re a d y for th e m . © The Author(s). European University Institute. version produced by the EUI Library in 2020. Available Open Access on Cadmus, European University Institute Research Repository.

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of th e early refo rm ers a n d proved th e ir co n cep ts to b e su ccessfu l. As a c o n seq u e n ce of th e ra p id in d u stria lis a tio n a n d th e em erging Im perialism of th e G erm an Reich, th e u n iv e rsitie s b ec am e tru e re s e a rc h u n iv e rsitie s. T here w as a p e rm a n e n t d e m a n d for re s u lts in fu n d a m e n ta l re se a rc h , p articu la rly in th e n a tu ra l sciences, n o t le a s t for m ilitary p u r p o s e s .11 The pow erful u n iv e rsity p rofessors (■O rdinarien) w ere engaged in a c o n tin u o u s p ro ce ss of redefining th e fro n tiers of know ledge. The fields of know ledge w ere c o n stan tly ch a n g in g a n d expanding. T here seem ed to b e no n ee d for a clear- c u t definition of e s ta b lish e d scholarly re s u lts , n o r for specific u n iv e rsity c u rric u la . In th is situ a tio n , th e p rinciple of a u n ity of re s e a rc h a n d te a c h in g w as a n a tu ra l consequence, sin ce th e tra in in g of th e sc h o la r-stu d e n ts followed th e p e rm a n e n t flow of re s u lts in fu n d a m e n ta l rese a rc h .

The su c c e ss of th e G erm an u n iv e rsitie s in specialized scientific a n d sch o larly re s e a rc h even led to a significant influence o n o th e r sy stem s of h ig h e r ed u c atio n . As Ben-D avid h a s observed, "until a b o u t th e 1870’s, th e G erm an u n iv e rsitie s w ere v irtu a lly th e only in s titu tio n s in th e w orld in w hich a s tu d e n t could o b ta in tra in in g in how to do scientific or sch o larly r e s e a rc h ."12 At th e en d of th e n in e te e n th a n d d u rin g th e first d ecad es of th e tw en tieth ce n tu ry , m a n y A m erican a n d B ritish sc h o lars travelled to G erm any. If n o t th e fu n ctio n o f re se a rc h a s su c h , b u t a t le a st th e n o tio n th a t u n iv e rsity te a c h e rs sh o u ld b e actively engaged in re se a rc h , w as in tro d u c e d to A m erican a n d E n g lish u n iv e rsitie s to som e e x te n t u n d e r th e influence of th e G erm an ex a m p le .13

8. M odifications o f th e E nglish, A m erican an d G erm an M odels

The w ays in w hich th e id ea of a "unity of re s e a rc h a n d teaching" w as in tro d u c e d to E n g lish a n d A m erican univ ersities, is how ever a m a jo r in d ic atio n of th e fact th a t th e G erm an ideal h a s b y no m e a n s becom e a u n iv e rsa l principle. 14 In th e E ng lish case, a s w as m e n tio n e d above, th e re prevailed a stro n g tra d itio n of o rien tin g u n iv e rsity e d u c atio n to th e p e rso n a l developm ent of th e 11 It h a s b e e n c a lc u la te d th a t ro u g h ly one th ird of all fin a n c ia l s u p p o rt of u n iv e rsity re s e a rc h a t th e en d of th e 19 th c e n tu ry w a s s p e n t for m ilita ry p u rp o se s . Cf. H.-W. P rahl: Sozialgeschichte d e s H o c h s c h u lw e se n s, M unich: K indler 1978, p p. 227f.

12 J . B en-D avid, C entres o f Learning: Britain, France, G erm any, U nited S ta tes, New York: M cGraw -Hill 1977, p . 22.

13 T his ap p lie s le s s to S c o ttish u n iv e rsitie s w ho h a d a s tro n g re se a rc h tra d itio n anyw ay. - F o r th e USA cf. C. Diehl: A m ericans a n d G erm an Scholarship 1770-

1 870, New H aven: Yale U niversity P re ss 1978; for th e E n g lish case, cf. E. Ashby:

'The F u tu re of th e N in e te e n th C e n tu ry Id ea o f a U niversity’, in: M inerva, VI, 1, A u tu m n 1967, p p . 3-17.

14 The following a lso in c lu d e s re fe re n c e s to th e A m erican u n iv e rsity system , sin c e E u ro p e a n d isc u s sio n s of th e s u b je c t m a tte r very often u s e th a t sy stem for a rg u m e n ta tiv e p u rp o s e s . P a rtic u la rly in policy-related d e b a te s th e h ig h er e d u c a tio n sy ste m of th e US is a rg u a b ly th e m o st often utilized em pirical fram e of reference. © The Author(s). European University Institute. version produced by the EUI Library in 2020. Available Open Access on Cadmus, European University Institute Research Repository.

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s tu d e n t r a th e r th a n to discip lin ary re q u ire m e n ts, a s in G erm any. A lthough th e old ideal of c h a ra c te r form ation w as tra n sfo rm e d into th e co n c ep t o f "liberal education", w hich p u t co n sid erab le e m p h a sis on scientific a n d acad em ic train in g , th e in te lle c tu a l a s p e c t of le a rn in g alw ays rem a in e d em b ed d ed in th e b ro a d e r fu n c tio n of im proving a n indiv id u al’s p e rso n a lity .15 B e ca u se of th is , th e E n g lish u n iv e rsitie s w ere able to do b o th : to define clear a re a s of e s ta b lish e d know ledge, w h ich w ere organized a s b in d in g c u rric u la , a n d to en co u rag e th e ir acad e m ic s to engage in re s e a rc h a s p a r t of th e ir defined d u tie s. The la tte r did o r did n o t coincide w ith th e te a c h e rs ’ topical te a c h in g program m e. T here w as no obligatory link b etw een th e two. R esea rch b ec am e a n im p o rta n t p ro fessio n al c h a ra c te ristic of u n iv e rsity te ac h e rs; b u t th e re s e a rc h re s u lts did b y no m e a n s have to b e directly u tilise d for te a c h in g p u rp o se s. In th is way, it w as e n s u re d th a t a c ad e m ic s b ec am e a n d re m a in e d a c q u a in te d w ith re s e a rc h activities. T his seem ed to b e a sufficient proviso to g u a ra n te e high in te lle ctu al s ta n d a r d s in te a c h in g .15

In th e U nited S ta te s, th e G erm a n r e s e a rc h ex am ple w as also a d o p ted to w ard s th e en d of th e n in e te e n th ce n tu ry . B u t th e re , in c o n tra s t to E ngland, th e c o n seq u e n ces for th e o rg an izatio n of u n iv e rsity te a c h in g a n d re s e a rc h w ere m o re rad ical. A p art from a com plex p ro ce ss of (differentiation in th e overall sy ste m of h ig h e r ed u c a tio n , w h ich w as re la te d to diverging in te re sts , p u rp o s e s a n d fu n c tio n s in te rtia ry e d u c a tio n ,17 th e se cto r w h ich is c o m p arab le to E u ro p e a n u n iv e rsitie s, i.e. th e "research u n iv e rsitie s",18 w as ch a ra c te riz e d b y a g ra d u a l p ro ce ss of o rg an izatio n al a n d fu n ctio n al segregation from w ithin. The th re e m ajo r fu n c tio n s of th e lead in g A m erican u n iv e rsitie s tod ay seem to co rre sp o n d to a threefold s tr u c tu r a l seg m en tatio n : th e fu n ctio n of liberal ed u c atio n , in m a n y re s p e c ts sim ilar to its B ritish c o u n te r p a r t,19 is alm o st exclusively rese rv e d for th e u n d e rg ra d u a te level; th e fu n c tio n of p ro fessio n al tra in in g is p laced in specialized p ro fessio n al g ra d u a te schools; a n d th e r e s e a r c h fu n c tio n is exercised m ain ly w ith in th e ac ad em ic g ra d u a te sch o o ls of a r ts a n d science.

15 Cf. C. G eliert: Vergleich d e s S tu d iu m s a n en g lisc h en u n d d e u ts c h e n

U niversitäten, M unich: L ang 1988 (2nd ed.), p p. 27f.

18 O ne In d icatio n of th e grow ing Im p o rtan ce o f re s e a rc h a s a n e c e s s a ry q u alific atio n o f a c a d e m ic s w a s th e In tro d u c tio n of th e Ph.D .. - Cf. R. S im p so n :

H ow th e Ph.D. C am e to Britain, G uildford: SRH E 1983.

17 Cf. D. R iesm an : On Higher E ducation, S a n F ra n cisco 1981. - S ee also: L.R. Veysey: T he E m ergence o f th e A m erican U niversity, Chicago: U niversity of C hicago P re ss, 1965.

18 N ow adays, th e re a re ro u g h ly 2 0 0 d o c to ra te -g ra n tin g in s titu tio n s in th e USA. T h ese a re called “re s e a rc h u n iv e rsitie s” h ere. In o th e r cla ssific a tio n s th e te rm re fe rs to a sm a lle r g ro u p of larg e u n iv e rsitie s w h ich a re c h a ra c te riz e d b y c e rta in q u a n tita tiv e c rite ria c o n c e rn in g r e s e a rc h activities. Cf. T he C a rn eg ie C o m m issio n o n H igher E d u c a tio n : A C lassification o f In stitu tio n s o f H igher Education,

Berkeley: T he C arn eg ie C om m issio n on H igher E d u c a tio n 1973.

19 T he A m erican 'liberal a r t s ’ c o n c e p t is, how ever, c h a ra c te riz e d b y a stro n g e r in te rd isc ip lin a ry e m p h a sis, w hile in E n g la n d th e 'Single H o n o u rs D egree’, I.e. a sp ecialized tra in in g In one su b je c t, is still p rev alen t.

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The A m erican re s e a rc h u n iv e rsitie s are, th u s , ch a racterize d b y a n alm o st com plete segm ention of te a c h in g a n d re se a rc h , a t le a s t if co m p ared to th e G erm an u n iv e rsity trad itio n . Of co u rse, th e p ro fe sso rs th e re a re often th e sam e, w h e th e r th e y te a c h u n d e rg ra d u a te s or g ra d u a te s, w h eth e r th e y d eal w ith Ph.D .- c a n d id a te s o r w ith asp irin g p rofessionals. B u t a close conn ectio n b etw e en ongoing re s e a rc h a n d te ac h in g only ex ists in th e g ra d u a te schools of a r ts a n d science. This is th e se cto r w ithin th e A m erican re s e a rc h u n iv e rsitie s, w h ich h a s preserv ed a n d developed th e G erm a n heritage.

In G erm any, in c o n tra st, th e ex p a n sio n of th e u n iv e rsity sy stem afte r W orld W ar II h a s led to a n aw kw ard s tr u c tu ra l a n d fu n ctio n al m u d d le. The tra n sfo rm a tio n of th e sy stem in to p laces of m a s s h ig h e r e d u c a tio n w ith a b o u t fo u r tim es m ore s tu d e n ts now th a n in th e early sixties, h a s jeopardized th e tra d itio n a l b a la n c e b etw e en th e ta s k s of acad em ic inq u iry a n d ad v an ced tra in in g of s tu d e n ts . The old ideal of a u n ity of re s e a rc h a n d te a c h in g is still p a r t of th e official v alu e fram e of reference a t u n iv ersities. B u t in re c e n t d ec ad e s th e re o c c u rre d frictions in th is sy stem b e c a u s e of a n in c re a sin g d isc re p an c y b etw een th e tra d itio n a l re se a rc h o rie n ta tio n of u n iv e rsity te a c h e rs a n d th e ir fa c tu a l involvem ent in p ro fessio n al or even v o cational tra in in g of large n u m b e rs.

This te n sio n h a s b e e n th re a te n in g to b re a k u p th e tra d itio n a l in stitu tio n a l fram ew ork, e ith er b y ex tern al (overall) d ifferentiation (e.g., th e in tro d u c tio n of com prehensive u n iv ersities a n d F achhochschulen),20 or b y in te rn a l fu n ctio n al se p a ra tio n (e.g. a tte m p ts to d istin g u ish pro fessio n al from re s e a rc h program m es). B u t d esp ite several d ec ad e s of reform d isc u ssio n s, th is m odel is still ch a ra c te riz e d by a n tag o n istic s tr u c tu ra l fea tu re s: o n th e one h a n d , th e s tu d e n ts ’ ability to freely choose su b je cts, u n iv ersities a n d th e ir tim e of exam ination; o n th e o th er, th e p ro fe sso rs’ freedom to te a c h w h atev er th e y like (both sa n ctio n ed by th e H u m b o ld tian prin cip le of th e freedom of te a c h in g a n d learning, w h ich w as referred to above); m oreover, th e c o n stitu tio n ally g u a ra n te e d o p en ac ce ss to all u n iv e rsitie s for an ybody w ith a respective se co n d a ry degree; th e b u re a u c ra tic a n d sta te control of all c u rric u la r a n d organizational m a tte rs, in clu d in g th e civil service s ta tu s of th e p rofessoriate; th e over-loading of pro g ram m es a n d c o u rse s acco rd in g to in dividual re se a rc h in te re sts of th e p ro fesso rs; a n d finally, th e widely criticized le n g th of stu d ie s in m o st su b je c t a r e a s .21

In c o n tra s t to th e s itu a tio n in G erm any, th e organizational fe a tu re s of th e le ad in g se cto r w ithin th e h ig h e r e d u c a tio n sy stem of th e U nited S ta te s a re w ell-ordered a n d tr a n s p a r e n t. The m a in difference b etw een th e two m odels lies in th e fact th a t th e US 20 F achhochschulen a re c o m p arab le to B ritish P olytechnics a n d are t h u s m ore v o catio n ally a n d p ra c tic a lly o rie n te d in th e ir te a c h in g th a n u n iv ersities. Cf. C. G eliert: A ltern a tives to U niversities In Higher E ducation - C ountry S tu d y Federal

R epublic o f G erm any, P aris: OECD, 1989.

21 S ee C. Geliert: 'A ndere Ziele, a n d e re Z eiten. D er an g lo a m e rik a n isc h e M ut z u r E rz ie h u n g w ird d u rc h k ü rz e re S tu d ie n z e ite n b elo h n t', in: D eutsche

U n iversitä tszeitu n g , 1 9 /1 9 8 8 , p p . 20-23. © The Author(s). European University Institute. version produced by the EUI Library in 2020. Available Open Access on Cadmus, European University Institute Research Repository.

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avoided to c o n tin u e th e u n s u c c e s s fu l a tte m p t of th e G erm an sy stem to apply th e tra d itio n a l co n c ep t of a u n ity of re s e a rc h a n d te a c h in g to th e fu n ctio n in g of th e u n iv e rsity a s a w hole. If re s e a rc h n ev e rth ele ss plays a n im p o rta n t role a t A m erican u n iv e rsitie s, in som e re sp e c ts a n even m ore im p o rta n t role th a n in m a n y o th e r (W estern) u n iv e rsity sy stem s, th is is largely d u e to in te rn a l co n tro l a n d incentive m e c h a n ism s.22 The im p o rta n t p o in t is th a t th e tra d itio n a l p rinciple of a "unity of re s e a rc h a n d teaching", if it ever existed th e re , is no com prehensive a ttrib u te o f th e overall sy ste m of re s e a rc h u n iv e rsitie s in th e U nited S tate s. The stro n g r e s e a rc h o rien tatio n w h ich exists, m a n ife sts itself prim arily in one se g m en t of th e sy stem (the g ra d u a te schools of a r ts a n d sciences), a n d its su p p o rt ste m s from facto rs w hich in m a n y re sp e c ts hav e little to do w ith th e re q u ire m e n ts o f teach in g , b u t w ith in s titu tio n a l p ro c e sse s of co m petition a n d q u ality o rien tatio n .

4. A F u n ctio n a l C la ssific a tio n o f U n iv ersity M odels

T h u s, it is p ossible to d isc e rn th re e m ajo r fun ctio n ally defined u n iv e rsity m odels in th e E u ro p e a n context, a n d in a c e rta in se n se a f o u rth one, if we in clu d e th e exam ple of th e U nited S ta te s. As will b e ex plained la te r in m ore detail, th is is n o t a n a tte m p t to classify h ig h e r e d u c a tio n sy stem s in general, i.e. to m a k e s e n se of a n y k in d of in stitu tio n a l differentiation w hich h a s o ccu rred . R ath er, th e e m p h a sis h ere is on a c h a ra c te riz a tio n o f th e le ad in g se cto rs in E u ro p e a n h ig h e r ed u c atio n , a s it m u s t b e derived from a h isto ric al perspective. It is th e u n iv e rsity se cto r in m o st c o u n tries, after all, w hich s e ts th e p ara d ig m for all an aly tical co n sid e ra tio n s a n d co m p ariso n s.

By fu n c tio n a l definition of u n iv e rsity m odels we m e a n th e fact th a t histo rically th re e of th e lead in g u n iv e rsity sy stem s in E u ro p e, th o se of E ngland, F ra n ce a n d G erm any cou ld a n d to som e ex ten t still c a n b e asso c ia te d w ith a respective e m p h a sis in p u r s u in g its aim s, i.e. a special co n c ern in defining its ta s k s , w hich m a d e th a t p a rtic u la r sy stem d istin g u ish a b le from th e o th e rs .23 22 T his c a n n o t b e p u r s u e d h e re a n y fu rth e r. Cf. C. G eliert: "W ettbewerb u n d in stitu tio n e lle D ifferenzierung - A n m e rk u n g e n z u r u n iv e rsitä re n

L e istu n g sb e w e rtu n g in d e n USA", in: Beiträge zu r H och sch u lfo rsch u n g , 4 /1 9 8 8 , p p . 4 6 7 -4 9 6 ; also , th e sa m e: W ettb ew erb u n d L eistungsorientierung im

a m erika n isch en U n iversitä tssyste m (C om petition a n d A chievem ent O rie n ta tio n in

th e A m erican U niversity System ), M u n ich 1991 (forthcom ing). - F or a d e tailed a n a ly s is of p r e se n t-d a y A m erican u n iv e rsitie s, cf. B.R. C lark: The A ca d em ic Life

in A m erica. Sm all W orlds, D ifferent W orlds, P rin c eto n , N J: T he C arnegie

F o u n d a tio n for th e A d v an ce m e n t of T each in g 1987; also: B.R. C la rk (ed.): The

A ca d em ic P rofession. National, D isciplinary, & Institutional S ettin g s, Berkeley:

U niversity o f C alifornia P re s s 1987.

23 T he te rm ''functional" sh o u ld n o t b e co n fu se d w ith "functionalist". W hile th e fo rm er m e a n s "fulfilling a ro le” or "having a ta s k ”, th e la tte r c o n n o te s th e a s su m p tio n of c e rta in so c ietal n e e d s, w h ic h a s e t of social a c tio n s is s u p p o s e d to m e e t o r n o t to m eet. F or a g e n e ra l critiq u e of fu n c tio n a lism in th e social sc ie n c e s, se e A. G iddens, The Constitution o f Society, C am bridge: Polity, 1984.

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F rom w h a t h a s b e e n said above, it follows th a t E nglish u n iv e rsitie s trad itio n ally h a d a stro n g in te re st in th e personality developm ent of th e ir s tu d e n ts .24 This does of c o u rse n o t m e a n th a t th e o th e r m ajo r fu n ctio n s of re se a rc h a n d pro fessio n al train in g p la y a le ss im p o rta n t role th e re th a n elsew here. B u t it is probably co rrect to sa y th a t a t E n g lish u n iv e rsitie s th e fu n ctio n of "ch aracter form ation", a s it w as called a t th e tim e of th e "Oxford m ovem ent" of C a rd in al N ew m an a t th e b eginning of th e n in e te e n th c e n tu ry ,25 or of "liberal education", a s it h a s b e e n te rm ed in re c e n t tim es,26 played a v astly m o re im p o rta n t ad d itio n a l role th a n in m o st o ther u n iv e rsity sy stem s, a t le a st in E urope. Therefore, we m ay, w ith o u t w ishing to red u c e th e scope of th e sy stem in a n y a rb itra ry m a n n er, call th e E n g lish p ara d ig m th e "personality model".

The G erm a n university, in c o n tra st, h a s in m o d e rn tim es alw ays a n d above all b e e n concerned w ith th e re s e a rc h function. A gain th is does n o t m e a n th a t th e fu n ctio n s of professional tra in in g o r p e rso n a l developm ent w ere n o t im p o rta n t there. The ta s k of pro fessio n al tra in in g h a s , like in all u n iv e rsity sy stem s in th e world, b e e n of fu n d a m e n ta l relevance sin ce th e Middle Ages. N evertheless, it is tru e th a t th e d istin g u ish in g c h a ra c te ristic of th a t m odel h a s for a long tim e b e e n its stro n g p reo c cu p atio n w ith re s e a rc h activities, n o t le a st w ith reg a rd to th e co n seq u e n ces for th e te a c h in g p ro cess. H ere it is possible to p o in t to th e basic difference b etw e en th e E ng lish a n d th e G erm an m odels. While they b o th w ere concerned w ith e d u c atin g th e ir s tu d e n ts , th is ta s k w as se e n in d ram a tic ally different w ays. For H um boldt, ed u catio n th ro u g h W isse n sch a ft w as m e a n t to finally e n h a n c e exactly th a t:

W isse n sc h q ft itself. F or Newman, re se a rc h a n d W isse n sc h a ft were

n o t even n e c e s sa ry a ttrib u te s of u n iv e rsity life. In h is opinion they could also b e p u r s u e d in academ ies outside. W hat m a tte re d for him , a n d w h a t still m a tte rs for m o d e m s u p p o rte rs of th e "collegiate ideal of ed u catio n "27, is th e in stitu tio n a l utilizatio n of socialization m e c h a n ism s w h ich only to som e e x ten t c a n b e effectuated by acad em ic m e a n s of know legde dissem in atio n . T hus, we m ay refer to th e G erm an u n iv e rsity sy stem a s th e "research model".

The F re n c h system , finally, is often referred to a s th e N apoleonic m odel, b e c a u s e of its stric t h ie ra rc h ic al sta te s u b o rd in a tio n .28 Of co u rse, it is possible to d istin g u ish individual h ig h e r e d u c a tio n sy stem s on th e b a s is of th e ir degree of autonom y 24 In th is co n tex t, it is m o re a p p ro p ria te to c o n c e n tra te o n E n g la n d , r a th e r th a n to in clu d e th e w hole of th e U nited K ingdom o r G re a t B ritain , sin c e S co tlan d h a s alw ays b e e n m u c h closer to th e c o n tin e n ta l re s e a rc h tra d itio n th a n E ngland. Cf. G.E. Davie: The D emocratic Intellect. Scotland a n d Her Universities in the

N in etee n th C entury, E d in b u rg h U niversity P re ss 1961.

26 J.H . N ew m an: On th e Scope a n d N ature o f U niversity E ducation, London: E v ery m an 's L ibrary 1965 (1852).

26 S ee for in sta n c e E. Ashby: 'The F u tu re of th e N in eteen th C e n tu ry Idea of a U niversity’, in: M inerva, VI, 1, A u tu m n 1967, p p . 3-17.

27 Cf. A.H, H alsey: 'U niversity E x p an sio n a n d th e C ollegiate Ideal', in:

U niversities Q uarterly, 16, I, 1961. p p . 55ff.

28 See for in sta n c e , M. V au g h a n & M.S. A rcher: Social Conflict a n d Educational

C hange in E n g la n d a n d France 1789-1848, C am bridge UP, 1971.

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from s ta te Interference. P articularly, b e c a u s e of th e federal s tr u c tu re of som e n a tio n s th is a p p ro a c h is how ever only of lim ited u se . B e ca u se a sy stem like th e G erm an one, w h ich does n o t h av e a stro n g c e n tra l s ta te im p a ct in ed u c a tio n a l m a tte rs , only a p p e a rs to b e le ss g o vernm ent reg u la te d th a n a h ie ra rc h ic a l s tr u c tu r e like th e F re n c h one. In in te rn a tio n a l com parison, th e form er is in fact u su a lly co n sid ered to b e th e h igher e d u c a tio n sy ste m w ith th e sm a lle st a m o u n t of in stitu tio n a l freedom from s ta te in te rv e n tio n ism .29

O th er observers have correctly ch o se n th e F re n c h sy ste m a s th e one w h ich is c h a racterize d b y a h ig h degree of in s titu tio n a l se g m e n ta tio n b etw e en "science in" a n d "science out", i.e. th e fact th a t m u c h of th e re s e a rc h activities h a p p e n o u tsid e th e u n iv e rsity sector, p a rtic u la rly in th e C en tre n a tio n a l de la re c h e rc h e scientiflque (CNRS).30 Or, th e F re n c h sy stem c a n b e re g a rd e d a s b ein g a lm o st u n iq u e in yet a n o th e r resp e ct, viz. th e ex iste n ce of th e elite-secto r of G ra n d es E coles b e sid e s th e u n iv ersities.

F rom a fu n c tio n a l perspective, th e la s t two a s p e c ts are how ever also re le v an t in a n o th e r resp e ct. O n th e one h a n d , th e ex isten ce of a stro n g elem en t of "science out" m e a n s th a t th e u n iv e rsity sy stem itse lf is p red o m in an tly co n c ern ed w ith th e fu n c tio n of p ro fe ssio n a l train in g . A nd b e sid e s th e often referred to a s p e c t of b ein g c e n tre s for elite re c ru itm e n t, th e G ra n d e s Ecoles also p o sse ss th e m ajo r c h a ra c te ristic of b ein g p rim a rily p la ce s of te a c h in g for top p ro fessio n al positions. T h u s we m a y co n clu d e th a t th e F re n c h u n iv e rsity sy stem a s a w hole is m o re th a n o th e r sy stem s e m p h asizin g th e fu n c tio n of p ro fessio n al train in g . We c a n th e re fo re call it th e "training m odel”.

The e x te n t to w h ich th e o th e r E u ro p e a n sy ste m s are deviations from o r assim ila tio n s to th e se th re e m a in m odels re m a in s to b e seen. S ince th e describ ed m odels a re no p u r e a n d hom o g en eo u s s tr u c tu re s , b u t a m ix of different ta s k s a n d p u rp o se s, a lth o u g h w ith differing e m p h a se s of resp ectiv e a re a s, th e y sh o u ld b e tre a te d a s ideal-typical a n d h e u ristic c o n c ep ts in th e W eberian s e n s e .31

Before we c a n a tte m p t to describ e som e of th e m a jo r re c e n t developm ents in E u ro p e a n h ig h e r ed u c atio n , in o rd er to co n trib u te to s u c h a classification, we have to briefly d is c u s s som e p ro b lem s c o n c ern in g th e p h e n o m e n o n of in stitu tio n a l differentiation.

29 S ee e.g., J . J a d o t e t al.: ’H o c h s c h u lm a n a g e m e n t in E u ro p a ’, in: I. B e n d e r & W. H e n n in g (ed.): U n iv e rsitä tsm a n a g e m e n t B ericht zu r Lage, U niversity o f Trier, Dec. 1980, p p . 5-35; cf. also, C. Gellert: 'S ta te In terv en tio n ism a n d In stitu tio n a l A utonom y', in: Oxford R eview o f E ducation, v o l.l 1, n o . 3 /1 9 8 5 , p p . 2 8 3 -2 9 3 . 3 9 S ee P. E w ert & St. Lullies: D a s H o ch sch u lw esen ln F rankreich - G eschichte,

S tru k tu ren u n d geg en w ä rtig e Problem e im Vergleich, M unich: IHF, 1 984, p p.

21 Iff.; cf. also: W ittrock, B. a n d A. E lzinga (eds.): The U niversity R esea rch

S y ste m : T he Public Policies o f th e H om e o f S cien tists, Stockholm : A lm q u ist &

W iksell In t„ 1985.

31 M. W eber: W irtschaft u n d G esellschaft, T übingen: M ohr, 1972.

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5 . M eth od ological P roblem s o f S tructu ral A nalysis

A nalyses of sy stem s of h igher e d u c a tio n a re u su a lly co n c ern ed w ith s tru c tu re s , in stitu tio n s, n o rm s, v alu es a n d m o d e ls.32 In several re sp e c ts th e re ex ists however u n c la rity in th e u sa g e of s u c h concepts. Therefore, we will briefly look a t a rec en t a c c o u n t of s u c h a s p e c ts in th e an a ly sis of h ig h e r ed u c atio n sy stem s, w h ich w as offered b y U lrich T eichler.33 Teichler, w ho is p rim a rily co n c ern ed w ith s tr u c tu ra l iss u e s in com parative h igher ed u c atio n , d istin g u ish e s th re e m ajo r a p p ro a c h e s to explain s tr u c tu re s of h ig h e r ed ucation:

- The "idiosyncratic" ap p ro a c h deals w ith h istorically d eterm in e d c h a ra c te ristic s of h igher e d u c atio n w hich re m a in sta b le over long p e rio d s.34

- The "functional" a p p ro a c h is concerned w ith th e o b se rv a tio n th a t "all m o d e m in d u stria l societies are influ en ced b y c e rta in societal, econom ic, technological, c u ltu ra l or e d u c atio n al fac to rs m ore or le ss com m on a t c e rta in developm ental sta g es of in d u s tria l societies."35

- A nd finally, "political ap p roaches" ra ise q u estio n s "in w h at w ay a n d to w h a t ex ten t d eliberate o ptions s h a p e h igher ed u c atio n ".36

It seem s how ever th a t th e "functional" a p p ro a c h in th e above definition c a n n o t clearly b e d istin g u ish e d from th e "functionalist" conceptions w hich w ere referred to above. T eichler’s referen ce in th is co n tex t to Trow’s developm ental classification from "elite" to "m ass" to "universal" h ig h e r ed u c atio n , a s th e "best know n" m odel of th a t kind, is fu rth e r confusing. S ince th e se categories of Trow c a n a t b e s t b e u se d in a descriptive m a n n e r, in o rd er to a c c o u n t for b ro a d q u an tita tiv e ch an g es. B u t th e y h ard ly le n d them selv es to a m ean in g fu l a n a ly sis of em erging qualitative p a tte r n s .37 Also, th e th ird a s p e c t of "political ap p ro ach es" is n o t really u se fu l in explaining fu n d a m e n ta l s tr u c tu ra l p h en o m en a, sin ce o n th is level s tr u c tu re s c a n a t b e s t b e changed, b u t h ard ly be b ro u g h t a b o u t altogether.

Also T eichler’s identification of fo u r b a sic s tr u c tu ra l "models", w h ich played a c e n tra l role in d eb a te s of th e 1960’s, is

3 2 Cf, C. Geliert: 'In stitu tio n s- u n d S tru k tu rfo rs c h u n g ü b e r d a s

H o c h sc h u lsy ste m ', in: D. G o ld sch m id t et al. (eds.): F orsch u n g sg eg en sta n d

H ochschule. Überblick u n d Trendbericht, F ra n k fu rt: C a m p u s 1984, pp. 2 1 7 -2 3 1 .

33 U lrich T eichler, C hanging P a ttern s o f th e H igher E ducation S ystem : The

E xperience o f Three D ecades, London: J e s s ic a K ingsley 1988.

3 4 Op. cit., p. 14; n o tw ith s ta n d in g th e c u rio u s term inology, th is is th e a p p ro a c h w h ich h a s b e e n c h o se n in th e p re s e n t p a p e r.

35 Ibidem . S u c h a b ro a d fo rm u latio n is even o u tsid e th e ra n g e o f a fu n c tio n a list a p p ro a c h in th e tra d itio n of T alcott P a rso n s . As h a s b e e n p o in ted o u t before, o ur ow n u sa g e of th e te rm "fu n ctio n al” is m o re n arro w ly defined.

3 6 Op. cit., p . 15.

3 7 The h id d e n e v o lu tio n ist a s s u m p tio n s in Trow’s definition a re also difficult to s u p p o rt, sin c e th e y p o rtra y societal developm ent in a d e term in istic, linear fash io n . © The Author(s). European University Institute. version produced by the EUI Library in 2020. Available Open Access on Cadmus, European University Institute Research Repository.

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n o t of m u c h h elp for p re s e n t an aly tical p u rp o se s. T hese m odels a re th e following:

- The e litist m odel, w h ich aim s a t q u a n ta tiv e lim ita tio n s of th e n u m b e r of s tu d e n ts , a n d re s ts on e s tim a te s of f u tu re n e e d s of b o th a c ad e m ic s a n d highly skilled w orkers;

- th e v ertical m odel, in w hich ex istin g differences in e d u c a tio n sh o u ld b e m a in ta in e d in th e form of s tr u c tu re d a n d se p a ra te d com ponents;

- th e u n ita ry m odel, w h ich aim s to e s ta b lish a s g re a t a un ifo rm ity in in s titu tio n s a n d c o u rse s a s possible, in o rd er to re d u c e in e q u ality in ed u catio n ; a n d

- th e 're c u rre n t ed u c a tio n ’ m odel, w h ich aim s a t a b ro a d b a s is o f com petencies; ac q u isitio n of o cc u p atio n al qualification ta k e s place 'on th e jo b ’.38

The m a in objection w hich c a n b e m a d e to th e s e k in d s of "models" is th a t th e y c o n ta in n o analytical, b u t norm ativ e categories. They m a y have b e e n u se fu l for political d eb a te s; b u t for em pirical an a ly se s th e y a re too vague.

B u t T eichler c o n tin u e s to se a rc h for "optim al s tr u c tu ra l m odels" a n d n arro w s th e choice to two "extremes":

- The "diversified model", acco rd in g to w hich a "stronger eq u a liz atio n of e d u c a tio n a l provisions w ould serve to a le sse r e x te n t th e different abilities of b o th th e m o st ta le n te d s tu d e n ts on th e one h a n d a n d , of th e d isa d v an tag ed s tu d e n ts on th e o th er; a t th e sa m e tim e, th e diversified m odel w ould - in c o n tra s t to a clearly seg m en ted sy ste m - provide for correctio n s of e d u c a tio n a l c a re e rs w here ap p ro p riate." 38

- A nd th e "integrated model" w h ich "advocates th e a d m issio n of s tu d e n ts w ith different p re re q u is ite s a n d ab ilities to th e sa m e in stitu tio n s, even to- a c e rta in e x te n t to com m on c o u rse s of stu d y . In th e fram ew ork of a n in tr a -in s titu tio n a l differentiation, s tu d e n ts w ould s h a re som e com m on experience a n d finally a c q u ire degrees, w h ich w ould differ in acad em ic s ta n d a r d s to a le sse r ex ten t th a n in th e c a se of a ’diversified’ stru c tu re ." 40

B u t th e p roblem w ith th e diversified m odel in th e eyes of Teichler is th a t it does n o t exist. N evertheless, h e offers th e following ideal ’typology’ of th e diversified model:

- "D istinct e d u c a tio n a l provisions for different k in d s of s tu d e n ts r a th e r th a n efforts to red u c e s u c h differences a n d b a c k g ro u n d s a n d p ro sp e c ts, a re em phasized."

38 Op. cit., p p . 29f.

30 Op. clt., p . 31; acc o rd in g to B u rto n C lark , v a rie ty of s tu d e n ts , m u ltip lic ity of fu n c tio n s, a n d co n tro l o f h ig h e r e d u c a tio n In s titu tio n s a re n o t su fficien t In defining th e concept: "In ad d itio n , a ’legitim acy’ o f single a n d d is tin c t 'In stitu tio n a l ro le s’ is e s s e n tia l.” B.R. C lark: The H igher E ducation S y ste m :

A ca d em ic O rganization in C ross-N ational P erspective, Berkeley: U n iv ersity of

C alifornia P re ss, 1983, p. 221. 4 0 Op. cit., p. 31 © The Author(s). European University Institute. version produced by the EUI Library in 2020. Available Open Access on Cadmus, European University Institute Research

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- "A relatively ste ep h ie ra rc h y of in stitu tio n s or c o u rse p ro g ra m m e s according to ’q uality’, in te lle ctu al d e m a n d s a n d re p u ta tio n is typical for diversified system s."41

- A n élite sector, w h ich p re su m a b ly will alw ays b e p a r t of th e sy stem , in o rder to p reserv e old u n iv e rsity tra d itio n s a n d te a c h in g /re s e a rc h -lin k e d ed u catio n .

- In s titu tio n s w h ich do n o t only differ in r a n k (i.e., vertically), b u t also in ch a ra c te r, w hile bein g a t th e sa m e level (i.e., horizontally).

- The sy stem is dynam ic in m ore th a n one asp ect: it allows p erm eab ility for s tu d e n ts ; it c h a n g es in stitu tio n a l ra n k in g relatively often.42

A p art from th e fact, th a t o n th e b a s is of th e above categories it is difficult to see w hy Teichler re fu se s to acknow ledge th e ex isten ce of a diversified m odel in th e US, h e in th e end co n c lu d e s h is an a ly sis of s tr u c tu ra l d e b a te s in h ig h e r ed u c atio n w ith th e following sta te m en t:

"The d eb a te a s well a s th e co rresp o n d in g re s e a rc h seldom focus convincingly on th e m ajo r iss u e of controversy b etw een th e diversified a n d th e in te g rate d m odel, i.e. to w h a t e x te n t le a rn in g in h ig h e r ed u c a tio n is m o st su ccessfu lly p rom oted eith er b y a relatively h om ogeneous o r a relatively h etero g en eo u s en v iro n m en t. "43

T his co n c lu sio n is rem a rk a b le n o t only b e c a u s e th e fu n ctio n al a s p e c t of le arn in g (w hich of c o u rse is closely co nnected w ith th e one of p ro fessio n al training) su d d e n ly becom es "the m ajor issue", p re su m a b ly a t th e expense of m o st of th e form er co n c ern s w ith q u e stio n s of selection or p erm eability (i.e. tra n sfe r possibilities).

The re a so n , w hy Teichler in th e en d em p h asizes th is asp e c t of le arn in g , is, from o u r perspective, th e need to acknow ledge fu n ctio n al, r a th e r th a n form al a s p e c ts of s tr u c tu re s w hich in th e final an a ly sis a re alien to th e re s e a rc h topic.44

B ecau se, s tr u c tu re is a su b -co n c ep t of in stitu tio n . It refers to ro u tin iz ed social ac tio n s a n d th e ir n o rm ative o rien tatio n s. In s titu tio n s a re relatively sta b le form s of re p ro d u ce d social s tru c tu re s , in w h ich "knowledgeable agents" p e rm a n e n tly create th e c o n d itio n s for th e ir ow n c o n tin u ed social ex isten ce.45 Applied to in s titu tio n s of h ig h e r le arn in g th is m e a n s th a t th e 41 Not too ste e p th o u g h , o th erw ise th e sy s te m w o u ld n o t b e re sp o n siv e en o u g h to c h a n g in g co n d itio n s.

4 2 T eichler, op. clt., pp. 54 -5 6 . However, d iversity b etw een se c to rs d o es n o t Im ply t h a t w ith in se c to rs every th in g sh o u ld b e equal. D iversity c a n a b o u n d on t h a t level a s well. _____ ________________ ________________ _________ _________ ' 43 Op. clt., p. 99.

4 4 T his Is a lso th e re a s o n , w h y h e u ltim a te ly e n d s u p w ith a r a th e r relativistic a p p ro a c h to d ealin g w ith s tr u c tu r a l p h e n o m e n a : "One h a s to d ra w u p o n a b ro a d ra n g e o f d iv erse c o n c e p ts in o rd e r to exam ine th e ir u tility in explaining

s tr u c tu r a l d e v elo p m en ts in h ig h e r e d u c a tio n a n d th e ir c a u s e s in in d u s tria l so c ietie s in th e la s t few decades." (p. 108).

45 O n th is co n c e p t o f a "duality o f stru c tu re s" , se e A. G iddens, op. clt., p p. 297ff.

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"know ledgeable agents" of s u c h sy stem s (professors, s tu d e n ts , etc.) a re re p ro d u c in g th e ir in stitu tio n a l fram ew orks acco rd in g to th e in h e re n t fu n ctio n al req u ire m e n ts. The definitions of th e la tte r m a y vary, a s we h av e tried to in d ic ate earlier on. B u t in a n y case, it is difficult to a s s u m e th a t social ac to rs of a p a rtic u la r in s titu tio n a l se ttin g c a n b e expected to p u r s u e a n d im plem ent, w ith in th e fram ew ork of th e ir in stitu tio n , n o rm s a n d v alu es from "external" societal co n tex ts. O f co u rse, th e re ex ists a m anifold norm ativ e overlap. T h u s, th e m e m b ers of a scientific co m m u n ity a re n a tu ra lly a n d often c o n c ern ed w ith pro b lem s of e d u c a tio n a l eq u a lity a n d social selectivity in society a t large. B u t th e y c a n n o t tra n sfo rm th e s e g en eral social a n d political co n c e rn s into in s titu tio n a l d efintions of th e ra tio n a le of acad em ic in stitu tio n s. The la tte r c a n n o t resolve all k in d s of societal in ju stice. Individual m e m b e rs of th e in s titu tio n are of c o u rse free to engage in th e o re tic a l a n d p ra c tic a l activities to overcom e s u c h societal insufficiencies. The in stitu tio n a t large, however, c a n n o t b u t define its raison d 'ê tre in its ow n fu n c tio n a l term s.

6 . R e c e n t D ev e lo p m e n ts in European H igher E d u cation 6 .1 D iv e r sific a tio n

The m o st im p o rta n t re a so n for u s in g a fu n ctio n al a p p ro a c h for th e an a ly sis o f te rtia ry e d u c a tio n c o n s ists in th e overall p ro ce ss of d ifferentiation w h ich alm o st all sy stem s of h ig h e r e d u c a tio n in th e W est hav e experienced d u rin g th e la s t tw enty or th irty y ea rs. B e ca u se it is only if we p o sse ss a fairly clear id ea of w h a t th e "flagships" of h ig h e r ed u c atio n , i.e. th e u n iv e rsity se c to rs have looked like, w h a t th e ir p re d o m in a n t fe a tu re s w ere, before th e diversification p ro c e sse s b e g a n .48 th a t we c a n try a n d u n d e r s ta n d som e of th e sh ifts a n d m odifications in th e w ay in w h ich th e E u ro p e a n te rtia ry tra in in g in s titu tio n s a re p erform ing th e ir ta sk s.

T herefore it is n o t u se fu l to a tte m p t to co n cep tu alize com plete sy ste m s of h ig h e r ed u c a tio n in th e ir fu n c tio n a l re sp e c ts . The em erging differences in fu n c tio n s a n d societal e x p e ctatio n s of differing se cto rs of h ig h e r e d u c a tio n a re exactly of c e n tra l in te re st. The n o tio n of d ifferentiation or diversification is th erefo re b asica lly a form al one. It e ith e r exists or it does not. T his fact in itse lf is n o t of f u n d a m e n ta l Im portance. It is only if we c o n sid er how p ro c e sse s of d ifferentiation have b ro u g h t a b o u t new form s o f h ig h e r e d u c a tio n o r re se a rc h , or in w h a t re sp e c ts th e y a re th e r e s u lt of c h a n g in g ex p e ctatio n s from th e la b o u r m a rk e t in tim es of ra p id econom ic a n d technological tra n sfo rm a tio n s, th a t s u c h s tr u c tu r a l m odifications becom e relevant.

T h u s, th e developm ent of th e NUS in th e F ed eral R epublic of G erm any, in p a rtic u la r th e ex p a n sio n of th e F achhochschulen, w as ch a ra c te riz e d by specific fu n ctio n al o rien tatio n s. W ith th e em ergence of th e NUS th e tra d itio n a l sy stem of h ig h e r ed u c a tio n h a s b e e n d ifferentiated in decisive w ays a n d a n ew a n d 4 8 T he te rm s "differentiation” a n d "diversification'' a re u s e d h e re a s sy n o n y m s. © The Author(s). European University Institute. version produced by the EUI Library in 2020. Available Open Access on Cadmus, European University Institute Research Repository.

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In d ep e n d en t, fu nctionally significant a n d econom ically a s well a s politically viable altern ativ e se cto r In h ig h e r e d u c a tio n becam e firm ly estab lish ed . The following a s p e c ts w ere of special Im p o rtan ce for th is developm ent, p rim arily for th e In creasin g d e m a n d from s tu d e n ts a n d em ployers.47

F irst, th e co n c ep t of a practically o rien ted a n d applied, th o u g h academ ically a n d scientifically b a s e d train in g , in c luding v o cational e n try qualifications a n d p rac tica l s tu d y periods, tu rn e d o u t to b e widely accepted. The qualifications w hich w ere gained w ith in th e above fram ew ork w ere n o t only increasingly in d em an d from in d u s try a n d o th e r se cto rs of th e la b o u r m a rk e t. They also b ec am e m o re a n d m o re attra c tiv e for secondary-school leavers a s a n altern ativ e to th e u n iv e rsity sector.

S econd, th e lim itatio n of Fachhochschul c o u rse s to th re e or fo u r y ea rs (in th e la tte r case, if p ra c tic a l w ork experience in b etw een is p a r t of th e program m e) c a n b e se e n a s a m ajor a d v a n ta g e of th is in stitu tio n of te rtia ry e d u c a tio n over th e c u rric u la r org an izatio n a t G erm a n u n iv e rsitie s.48

Third, a pro b lem w hich d u rin g th e first few y ea rs of th e ir existen ce c a u se d som e concern, viz. "academ ic drift”, i.e. th e te n d en c y to try to b e like u n iv ersities, does n o t a n y longer seem to h in d e r th e F achhochschulen. This lack of id e n tity h a s in rec en t y e a rs b e e n rep la ce d b y th e conviction am ong m o st Fachhochschul p ro fe sso rs th a t th e practically o rien ted pro fessio n al tra in in g a t th e ir in s titu tio n s h a s becom e a n im p o rta n t fu n ctio n al co n trib u tio n to society in tim es of ra p id technological a n d econom ic change. M any of th e m have realized th a t th is fu n ctio n al p erspective h a s open ed u p new ac tio n fields for applied re s e a rc h a n d developm ent w h ich are n o t only in d e m an d from in d u stry , b u t fu rth e r en h a n c e th e specific profile of th e Fachhochschulen. T hese re se a rc h activities have* also led to v ario u s form s of co operation betw een th e

F achhochschulen a n d th e econom y, for in sta n c e th e c e n tre s of

technology tra n sfe r, w h ich have significant im plications for c o m m u n al a n d regional developm ent.

T hese ch a n g e s in th e G erm an sy stem of h ig h e r education, finally, n o t totally b y -p a sse d th e u n iv ersities. T here are now in d ic atio n s th a t th e exam ple of th e F achhochschulen w ith th e ir p rac tica lly o rien ted tra in in g a n d re s e a rc h a n d th e ir efficient p ro g ra m m e organization, h a s invited im itation from th e u n iv e rsitie s. In several re sp e c ts, w h a t h a s b e e n achieved a t th e

F achhochschulen h a s b e e n th e r e s u lt of extensive policy d isc u ssio n s a n d rec o m m en d a tio n s in th e u n iv e rsity se cto r d in in g th e la s t tw enty or th irty years. The u n iv e rsitie s now acknow ledge th e n ee d for m o re resp o n siv en e ss to th e re q u ire m e n ts of th e la b o u r m a rk e t, or for a m ore tr a n s p a r e n t s tru c tu re of th e c u rric u lu m a n d th e c o u rse program m e. B u t th e u n iv e rsitie s a re in a n u m b e r of a re a s still far aw ay from g etting efficiently organized. The still

4 7 Cf. C. G ellert: A ltern a tives to U niversities in H igher E ducation - Country S tu d y

F ederal R epublic o f G erm a n y, P aris: OECD, 1989.

48 T he av erag e stu d y -p e rio d a t G erm an u n iv e rsitie s for a first degree is now a b o u t se v en y ears. © The Author(s). European University Institute. version produced by the EUI Library in 2020. Available Open Access on Cadmus, European University Institute Research Repository.