Between competition imperative and Europeanisation: the case of Higher Education reform in Poland

Abstract

Between Competition Imperative and Europeanisation. The Case of Higher Education Reform in Poland While the Europeanisation of Higher Education (HE) systems has triggered much debate, the relationship between European factors and domestic economic processes, has been less thoroughly analysed. This article analyses HE reforms in the light of two parallel processes, which have shaped this sector: the introduction of market mechanisms and a gradual Europeanisation. The Polish HE makes a good case study of the relationship between both processes as it has been shaped by the contingencies inherent to the establishment of a liberal economic regime. Another set of inputs originated from the conditionality of the EU accession process, which coincided with the launching of the Bologna Process. While the postcommunist transformations entailed the large-scale privatisation of the HE system, the Bologna Process defined the role of the sector as supporting a 'knowledge-based economy', an agenda promoted by the Lisbon strategy and international institutions in the field. Trying to combine the study of policy practice and narratives this article takes into account the legislative outcomes as well as the reform debates based both on economic arguments and on the necessity to 'catch up with Europe'.

How university global partnerships may facilitate a new era of international affairs and foster political and economic relations

“…It should also be noted that the choice of case studies as the methodological approach to this article follows similar studies in the literature (Dao, 2014;Dakowska, 2014). As a case study representing an empirical enquiry into a complex, social phenomenon that is contemporary, situated in a real-life setting, several sources of information are required to sustain an analytically meaningful case (Yin, 2003).…”

Tackling knowledge ‘like a business’? Rethinking the modernisation of higher education in Poland

“…2. According to Dakowska (2014), the transformations of the Polish HE system were similar to those in other Soviet Bloc countries, particularly in aiming to give higher education more autonomy and, in tune with neoliberal narratives promoted by organisations such as the OECD and the World Bank, pursuing competitiveness in the international HE market.…”

“…Ironically, under the current neoliberal modernisation, higher education is expected to go beyond mere compliance to demonstrate a proactive engagement in 'tackling science like a business' (Kudrycka 2008 (Haigh 2008;Kraśniewski 2009;Shields 2016). Other Soviet Bloc countries followed similar approaches to reforming their higher education systems (Slantcheva and Levy 2007;Surina 2014), to find out that 'catching up with Europe' (Dakowska 2014) may be more problematic than suggested by the themes of 'progress', 'hope' or 'salvation' permeating post-Socialist transition narratives (Silova 2010, 6). 2 The analytical framework adopted in this article focuses on the historical and current tendencies in Polish higher education and the dynamics involved.…”

European higher education policy

“…While the Bologna Process is sometimes presented as a set of consensual proposals whose application is left entirely in the hands of the states, several factors have reinforced its impact in new EU member states. Some of the new member states -especially those which were longmarginalized in international academic exchanges -seemed eager to be perceived as "good pupils" in the Bologna benchmarking graphs (Dakowska 2015). The fact that the Bologna Process was launched at the same time as the EU accession negotiations also explains why decision-makers in Central and Eastern European countries tended to consider its successive recommendations as part of a more general EU package (Deca 2015).…”