Tag: Competitiveness

Universities and National Competitiveness

Ever since von Humboldt sold the Prussian Government on the idea that research universities were a tool with which to increase national power, they’ve been publicly funded to pursue precisely those ends.  The definition of “national power”, and the role universities are asked to play in developing it, has of course varied over time and by region.  Nowadays, we talk of power in terms of “national competitiveness”, and universities are supposed to play a role in ensuring that.  But even though competitiveness has been the watchword for going

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The Problem With Strategic Enrolment Management (SEM)

There are two basic issues with the way strategic enrolment management is practiced in Canada. The first is that there is a widespread misunderstanding about what it means to “compete” for students. SEM, done properly, is about competition, and finding ways to appeal to niche segments of the market that your competitors are also after. But few Canadian institutions have more than two genuine competitors, and even that’s being generous. Many are essentially local monopolies or duopolies. Only institutions in

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