The Challenge of EstablishingWorld-Class Universities

Salmi, Jamil

World Bank

关键词: ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT;    ACADEMIC FREEDOM;    ACADEMIC RANKING;    ACADEMIC STAFF;    ACADEMIC WORK;   

DOI  :  10.1596/978-0-8213-7865-6
RP-ID  :  47610

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

There are many important questions toask about the widespread push toward world-class status foruniversities around the world. Why is'world-class' the standard to which a nationshould aspire to build at least a subset of its tertiaryeducation system? Might many countries be better served bydeveloping the most locally relevant system possible,without concern for its relative merits in a globalcomparison? Is the definition of "world-class"synonymous with "elite Western" and thereforeinherently biased against the cultural traditions oftertiary education in non-Western countries? Are onlyresearch universities world-class, or can other types oftertiary education institutions (such as teachinguniversities, polytechnics, community colleges, and openuniversities) also aspire to be among the best of their kindin an international perspective? To answer these questions,the report starts by constructing an operational definitionof a world-class university. It then outlines and analyzespossible strategies and pathways for establishing suchuniversities and identifies the multiple challenges, costs,and risks associated with these approaches. It concludes byexamining the implications of this drive for world-classinstitutions on the tertiary education efforts of the WorldBank, offering options and alternative perspectives on hownations can develop the most effective and relevant tertiaryeducation system to meet their specific needs.