Goals of higher education system governance in a comparative perspective

Over the past three decades, the paradigm of New Public Management has characterised numerous reforms of higher education systems in Europe, with deficits increasingly being identified and criticism voiced in recent times. In many countries, management by objectives has changed the relationship between universities and the state through the instrument of performance agreements. In many countries, this led to greater competition and competitive pressure between the higher education institutions. Over time, however, the state also recognised the need to think of the overall system more as a unit and to manage it appropriately. National planning and strategy documents relating to the development of the higher education system as a whole came into force. In Austria, the Higher Education Plan 2030 was recently adopted for this purpose as an umbrella strategy for all sectors of the higher education sector. This contains various quantitative and qualitative objectives, which are implemented in the form of further, subordinate management instruments. In this context, the paper analyses the management objectives of higher education systems in a European comparison. Austria, Switzerland (ETH), the Netherlands, Finland, Ireland and England serve as comparative countries. The focus is on analysing the various strategic objectives that can be found in national higher education strategies and planning documents. Both similarities and differences in the management objectives are identified, quantitative and qualitative objectives are clustered and the related management instruments are analysed with a particular focus on public universities. The research method is based on a systematic analysis of relevant literature, institutional documents and political guidelines, and possibly also the relevant higher education laws, whereby the analysis centres on the strategy documents equivalent to the Austrian Higher Education Plan and its implementation instruments in the countries examined. In applying a comparative approach, both quantitative and qualitative indicators are used to enable a comprehensive assessment of the individual objectives and the overall strategic orientations of the various higher education systems analysed. The results of the study provide insights into the diversity of the governance objectives of higher education systems in the six European countries analysed, both in terms of form and content. For example, the extent to which individual SDGs or the concern for increased participation in science are already reflected as goals is also analysed. In addition, an overview of the steering instruments that operationalise the goals will be provided. Implications for the development of new, effective management strategies and, if necessary, statements on the further development of New Public Management can be derived from this. The findings of this study contribute to a deeper understanding of the governance of higher education systems. This offers approaches both for further research, for example with regard to the concrete legal implementation of the overarching objectives in the individual sectors, and for informed political decisions in terms of improving national higher education system management.