WHAT IS 'A SUCCESSFUL UNIVERSITY'?

Abstract

"The aim of this paper is to provide a basis for discussion and debate on definitions, characteristics and criteria of measurement of a successful university. While the core mission of universities indisputably remains teaching and research (Shattock 2010), universities in the 21s t century are increasingly called on to assume expanded roles as key players in knowledge societies and the knowledge economy. As universities take on these diverse roles, it becomes more difficult to agree on definitions and characteristics of success, and on valid and reliable criteria for measuring how successful they are. While this issue of defining success and its characteristics is implicit in many studies of various aspects of higher education, there is surprisingly little literature directly addressing the issue in a comprehensive and systematic way. As Shattock (2010: 7) has observed, "we feel instinctively we can recognise successful universities when we see them", but it can be challenging to provide justification and evidence for these judgements. This is especially true as universities seek to locate themselves within global systems, where global measures of certain aspects of success overshadow any other definitions or characteristics of success." --