chapter 5 responding to new demand in tertiary …

CHAPTER 5

RESPONDING TONEW DEMAND IN

TERTIARY EDUCATION

SUMMARY

A growing number of young people, and increasingly adults as well, are participating in tertiary education.The expansion in the first years of tertiary education has to a large extent been driven by demand – by thedesire of a wider group of people to be educated to higher levels, together with a growth in the acquisitionof upper secondary and other qualifications that gain them access. New groups bring new interests andneeds, which oblige tertiary systems to diversify structures, programmes and styles of delivery. This chapterlooks at where the new demand is coming from, at how systems and institutions are responding, and at thedegree to which they are able to offer suitable courses that lead to completion rather than drop-out.

A continuing rise in demand can be seen not only in countries where tertiary education has expandedrelatively recently, but also in those where it has been growing for some time. But new demand is comingfrom a greater range of age groups; even among people in their late twenties, participation rates are above10 per cent in Denmark, Finland, Germany, Norway and the United States. Students therefore come totertiary education with a wide range of prior experiences. They enter tertiary education programmes witheither academic or vocational qualifications acquired in upper secondary education, often with some otherpost-compulsory or tertiary education experience as well and sometimes with validated experience gainedoutside educational institutions. This range of student background adds to the diversity of their interests andneeds.

An increased number of students come from relatively disadvantaged backgrounds, although their share inthe total student body does not appear to have risen markedly. A more dramatic change is in the number ofwomen, who now comprise a majority of students in most countries.

As a result of these changes in demand, the character of tertiary education and of students’ experiences isevolving. Three features are particularly notable:

• The widening of vocational or professional studies, whether through new “non-university”programmes or institutions or changes in the curricula of existing study programmes;• The opening up by institutions of alternative pathways, particularly in countries where students havepreviously been channelled in pre-set directions within highly segmented systems;• The opening up of such pathways by the students themselves, who are making new kinds of choicesand thus creating new norms.

In managing these changes, an important challenge facing tertiary institutions is to reduce the incidence ofinefficient routes and drop-out. Although non-completion is a big concern for many countries, it is difficult tomeasure how many students leave tertiary education for negative reasons, how many never intended tocomplete a full degree or diploma, and how many go on to complete tertiary courses other than those inwhich they enrolled initially.

Thus governments face the challenge of encouraging the development of diverse and flexible options whichare clear in expectations, outcomes and links. Students need to be able to find courses that are well suitedto their capacities, interests and needs. This greater flexibility has to be balanced with good information,guidance and structured programmes to ensure that learning efforts are not wasted.

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80 RESPONDING TO NEW DEMAND IN TERTIARY EDUCATION

5.1 INTRODUCTION

Tertiary education traditionally has educated an elitegroup of young people to higher levels immediatelyafter they complete upper secondary educa-tion. Today, it provides opportunities forlearning to a much larger section of the youthand adult population. Figure 5.1 indicates thattertiary institutions now reach a quarter to athird of people in their late teens and earlytwenties in a number of countries, and in somecases over 10 per cent of the population areenrolled even in their late twenties. Thisexpansion has been driven primarily bydemand from a wider and more diversegroup of people for study beyond secondaryschooling, as a result of social and economicdevelopments common to all OECD countries.The challenge for tertiary education systemsis not merely to meet demand with an expan-sion of places, but also to adapt programmes,and teaching and learning to match a morediverse set of student needs while also meetingthe needs of the economy and society.

This final chapter looks at the structure of thedemand, at how systems are responding and atthe degree to which they are succeeding inmeeting new needs and interests. It focuses onthe first years of tertiary education (see Box 5A).Specifically, the chapter addresses the followingquestions:

• How much has demand risen?

• What are the routes into tertiary education?

• What is the profile of today’s entrants?

• What kinds of option are being offered tothese students?

• How many entrants fail to “complete” afirst cycle of tertiary education, and howcan drop-out be avoided?

These questions pose some clear challengesfor policy makers. A system that caters for anincreasingly heterogeneous group of studentsmust work not only to develop its diversity, butalso to ensure that students are in practiceoffered a range of choices that they can matchto their needs. However, diversity and choiceare not without limits. Students need to be

helped to acquire a complex range of advanced-level knowledge, skills and dispositions. Theycannot do so simply by choosing from a vast, un-differentiated array of course options. The keyrole of institutions is their ability to organiselearning in ways that reflect the complex struc-tures of knowledge, its uses and the interrela-tionships among its elements. The challenge ishow to provide for diversity and choice whileensuring the effectiveness and efficiency of well-designed, coherent programmes.

A further policy challenge is to address theneeds of the economy and of society alongsideindividual demands. The OECD Jobs Study (1994)signalled the imperative of improving flexibil-ity in the population to foster economic growthand employment. That flexibility can be partlyrealised through a progressive implementationof a lifelong approach to learning as set out byOECD Education Ministers (OECD, 1996a). Butgovernments cannot expect to promote strate-gies for lifelong learning by directly controllingtertiary education. On the contrary, there is aneed to build up the capacity of institutions tomanage themselves and to forge new partner-ships with employers and others, to help meeteconomic and social demands. An importantrequirement of these new partnerships is tomove beyond a view of graduates as people withhomogeneous attributes and knowledge, andbeyond a single narrow conception of what afirst degree or diploma should certify. This doesnot mean abandoning standards or quality con-trol. Rather, within and among the diverse rangeof learning options, each study programmeneeds to have well-defined standards, contentand qualifications. The characteristics ofprogrammes should be made transparent toemployers and others, and students should beable to move more flexibly among them.

5.2 THE RISE IN DEMAND

New demand for tertiary education has comefrom a variety of sources. Rising aspirations,changing patterns of employment and careersand rising incomes and wealth have made somecontinuation of education beyond the secondarylevel both an expectation and a perceived

81RESPONDING TO NEW DEMAND IN TERTIARY EDUCATION

Figure 5.1 indicates that demand continues togrow not only in countries where rapidexpansion occurred relatively recently, such asFrance, Portugal and Norway, but also in thosewith longer experience of high levels ofparticipation such as Canada and the UnitedStates. But the age range at which enrolmentrates are rising fastest varies from one countryto another. In France, for example, the biggestgrowth from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990swas for the age group 18-21: the enrolment ratefor this group rose from one-fifth to one-thirdof the total. But in the United States, one-thirdof the population aged 18-21 were alreadyenrolled by 1985, and the growth in demandcame rather from people in their mid-twenties.Higher participation among older age groupsin some countries reflects a lengthening of theduration of studies, but it can also indicatemore frequent alternation between work andstudy, or a growth in combined or complemen-tary qualifications. All these possibilities addto the diversity of demand that tertiaryeducation must respond to.

Since 1980 the proportion of young people whocomplete a full cycle of secondary education,and therefore qualify (in most cases) forentrance into tertiary education, has increasedin all countries (see OECD, 1996b, p.15). By1995, the proportion of the cohort completingupper secondary education exceeded 90 percent in Belgium (Flemish Community), Finland,Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, and Norway (seeFigure 5.2).

This increase in completion of upper secondaryeducation tends to lead to higher participationin tertiary education independently of policiesadopted for that sector. Once learning is realisedon this scale in upper secondary education, it ishard to resist the consequent demand for tertiarystudies – particularly in countries that offer aspecific entitlement to further study to uppersecondary-school graduates. In countries suchas Australia, Denmark, France and Ireland,policies to increase the proportion of the agecohort completing secondary education have notonly succeeded in achieving that objective butalso led directly to a rise in the numbers enteringtertiary programmes.

Box 5AWHAT IS MEANT BY THE FIRST YEARS OF

TERTIARY EDUCATION?

Tertiary education refers to a level of broadlydefined studies, provided through establishedforms of higher education, but also in otherways – through new kinds of institutions, byenterprises and in other non-formal settings.

Nevertheless, it is mainly through institutions– colleges, polytechnics, universities, whetherpublic or private – that tertiary education isprovided.

The first years of tertiary education, the subjectof this chapter, refer to the period of study(typically three to five years) undertaken priorto the award of an initial qualification that isrecognised on the labour market. Adulteducation, in a wide variety of forms, isgenerally excluded from this definition, as areprogrammes that lead primarily to awards atsub-degree level.

An element of imprecision is inevitable, giventhe different structural arrangements inMember countries and the choices studentsthemselves make. See OECD (1997b).

necessity for a growing number of individuals.At the same time, a more educated popula-tion is collectively considered an importantinvestment for societies and economies (seeChapter 2).

It is not possible to calculate precisely thedemand for tertiary education in societieswhere most of its participants are dependenton supply decisions made by governments.Nevertheless, the rate of enrolment in tertiaryeducation is one proxy measure of demand,since decisions to provide places are influ-enced by pressure from those who wish toparticipate. Another indirect measure is therate at which people qualify to enter tertiaryeducation by graduating from upper secondaryprogrammes.


1985 1995

% % 10 20 30 40 500

* *

40 30 20 10 050

More young people are participating intertiary education than before: not justteenagers, but in many countries,a substantial proportion of people in their

early and late twenties.

Figure 5.1Trends in participation in tertiary education by agePercentage of three age groups enrolled in tertiary education, public and private, 1985 and 1995

* Data refer to ages 22-29.Source: OECD Education Database.

France

Switzerland

Sweden

Ireland

Norway

Germany

Denmark

New Zealand

United States

Finland

Netherlands

Spain

Portugal

Countries are ranked by the net enrolmentrates of 18-21 year-olds in 1995.

Age 18-21

Age 22-25

Age 26-29

Canada

Belgium

Data and notes for Figure 5.1: page 114.


However, it should not be taken for granted thatupper secondary completion will continuesteadily to rise. In the United States, for example,completion rates appear to have stabilised ordecreased to levels below 80 per cent. But thisdoes not automatically reduce the demand fortertiary study. While the proportion of US publichigh school students estimated to graduate fellfrom 73 per cent in 1986 to 70 per cent in 1994,the proportion who went on to participate intertiary education rose sharply, from 43 per centto 57 per cent (Mortenson, 1996).1

In France, the number of those attaining thebaccalauréat increased strongly to 1995 (adoubling over 10 years), but is expected toremain at present levels, about 60 per cent ofthe cohort, to 2005. While some French youngpeople who lack this upper secondary schoolqualification pursue other forms of vocationally-qualifying education, an estimated 20 per centof the cohort are expected to be students who

present themselves for the baccalauréat, but donot pass. Both the French and US cases thusillustrate a widespread and worrying polarisa-tion between a greater number continuing onto tertiary studies and a substantial numberfailing during the course of secondary schooling(see also Chapter 4).

5.3 ROUTES INTO TERTIARY EDUCATION

Expansion in the number of young peoplecompleting either academic or vocationalstreams of upper secondary education explainsonly partly the increase in demand for tertiaryeducation. There is also growing use ofalternative routes and pathways for youngpeople and adults who have some post-

Cze

ch R

epub

lic

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

130

110

120

Den

mar

k

Spai

n

Fran

ce

Women - General

Figure 5.2a Routes to upper secondary graduationRatio of upper secondary graduates to population at typical graduation age,by type of programme and gender, 1995

General academicstudies are not theonly means ofcompleting uppersecondary educationin many OECDcountries…

* “General” upper secondary education contains a number of strong vocational elements.Source:␣ ␣ ␣ OECD Education Database.

Men and women -Vocationaland apprenticeship

Women -Vocationaland apprenticeship

Countries are ranked by thetotal graduation rate.

Men and women -General

Nor

way

Belg

ium

(Fle

mis

h C

omm

unity

)

Gre

ece

Switz

erla

nd

Kor

ea

Hun

gary

Finl

and

New

Zea

land

Japa

n

Irel

and*

Ital

y

Swed

en

Turk

ey

Ger

man

y

Data for Figure 5.2a: page 114.

1. The estimates for high school completion are based on publichigh school students who subsequently graduate; those for enrolmentin tertiary education cover both public and private high schoolgraduates.


compulsory or tertiary education experience. Agrowing number of entrants are adults who havelong since left secondary school, many of whomuse such alternative routes in.

Figure 5.2a shows that among those whocomplete an upper secondary programme, insome countries a large proportion do so throughvocational and apprenticeship routes. This ispartly reflected in the background of those whoenter tertiary education. But, as indicated inFigure 5.2b, students entering tertiary educa-tion programmes may have prior experience intertiary education or enter through other routessuch as conversion courses, professional quali-fications and on the basis of work experience.

In Denmark, for example, about a quarter ofentrants into tertiary education come throughupper secondary vocational education or non-traditional routes of access. In France, aboutone-sixth of first year enrolments in tertiaryeducation have qualifications other than thegeneral or technological baccalauréat; a large pro-portion of these students have switched fromother tertiary-level programmes, bringing addi-tional educational experience to their first yearstudies. In Australia, only just over half of thosecommencing bachelor’s courses are admitted onthe basis of the completion of the final year ofsecondary education. Of the remainder, overhalf have already undertaken a previous tertiarycourse, and are likely to have different needsfrom those who have just left secondary educa-tion. In the United Kingdom, more than onethird of full-time, first degree and diplomastudents present qualifications other thanA-Levels; the Council for Industry and HigherEducation (CIHE) advocates that eventuallyA-Level qualifications (the “academic” route)should account for about half of entrants intotertiary education, with the other half comprisedprimarily of those with General NationalVocational Qualifications (GNVQ).

Any policies addressing routes of access totertiary education need to consider people’sneeds over their whole life rather than just atthe point of leaving secondary school. Asdiscussed in the next section, in some countriesaround half of new entrants into tertiary educa-tion are aged over 25. The routes by which these

Figure 5.2b Routes to tertiary educationQualifications on entry in selected countries,percentage distributions, various years

Countries are ranked by the percentageof new entrants with other than generalsecondary educational qualifications.

* Other includes students with a baccalauréat who changedprogrammes as well as students with some tertiary experience.

Australia

General 55%

Other 13%

France

General 62%

Technological 23%

Vocational 2%

Other* 13%

UnitedKingdom

General 65%

Other 27%

Vocational 8%

Denmark

General 75%

Other 10%

Vocational 15%

Japan

General 85%

Vocational 15%

Mature age/employment

experience 6%

… and between onein seven and nearlyone in two studentsenter tertiary-levelprogrammes withqualificationsother than orin addition togeneral uppersecondary education.

Some tertiary26%

Data, notes and sources for Figure 5.2b: page 115.


adults qualify can no longer be seen as a sideissue, but will influence the mission andcharacter of the entire system.

5.4 THE PROFILE OF NEW ENTRANTS

People entering tertiary education come from awide range of social backgrounds. Over time, thecharacteristics of those aspiring to tertiary-levelstudies have grown more diverse as a result ofchanges in policy aims, in levels of provision ofpost-compulsory education, in social welfarepolicies and in employment conditions andprospects. Three patterns in the profile of newentrants in particular should be noted:

Tertiary education caters for all social and ethnic back-grounds, despite a continuing bias towards privilegedsocio-economic groups.

A significant, although under-representative,group of students in tertiary education come fromless privileged socio-economic backgrounds. Thenumber, if not the share, of students from thesegroups has increased with expansion in mostcountries. There are no reliable and internation-ally comparable indicators on the social patternof enrolment. But within countries, there is atendency for working-class participation to be sub-stantially greater (but still under-representative)on courses of brief rather than long duration andwith a vocational rather than general orientation.

In Denmark, for example, a longitudinal studyfollowing the experiences of a cohort aged 14 in1968 showed that by age 38, only 14 per cent ofthose who pursued long-cycle studies had“working-class” origins, compared to 30 per centof students on short-cycle courses. But since37 per cent of the survey population wasclassified as working class, this group was under-represented even on short-cycle courses. Theprofessional class, constituting 7 per cent of thesurvey population, was slightly over-representedon short-cycle courses (8 per cent of students)and greatly over-represented in long-cyclestudies (29 per cent).2

But has large-volume participation narrowed thegap between high and low socio-economic groups?The evidence is mixed.

• In the United States, differentials have actuallywidened since the 1970s. Between 1977-79 and1991-93, the participation rate of 18- and 19-year-olds from families in the top income quar-tile rose from 69 per cent to 75 per cent, whilethat of young people from the bottom quartileremained stable at 26 per cent (Kane, 1995).

• In Japan, the trend is less clear-cut: from 1980 to1990 the share of student enrolment by youngpeople originating from the bottom two incomequintiles remained constant, but in the previ-ous decade they had increased their share from27 per cent to 36 per cent of tertiary enrolments(excluding special training schools) (Kaneko andKitamura, 1995).

Many factors influence the participation of peoplefrom less privileged backgrounds. An increasingnumber of young people and adults from thesegroups participate in a widening range of post-compulsory education and training options insteadof regular tertiary education studies. New teachingstyles throughout the education system can helpto make such studies more accessible to potentiallearners from some socio-economic groups thanthey have been in the past.

But as countries such as Australia, Italy, theNetherlands, New Zealand, Portugal and the UnitedKingdom introduce or consider policies requiringgreater student (as well as third-party) contribu-tions to meet part of the cost of tertiary education,there is a risk that those from less advantagedgroups will be more reluctant to enrol. To attackthe perception of unaffordability, current budgetproposals in the United States would provide taxbreaks introducing a transparent, federal “guaran-tee” of public funding sufficient to meet minimumtuition charges for anyone who aspires to and isable to benefit from tertiary education. The UnitedStates and other countries with tuition fees areseeking to reduce further the risk of weakerparticipation among lower socio-economic groupsthrough the allocation of need-based financialsupport, or by postponement or forgiveness ofrepayment, when the incomes of graduates fallshort of a given threshold.

2. For the purposes of the study, “professional class” comprises allwho function in knowledge-based positions, including engineers;teachers and librarians; doctors, veterinary surgeons and dentists;and architects. See Hansen (1996).


For reasons specific to the countries concerned,New Zealand and the United States have supportedthe development of separate, publicly-fundedtertiary-level institutions to cater for specific needsand interests of some young people and adults fromidentified minority groups (respectively, Maori, andNative American and African American). Studentsfrom these groups already can be found in signi-ficant numbers in the programmes and institutionsaimed at all young people and adults, but theiroverall participation rates remain relatively low.

Women are now a majority of participants in tertiaryeducation, although their representation differs greatlyby course type.

If the change in the social balance in tertiaryeducation has been at best limited, the change inthe gender balance has been dramatic. Figure 5.3ashows that, in a majority of OECD countries, moststudents enrolled are now women.

The growth in women’s participation has beenstimulated by high upper secondary schoolcompletion rates, particularly from general streams,which in a number of countries are more likely tolead to tertiary education. Indeed, in all but two ofthe 18 countries shown in Figure 5.2a, women aremore likely than men to complete secondary schoolin general streams (exceptions are Korea andTurkey). In some countries, this appears to bebecause men are more likely to follow vocationaloptions, as in Norway, where 50 per cent of womenand 38 per cent of men graduate from generalcourses. In others, the gender difference is apparenteven though there is relatively little vocational edu-cation. An example is Ireland, where 96 per cent ofwomen but 83 per cent of men complete generalstreams in upper secondary.

The gender balance varies widely in differentfields of study. The programmes least likely toenrol women are those in natural sciences andin industrial and engineering fields. Women aremore likely to enrol in fields related to the healthprofessions, education and in the social andbehavioural sciences (Figure 5.3b). In somecountries, study programmes in the latter fields arefound outside universities, and often limitenrolment in line with capacity constraints andestimates by public authorities of needed or desiredsupply of highly-qualified labour. The consequence,

0 25 50 75 %

Non-university

University

Figure 5.3a Women entering tertiary educationAs a percentage of new entrants, 1995

In the majority of countries, most newstudents are women…

Source: ␣ ␣ ␣ OECD Education Database.

Turkey

Switzerland

Ireland

Finland

Austria

Italy

Sweden

Canada

Norway

Denmark

Portugal

New Zealand

United States

Spain

Netherlands

Hungary

United Kingdom

Germany

Korea

Countries are ranked by entry into university education.

Data for Figure 5.3a: page 115.


25

%

0 25 50 75 100

05075100

%

Non-university

Figure 5.3b The gender balance in different subjectsPercentage of new entrants who are women, selected subjects, 1995

Source: OECD Education Database.

Natural science, mathematics and computer science

Medical science and health-related

Education science and teacher training, agriculture,forestry and fishery, home economics (domestic science),service trades, other programmes

Trade, craft, and industrial engineering, architecture andtown planning, transport and communications

… but women continue to be greatlyunder-represented in some subject areas,and over-represented in others.

University

Countries appear in alphabetical order.

Sweden

Spain

Netherlands

Italy

Iceland

Denmark

Canada

Austria

Finland

Germany

Japan

Norway

New Zealand

Portugal

Switzerland

Turkey

Data for Figure 5.3b: page 116.


in Denmark for example, is that young women maybe less likely than young men to enter or succeedin their first choice programme or institution.Conversely, young women represent a significantreservoir of intellectual talent which could bebrought into science, mathematics and technicalprogrammes in tertiary education where capacityexceeds enrolment. This is a particularly attractivepossibility in countries where the number ofgraduates in these subjects is considered to fallshort of what is needed to undergird balancedmedium-term economic development. Steps havebeen taken, in Denmark and other countries, toinfluence women’s choices.

In some countries up to half of entrants to tertiaryeducation are over age 25, although this varies greatlyaccording to each country’s situation.

Adult participation is creating a “quiet” revolutionin tertiary student profiles. Figure 5.4 shows that, ina few countries, nearly half of students enter tertiaryeducation for the first time after the age of 25. Butthis is by no means a general trend. In somecountries, fewer than one in five new entrants areover 25; these include Austria and the Netherlands.In France, virtually all new entrants are under 25 yearsof age.

Where adult participation has grown, it has to alarge extent done so because individuals havepreferred to delay entry, because they wanted a“second chance” or because they felt that theyneeded to upgrade their skills, rather than becausegovernments have followed specific policies to getadults to study. But in some cases such policieshave indeed played a role: during the 1980s,Sweden’s “25:4” scheme, which reserved tertiaryeducation places for those at least 25 years of ageand with four years of work experience, assuredgreater adult participation than had previouslybeen the case. Australia and the United Kingdomhave for some years had special admissionsschemes for mature age students. Thesecountries and Japan also offer open universityprogrammes. In New Zealand, policy has longprovided a favourable, “open admissions” route foradults. Indeed, the growth in adult enrolments hasso raised concerns about rates of admission ofyounger New Zealanders that the government hasput in place a “study-right” incentive for providersthrough which an increased level of public funding

In some countries,up to half of first-time students areover 25.

Figure 5.4 First-time entrants intotertiary education by age, 1995

The surface represented by each square is equal in size tothe estimated values provided in the corresponding table.Source:␣ ␣ ␣ OECD Education Database.

University Non-university

Netherlands

Austria

France

Denmark

NewZealand

Canada

Norway

Age unknownAges 35 and overAges 26-34Ages 25 and under

Countries are ranked bythe proportion of newentrants in non-universitytertiary education who areover 25 years of age.

Data and notes for Figure 5.4: page 116.


is provided to institutions for each student under22 who enrols in tertiary education for the first time.

The reasons why adults in some countriesparticipate so much less than in others are complex,reflecting country structures and traditions. Theextensive provision of vocational education andapprenticeships in Austria, Belgium, Denmark,Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland hasprovided solid preparation and qualification forwork and so reduced the perceived need to acquireformal tertiary-level studies at a later date. In thesecountries, many adults already participate in job-related education and training, outside formalinstitutions, as well as other forms of learning. Thepattern may be changing, however, as growingnumbers of young people with post-compulsoryvocational qualifications seek to enter tertiaryeducation: in Germany, an estimated 40 per centof those participating in vocational training in thedual system eventually take up tertiary studies.

It is possible that the age distribution of learnerswill widen further as tertiary education becomesmore open and accessible to all students,regardless of age. Such an opening up provideslearners with greater scope to determine the besttiming for their entry into tertiary education.

5.5 SUPPLY-SIDE RESPONSES

In response to large-volume participation and tonew kinds of demand for tertiary education, awide range of options have been developed.Diversification has taken a number of forms bothwithin and outside tertiary institutions. It hasincluded more “non-university” institutions andprogrammes, a blurring of the distinctiveness ofprogrammes between sectors, better articulationbetween courses, the networking of institutionsand programmes, “franchise” arrangements ordistance learning.

One indicator of diversity is the introductionand further development of “non-university”programmes, that serve to broaden the forms oftertiary education available to learners. Figure 5.5shows that around one half of students in the firstyears of tertiary education are enrolled in suchprogrammes in certain countries. These pro-grammes give greater emphasis to applicationsof learning and especially links to employment.

% 0 25 50 75 100

Source: ␣ ␣ ␣ OECD Education Database.

Figure 5.5 The split between university andother tertiary education programmesPercentage of non-university tertiary educationin total enrolment, first stage, 1995

The proportion of students enrollingin university courses ranges from thevast majority in some countries toaround half in others.Countries are ranked by the percentage enrolled inuniversity education.


Spain

Italy

Austria

Mexico

Germany

Czech Republic

Denmark

Iceland

Portugal

Finland

Turkey

Korea

Greece

United Kingdom

New Zealand

Japan

Norway

United States

Ireland

Australia

Switzerland

Canada

Belgium

Data for Figure 5.5: page 117.


Non-university programmes are particularlyattractive to adults, owing to a short programmeduration and more flexible organisational arrange-ments which support part-time, evening, workbased and distance learning options. In some casesthey have been seen as a tertiary level extension oftechnical and professional secondary education.Austria, the Czech Republic, Finland, Italy andMexico have undertaken or are contemplatingreforms aimed at developing new distinctiveinstitutions and programmes of this type.

Regardless of the intent of existing structures, therehas in practice been a considerable easing of therigid tracks that in some countries have tended topreclude participation in tertiary education forstudents from secondary vocational streams, or tochannel students from particular secondarystreams into associated tertiary branches. Figure5.6 shows that while some forms of entry qualifica-tion are more likely to lead to given types of tertiaryeducation than others, the match is by no means aprecise one. In France, for example, while about85 per cent of those entering tertiary education withthe general baccalauréat choose university pro-grammes or preparatory classes for the grandes écoles,15 per cent choose the short-cycle, vocationally-

oriented programmes offered through the univer-sity institutes of technology (IUT) or the advancedtechnician sections (STS) of the lycées. Conversely,while about 70 per cent of those entering tertiaryeducation with the technological baccalauréatchoose “matching” forms of tertiary education (IUTand STS), some 30␣ per cent enrol in universityprogrammes. In Germany and Japan, similar pat-terns can be observed; for example, about one-fifthof Japanese graduates of the vocational stream ofupper secondary education go on to enrol in uni-versity programmes.

While such “crossover” can be measured directlyin countries where tertiary institutions aresegmented into distinct categories, an equiva-lent growth in flexibility is occurring, if less vis-ibly, in “unitary” systems with a single kind of in-stitution. In both segmented and unitary sys-tems, there is an increasing diversity of pro-grammes and arrangements, within and amonginstitutions, regardless of sector or status. Thedistinction between university and non-univer-sity is blurred almost everywhere. It is commonfor institutions of different types to offer pro-grammes which might lead to similar jobs, if notproviding similar coursework – for example in the

%0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100%

Figure 5.6 Entry qualifications and type of programmeInitial destinations in tertiary education, selected countries, various years

Typically, students with general qualifications enrolin university courses while those with vocationalqualifications enrol in other types of programmes.But a substantial proportion follow atypical routes.

Note:␣ ␣ ␣ France: university includes preparatory classes forthe grandes écoles; Japan: non-university includes juniorcolleges. Tertiary education destinations other thanuniversities (as defined here) are varied: Fachhochschulen inGermany are not the equivalent of special training schoolsin Japan or the university institutes of technology oradvanced technician sections of the lycées in France.Source:␣ ␣ ␣ OECD Secretariat.

With general entry qualification With vocational entry qualification

France

GermanyFormer Länder

Japan

GermanyNew Länder


Countries are ranked by the proportion with general entry qualifications.

Data for Figure 5.6: page 117.


fields of commerce and computer science inBelgium (Flemish Community), France, Japan,New Zealand, the United States and also in Australiaand the United Kingdom.

Many countries now have a broader range ofinstitutions and programmes than ever before,accommodating both larger numbers and a widerdiversity of interests and abilities. Box 5B givesexamples. Although many innovations of thistype are too recent to be well established, theyrepresent significant efforts on the part ofsystems and providers to respond to demand,both individual and social.

An important, often unremarked feature of recentpatterns of participation is that many new path-

Box 5BDIVERSIFYING THE SUPPLY OF TERTIARY EDUCATION

Diversity in Sweden’s unitary system. Though diverse in character and programmes, all institutions operateunder a single framework and on a single funding basis. Diversity and distinctiveness in programmes aremaintained and enhanced through a reflection in university colleges of regional interests, and also throughproductive co-operative working arrangements between, for example, the University of Uppsala and theUniversity College of Örebro in which Uppsala professors work in Örebro. Such co-operative arrangementspermit each institution to develop its distinctive character while benefiting students and staff at both.

Extending tertiary provision in New Zealand. Secondary schools may be approved to offer tertiary-levelcourse modules; those that do so typically have established articulation arrangements with nearby universitiesor polytechnics and may work co-operatively with teaching staff at these institutions. Funding is providedfrom the government to the secondary school, on the basis of the number of students enrolled.

Bachelor’s degree in Denmark. The Ministry approved and has supported the introduction of a three-yearbachelor’s degree as the first tertiary-level qualification in universities, rather than the most common five-six year master’s degree. There is successful experience in engineering and business, and wider acceptanceof the degree is being fostered through means such as development of a “vocationally-oriented” six-monthmodule to be attached to bachelor’s degree programmes and an experimental linking of basic teachereducation with the university to be established in the domain of science.

Work experience in the United Kingdom. The government’s Enterprise in Higher Education initiative and thework of Training Enterprise Councils have had the effect of stimulating new active teaching partnerships.Co-operative arrangements enable students to apply what they have learnt in their formal studies in thework environment (often with an assessment and credit for the experience and knowledge gained) andprovide a value-added service for the firm or organisation concerned.

New tertiary education option in Switzerland. In the face of reduced volume in apprenticeships, increaseddemand for tertiary education, and in order to make higher vocational education attractive for betterstudents with practical training, a new upper secondary qualification (Berufsmaturität/maturité professionnelle)was introduced. This permits access to the newly created Fachhochschulen/hautes écoles spécialisées. Thealready well-developed, but scattered non-university sector which encompassed until now institutions ofdifferent status and levels is being progressively redesigned.

ways are being created, not so much by thedeliberate policies pursued by educationauthorities, but rather by the choices made bythe students themselves. These choices reflectstrategies aiming to take advantage of theoptions best suited to individual interests andneed. Examples of such new, “spontaneous” path-ways in tertiary education are described in Box 5C.

While growing diversity of supply already reflectsa responsiveness to demand, there is a need formany countries to reinforce and extend thisresponse. Firstly, they can encourage providersto facilitate further new means of entry to, exitfrom and mobility within tertiary education(through, for example, wider use of credittransfer and modules). Secondly, they can


Box 5CDIVERSIFYING QUALIFICATIONS THROUGH STUDENT CHOICE

Double degrees in Australia. There is growing interest in combined or double degrees acquired at a singleuniversity, for which arts and law are a long established precedent. Double degrees now increasingly includeelements of business, engineering or teacher education. Such studies usually require five years, as comparedto a three-year full-time course for a generalist first degree, or four years’ study for an honours degree.

Pathways through tertiary education in France. Successful completion of any first-cycle programme of studypermits students to pursue studies in any field. As a result, French students follow a variety of paths toadvanced degrees. The proportion of graduates of technical, employment-oriented programmes of theuniversity institutes of technology (IUT) and advanced technician sections of the lycées who continue theirstudies has increased over time; by 1992, almost two-thirds of DUT (Diplôme Universitaire Technologique)holders and two-fifths of BTS (Brevet de Technicien Supérieurs) holders were continuing studies mostly insecond cycle programmes in universities, engineering schools and business schools. These proportions arehigher than expected, and they have had some influence on the nature of teaching and learning in the firstcycle programmes. A related consequence is that technological and vocational baccalauréat holders whoare unable to find places in IUT and STS (Sections de Techniciens Supérieurs) programmes, pursue tertiarystudies in open access university programmes. More than 10 pathways to the specialised diplomas of highereducation (DESS - Diplôme d’Etudes Supérieures Spécialisées) have been identified. The different choices ofpathways imply educational costs per student ranging from 166␣ 500␣ FF to 376␣ 800␣ FF, reflecting both differencesin the annual per student costs within the different elements of the pathways and differences in the averagetime actually needed to complete the various elements (including re-taking or extending a year’s study).3

Multiple degrees in the Netherlands. Dutch students choose between higher professional colleges (HBO) anduniversities, each providing first degree courses usually requiring four years of study. Following the approvalin 1988 of an act which provided HBO graduates with the possibility of obtaining a university degree inreduced time, increasing numbers of students now follow such programmes to obtain the two qualifications.While the statutory status of these abridged university degree programmes has been withdrawn and fundingis now time-limited, Dutch research indicates that the interest in “stacking” qualifications may well increase asstudents and their families see this as a means of keeping options open, of making adjustments in choices andof pursuing academic study as an important activity and experience in its own right.

Seminars and workshops organised by student associations in Portugal. Partly in response to a broadening ofemployment destinations of graduates, Portuguese students are participating in a range of seminars, workshopsand activities covering topics such as job search, work experience and entrepreneurship as well as basiccomputer skills. Within some universities, the activities are being organised by student associations.

Articulation and credit transfer in the United States. Young and adult students follow course modules incommunity colleges which afford them flexible options for transfer to institutions offering bachelor’s degreeprogrammes. In Virginia, a state policy on transfer has defined a “transfer module” which, if successfullycompleted at a community college, guarantees admission into a bachelor’s degree programme in a publicinstitution. One public university has a well-established articulation arrangement with its region’s communitycollege; the result is that the university’s transfer enrolments are greater than freshman enrolments.

establish broad frameworks that help makealternative pathways and options more feasible.Such frameworks need to be inclusive: specificagreements between institutions on matters suchas certification should not foreclose wider regional

or system-wide arrangements, providing for qualityassurance, standards, assessment and recognition.

3. See CEREQ (1995) and Observatoire des coûts des établisse-ments de l’enseignement supérieur (1997).


5.6 DROP-OUT AND NON-COMPLETION

Concern about failure, drop-out and non-completion has increased with growth and diversityin participation. Social and economic develop-ments call for a shift in the orientation in the firstyears of tertiary education from selection toinclusiveness. From this perspective, drop-out andfailure can be seen as indicators of how well tertiaryeducation is adapted to the interests and back-grounds of learners. A more specific concern relatesto the direct financial costs of failure and drop-out.In Belgium (Flemish Community), it is estimatedthat a 60␣ per cent improvement in pass rates onend-of-year examinations would reduce the averagetime to degree completion in universities by aboutone-fifth of a year in relation to study programmesof 4 to 5 years (longer for physicians).

Estimated rates of non-completion vary widely: 6-13 per cent in the United Kingdom; 23 per cent in

Denmark; 29-31 per cent in Germany; and 64 percent in Italy. Japan is located at the low end ofthis range, the United States somewhere in themiddle.

These figures fail to convey fully the context forand experiences of those identified as “drop-outs” or “non-completers”. In Italy, for example,it is estimated that many of the 23 per cent wholeave tertiary education early in the course oftheir studies (accounting for more than a thirdof the overall rate of non-completion) do sowithout having attended a lecture or sat anexamination (Moortgat, 1996). In the UnitedStates, it is increasingly common for learners toregister for modular courses with no intentionof completing a degree or diploma programme.

More detailed patterns of failure and non-completion for six European cases are presentedin Figure 5.7.

%0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70

Figure 5.7 Non-completion ratesVarious forms of failure or non-completion in tertiary education in selected countries, various years

Fail in first year

Fail to completeprogramme

Fail to completeany programme

A large proportionof students do not com-plete the programmefor which they enrol,but defining andmeasuring failureis a complex matter(see text).

* Sections de Techniciens Supérieurs.Note: Figures have been drawn from several sources, and are therefore subject to differences in coverage and methodology.Further work to improve the comparative information base is needed.

Belgium, Flemish Community,Non-university

Belgium, Flemish Community,University

Denmark, Tertiary

Germany, Tertiary

France, Tertiary (excluding STS*)

France, University Institutesof Technology

United Kingdom, Total tertiary

Belgium, French Community,University

Belgium, French Community,Non-university

Italy, Tertiary

Countries appear inalphabetical order.

Sources, data and notes for Figure 5.7: page 118.


In interpreting the findings, it should be noted that:

• It is possible to fail in part of the systemand still gain a qualification. In Belgium,open access to tertiary education focusesattention on pass rates at the end of thefirst year, estimated to be about half of allfirst-time students. But as students mayretake failed exams, the proportion who,once enrolled, fail to complete the firstcycle of their study programmes is gener-ally lower.

• Changing courses is not the same asdropping out. The available data are weak,but it is estimated that in Denmark forexample, while two-fifths of those com-mencing a course leading to the first degreewill fail to complete that programme, 15 percent will change programmes and institu-tions. Thus, about one-quarter of thoseentering tertiary education will leave withoutacquiring a qualification.

• Non-completion can potentially increasewith expansion. In the United Kingdom,although rates of retention and program-me completion remain high relative toexperience in other countries, concern isbeing expressed about whether such highrates can be sustained in the wake of therapid expansion of enrolments during theearly 1990s. Rates of failure or non-completion appeared to increase, forexample, in Belgium (French Community)and Germany, from about 1970 to thebeginning of the 1990s. In both countries,participation in the first years of tertiaryeducation expanded over this period.

Information to help understand “drop-out” or“non-completion” is limited and uneven. Thenature of the problem is not well-defined withincountries and it may be changing with thegrowing numbers and increased diversity in back-grounds and interests of those now participating.Non-completion is not always a negativephenomenon. It can potentially reflect:

• an intent to “stop-out”, rather than “drop-out”.

• a desire by the student merely to take a courserather than a full degree or diploma; or

• a decision to change orientation onceenrolled.

On the other hand, non-completion can indicate:

• a failure to realise an intended degree ordiploma objective; or

• a lack of an appropriate diversity inoptions, pathways or range of forms ofteaching responsive to the varied back-grounds and interests of learners.

So implications for policy are unclear. Patternsof failure, drop-out and non-completion varywithin countries by programme, secondaryschool qualification, social background andage. The underlying problems giving rise tothese patterns have not been fully identified.In France and Belgium (Flemish Community),for example, students with technical andprofessional preparation in secondary educa-tion are more likely to fail in university studiesand less likely to fail in short-cycle, non-university programmes. In the United States,studies have demonstrated that the leastwell-prepared students (as measured by highschool grades and scores on college entrancetests) are five times more likely to drop-outthan the best-prepared students. Rates ofdrop-out vary among programmes and insti-tutions, in line with prior preparation ofstudents enrolled. Programmes with largernumbers of less well-prepared students tendto have higher drop-out rates – but this is notalways the fault of the programmes, which maydo a better job in retaining these studentsthan programmes in which they are lesscommon.

If the direction for development is the gradualrealisation of a lifelong approach to learning,the response to failure should not be to channelstudents into narrow options thought to suittheir abilities, but rather to give them moreoptions and greater support. In particular, thereis a need for counselling and for instructionmethods well suited to students who have fol-lowed non-traditional routes, who are older orwho come from less well-represented back-grounds.


5.7 CONCLUSIONS

To help shape an appropriate response to widerparticipation in tertiary education, policy makersneed to address the many new interests andneeds of a larger student body that is more variedthan previously in age, social background andprior educational experience. Internationalindicators that can reflect this diversity do notyet exist. The principal weakness is a lack ofcomparative information on individual charac-teristics and choices. Most of the availableindicators derive from programme- or institution-reported data, and so fail to provide the kind ofinformation needed to understand betterdeliberate choices such as programme changes,drop-out/stop-out and combinations of differenttypes of tertiary-level studies.

Policy frameworks in Australia, New Zealand, theUnited Kingdom and Japan, among others, areseeking to recognise if not foster such choices.With demand, both individual and social, as thedriving force, a new orientation is needed inpolicies and practices of inclusiveness ratherthan selection. Demand will need to be accom-modated with appropriate, effective provisiondesigned at the system, institution and pro-gramme levels, and aimed at encouragingparticipation and reducing failures. Currentpractices and new initiatives in Member countriesare beginning to reflect such an orientation, butmore could be and should be done.

Among the key policy implications that follow fromthis analysis are the following tasks for governmentsand tertiary education systems:

• to improve quality and to ensure that all youngpeople successfully master core learningobjectives through secondary education;

• to promote and sustain diversity in provision,in ways that affect programme content,teaching and learning within as well as amonginstitutions;

• to break from a channelling of studentsalong preset routes, by creating greaterflexibility in student pathways in practiceas well as policy, and reducing the needto “double-back” when moving from oneprogramme to another;

• to permit learners to time participation in thefirst years of tertiary education when it is bestsuited to their capacities, interests and needs;

• to balance this greater flexibility with goodinformation, guidance and structured pro-grammes, teaching and learning to ensure thatlearning efforts are not wasted;

• to strengthen management and leadershipcapacities at the institutional level, in orderto widen the scope for the exercise ofautonomy by providers within a policy frame-work that encourages responsiveness todemand and supports the development ofadministrative and teaching staff.

References

BLACK, P. and ATKIN, J.M. (1996), Changing the Subject: Innovations in Science, Mathematics and Technology Education, OECD and Routledge,Paris and London.

CENTRE D’ÉTUDES ET DE RECHERCHES SUR LES QUALIFICATIONS (CEREQ) (1995), “L’insertion professionnelle des diplômésde l’enseignement supérieur se dégrade”, Céreq B’ref No. 107, Paris, March.

HANSEN, E. J. (1996), The First Generation of the Welfare State: A Cohort Analysis, Danish National Institute of Social Research, Copenha-gen.

KANE, T.J. (1995), “Rising public college tuition and college entry: How well do public subsidies promote access to college?”,National Bureau of Economic Research, Working Paper No. 5164, Cambridge, MA.

MOORTGAT, J-L. (1996), A Study of Dropout in European Higher Education, Council of Europe, Strasbourg.

MORTENSON, T.G. (1996), “Chance for college by age 19 by state in 1994”, Postsecondary Education Opportunity, No.␣ 49, The MortensonResearch Seminar on Public Policy Analysis of Opportunity for Postsecondary Education, Iowa City, Iowa.

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OBSERVATOIRE DES COÛTS DES ÉTABLISSEMENTS DE L’ENSEIGNEMENT SUPÉRIEUR (1997), Les DESS scientifiques: Lesparcours diplômants et leurs coûts - résultats de l’enquête sur les diplômes 1994, Presse universitaire de Grenoble.

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