Dante J. Salto is Associate Professor of Higher Education at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. His research centers on higher education policy from comparative and international perspectives, emphasizing the intersections of quality assurance, regulation, privatization, and access. He is also a faculty affiliate with the Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies (CLACS) at UWM and a research associate with the Program for Research on Private Higher Education (PROPHE). The Spencer Foundation sponsors one of his current research projects, “Crossing Borders to Connect Routes: Researching with Educational Communities in a Post-Pandemic World."
Accreditation as a form of quality assurance has spread worldwide. As a result, the public and re... more Accreditation as a form of quality assurance has spread worldwide. As a result, the public and research interests have targeted the policies that developed agencies and procedures and the responses and effects of accreditation on higher education organizations and programs. However, studies on accreditation have not analyzed two core aspects: the capacity and willingness of the accreditation agencies and the programs to perform their functions. Through qualitative interviews with key stakeholders in the regulatory agencies and universities, this study explores the issue of capacity and willingness in higher education accreditation by studying the functioning of an accreditation agency in Argentina and the responses of organizations and programs to the accreditation process. The results show that three key factors may affect accreditation monitoring, enforcement, and compliance: administrative burden, inadequate resources, and information availability. The findings are relevant beyond the national context and have research and policy implications.
Regulation of higher education worldwide has become a complex process. New developments, such as ... more Regulation of higher education worldwide has become a complex process. New developments, such as the accreditation of institutions and programmes by foreign, and usually private, agencies, has not been the focus of scholarship on regulation and quality assurance in higher education. This article addresses the issue of accreditation of graduate business programmes in Argentina by foreign accreditation agencies. Through a regulatory analysis, this study indicates that this emerging trend challenges classic understandings of regulation and programmes’ responses to them in various ways, either deciding to participate or not. Those decisions are based on intrinsic and extrinsic motivations and the responses vary by type of institution, sector and approach.
Accreditation in higher education has become omnipresent and, on many occasions, has been used as... more Accreditation in higher education has become omnipresent and, on many occasions, has been used as a synonym for quality assurance. The establishment of accreditation agencies as a worldwide phenomenon, however, is relatively recent in the history of higher education. Through a predominantly qualitative approach, this paper aims to analyze how programs from different academic disciplines perform in terms of the accreditation of graduate programs in Argentina and how different programs respond to the same accreditation process. Additionally, it analyzes the performance of private sector programs. As expected, academic disciplines play a vital role in the accreditation process, programmatic performance, and responses to this quality assurance mechanism while sector may not play a vital role. Surprisingly, soft pure programs perform better than both hard and soft applied programs. The results highlight the importance of considering both the paradigm (hard or soft) and level application (pure or applied) when analyzing the role of academic disciplines in higher education studies.
Las instituciones universitarias que dependen del cobro de aranceles han sido proporcionalmente m... more Las instituciones universitarias que dependen del cobro de aranceles han sido proporcionalmente más afectadas por la pandemia que aquellas instituciones que son sostenidas con financiamiento estatal. Este artículo se centra en el estudio de la situación del sector privado en países como Argentina, donde el aporte estatal a las universidades privadas es mínimo mientras que sus pares públicas son financiadas por el Estado nacional. Mediante comparaciones relevantes con otros países latinoamericanos (Brasil, Chile y México), este artículo muestra indicios acerca de cómo las políticas públicas y los efectos de la pandemia sobre las instituciones universitarias se diferenciaron entre el sector público y privado. Asimismo, dentro del sector privado, las universidades de élite se han diferenciado de sus pares que no lo son. Esta observación permite complejizar el análisis de un sistema universitario que lejos de ser monolítico, presenta no solo diferencias significativas entre sectores público y privado sino también al interior de los privados.
Latin America leads the world in the size of legally for-profit private higher education. This re... more Latin America leads the world in the size of legally for-profit private higher education. This reality astonishes, given three contrasting realities: The region had zero such enrollment a quarter of a century ago; its for-profit enrollment is concentrated in three countries; and the size of its total private enrollment is only a third of that of Asia. Latin America’s astonishing leap raises questions about what future for-profit private higher education might have in the vast remaining region.
The COVID-19 pandemic challenges higher-education institutions in Latin America. Switching from f... more The COVID-19 pandemic challenges higher-education institutions in Latin America. Switching from face-to-face to online instruction has profound implications regarding access in a strikingly unequal geographical region. The article highlights that the pandemic may have lasting consequences in the ways we understand the provision of higher education in Latin America. The increasing volatile and uncertain scenario requires institutions, educators, and students to adapt to the new normal shortly.
The COVID-19 pandemic has led to countless academic and policy pieces on its initial and predicte... more The COVID-19 pandemic has led to countless academic and policy pieces on its initial and predicted impacts in all social fields, higher education prominently included. This working paper has two principal purposes, inter-related and overlapping. One is to provide the best possible first answers to the pressing question of how COVID affects and will affect private higher education (PHE). Second is to suggest pathways for ongoing research into COVID impacts on PHE. Our topic of COVID impacts is huge as PHE holds a third of global higher education enrollment.
Despite their common historical roots, two higher education systems in Latin America differ drama... more Despite their common historical roots, two higher education systems in Latin America differ dramatically in their financing mechanisms. In Argentina, the national government completely subsidizes undergraduate programs in public institutions, while Chile relies mostly on tuition fees charged to individuals attending public institutions. Through quantitative and qualitative secondary sources, this paper shows that class interests (structural approach) and economic policies (ideational approach) played a major role in explaining comparative policy outcomes in these non-democratic regimes. The article makes an explicit contribution to the understanding of comparative policy choices in nondemocratic regimes.
Desde mediados de los años noventa en la Argentina se han puesto en marcha políticas de asegurami... more Desde mediados de los años noventa en la Argentina se han puesto en marcha políticas de aseguramiento de la calidad y el financiamiento para la mejora. Una de las principales debilidades identificadas es el escaso desarrollo de la función de investigación, problema éste más acentuado en las universidades privadas que en las estatales. Mediante un marco conceptual basado en la teoría de las organizaciones y metodología mixta, este estudio muestra que las universidades privadas responden a cambios de las políticas públicas por medio de modificaciones isomórficas y en forma estratégica, en base a principios de la teoría de dependencia de los recursos.
Las dinámicas público-privadas de la educación superior en Argentina muestran la convivencia de d... more Las dinámicas público-privadas de la educación superior en Argentina muestran la convivencia de dos modalidades diferentes de financiamiento de la educación superior. En el grado, las universidades públicas no cobran aranceles, son completamente sostenidas por el estado. En el posgrado tanto universidades públicas como privadas tienen como principio rector el autofinanciamiento, entendiendo esto como la cobertura de los costos mediante el cobro de aranceles y matrículas de las carreras de dicho nivel. El presente estudio, de carácter explora-torio, presenta el primer relevamiento sistemático de aranceles de carreras de posgrado de instituciones públicas y privadas en Argentina. El análisis de la información recabada muestra diversas situaciones, tales como la variabilidad de aranceles de las carreras de posgrado por sector, tipo de carrera y área disciplinar y la posible existencia de subsidios cruzados tanto en el sector público como en el privado.
A large number of countries worldwide have established quality assurance mechanisms in Higher Edu... more A large number of countries worldwide have established quality assurance mechanisms in Higher Education, ranging from the long-engrained system (United States) to more recent developments in Europe, Latin America and other regions. This study explores the way Higher Education institutions, as examples of autonomous organisations, respond to a new set of regulatory policies. The analysis of the regulatees shows that university-wide administration has gone beyond the letter of required regulations, toward over-compliance. Far from a stereotype of a main external regulator (accreditation agency) trying to impose the stated regulations and the regulatee simply resisting, the latter adds a kind of self-regulation. Below the university-wide administration, at the programme level—the primary regulatee target of external regulators—matters take more typical, anticipated form. Mixed compliance characterises programme-level responses, including resistance strategies. Findings illuminate not only the Argentine case but also other countries that have established quality assurance agencies.
Brazil has by far the largest higher education system in Latin America, with a sizable share of s... more Brazil has by far the largest higher education system in Latin America, with a sizable share of students enrolled in private-sector institutions. Its recently established and fast-growing for-profit sector is one of the largest worldwide. The for-profit sector already surpasses the public sector in student enrollment, and its role is growing. Public policy has supported for-profit growth, ostensibly for tax revenue reasons, but the federal government has recently launched social initiatives that include tax exemption policies for the for-profit sector in exchange for need-based scholarships. Through exploratory data analysis, this study explores the role, function, and form of the for-profit sector compared with its nonprofit and public counterparts. The findings reveal that the for-profit sector shares some important characteristics with the nonprofit sector but contrasts sharply with the public sector. The study concludes that countries such as Brazil are moving toward public funding for private higher education to meet enrollment targets. These findings may be able to address issues in other countries by considering similar public policies toward private higher education.
Most countries, developing as well as developed, have adopted some type of quality assurance mech... more Most countries, developing as well as developed, have adopted some type of quality assurance mechanism. Argentina is neither an island nor an outlier in higher education reforms in general. This study is based on case study design and involved extensive fieldwork to collect interviews and official documents. This article analyzes the regulatory framework that established compulsory accreditation by identifying the main actors involved, the external factors that affect compliance, and university and program responses to them. The findings show that the regulatory framework is plagued by issues of coordination and overlap among agencies, affecting levels of compliance and types of responses at the organizational level. While the structure of incentives is clear, there are no clear sanctions or credible threats. Yet, programs tend to comply with accreditation. The study shows great variability among academic disciplines and types of programs. Findings are linked to developments in other developed and developing countries.
La cooperación académica internacional multilateral es una modalidad de articulación entre instit... more La cooperación académica internacional multilateral es una modalidad de articulación entre instituciones de educación superior cada vez más importante. Este trabajo analiza el caso del consorcio universitario de la Asociación de Universidades del Grupo Montevideo (AUGM) que se desarrolla dentro del Mercado Común del Sur (MERCOSUR). Se destacan las principales acciones desarrolladas, así como los principales desafíos que enfrenta la cooperación académica Sur-Sur en América Latina. Los resultados muestran un crecimiento en la cantidad de actividades así como en las movilidades, utilizando un esquema de cooperación basado en las universidades, con financiamiento proveniente de múltiples fuentes pero siempre fundado en convenios de eliminación de aranceles y asistencia a los becarios. El artículo finaliza problematizando sobre las posibilidades de generar una permanencia de este tipo de articulaciones en el largo plazo.
INTRODUCTION. Most higher education systems in developing and developed countries have experience... more INTRODUCTION. Most higher education systems in developing and developed countries have experienced changes in their governance structure. In postgraduate education in Argentina those changes signaled a move towards an increasing role of the state as a steering agent and of the market to enhance competition. In both cases such reinforcement has been at the expense of traditional academic power. METHOD. A regulatory space approach analysis based on archival research of the postgraduate education regulatory framework coupled with data on programs. RESULTS. The data analysis shows sharp differences between Argentina’s pre-regulatory and post-regulatory reality. Regulation through accreditation is devised to tackle information asymmetry and to inform students who are conceived of as individual “clients”. This is implemented through the official, voluntary ranking of postgraduate programs. The state plays an increasing role as regulator for competition, modifying existing patterns of governance in the higher education system, mostly at the postgraduate level. DISCUSSION. In a context of increasing changes in higher education governance there is growing evidence that despite national variations, systems are moving toward more reliance on market-friendly strategies. Still, little is known about the manner in which the institutions at the postgraduate sub-level are responding to recent challenges brought about by these new governance structures.
Este trabajo aborda la problemática de la cooperación académica internacional, en su modalidad mu... more Este trabajo aborda la problemática de la cooperación académica internacional, en su modalidad multilateral, analizando el caso de la Universidad Nacional de Córdoba en cooperación con otras universidades de la región a través de dos consorcios universitarios: la Asociación de Universidades del Grupo Montevideo y la Red de Macrouniversidades de América Latina y el Caribe.
Los resultados indican que existen aún desafíos y problemáticas que dificultan un mayor nivel de cooperación en los consorcios elegidos, aunque es posible señalar que la cooperación académica internacional multilateral implica grandes avances que son valorados de forma positiva por quienes participan o han participado de diferentes acciones promovidas por ambos consorcios.
In Pursuit of World-Class Universities: A Global Experience, 2018
In an increasingly globalized world and as part of a competitive market, higher education institu... more In an increasingly globalized world and as part of a competitive market, higher education institutions compete against each other in the search for funding and the best students and faculty members, regardless of the country of origin. Under this rationale, many governments promote the establishment of world-class institutions, primarily based on the benefits brought by these types of institutions. However, there are also costs, mainly for countries that still face problems of access and equity. It is extremely costly to open a world-class university in terms of money and time. Moreover, it is challenging to maintain these excellent institutions, given the cost and complexity of research. This chapter analyzes the higher education sector in Argentina and the conditions that may foster and deter the establishment of world-class universities in the country. Using data from different secondary sources, the chapter explores the state of research in Argentina, analyzes organizational factors that may foster and inhibit the development of world-class universities, and compares the performance of Argentine universities in global and regional rankings. The final remarks invite some discussions and problematize the world-class “gold standard” in the context of a developing country.
International Perspectives in Higher Education, 2019
This chapter shows how the establishment of the higher education system, the role of the public s... more This chapter shows how the establishment of the higher education system, the role of the public sector, and policies affecting PHE continue to shape the changing Brazilian system. It first compares Brazilian higher education to global and regional trends, which includes an analysis of massification and universalization of higher education, how key policies evolved over time, and the role of PHE. The second part focuses on recent developments in the private sector, such as the legalization of for-profit higher education institutions and the sharp enrollment growth experienced by this sector that was supported by an expansion of government loans and grants. A third part discusses accountability mechanisms that policymakers put in place to address concerns about quality in PHE. Finally, the concluding remarks highlight how the policy developments in Brazil represent trade-offs among competing options in designing a higher education system.
Gregorutti, G. y Svenson, N. (eds.) Innovative North-South University Research Partnerships in Latin America and the Caribbean. Palgrave Macmillan in the International and Development Education Book Series. , 2018
This chapter addresses North-South university partnership contributions to the strengthening of r... more This chapter addresses North-South university partnership contributions to the strengthening of research and development in Argentina. It looks at the motivations behind this type of cooperation and the principal facilitators of and obstacles to success. The work utilizes a case-study approach, as an effective tool for descriptive purposes, and presents two specific cases focused on the research units at public and private Argentinian universities with established North-South research partnerships. General conclusions indicate that international scientific cooperation between the South and the North has proven fruitful for the parties involved in these agreements; however, what triggers and grounds the association differs by case. Following a series of interviews and document analysis, findings show that while personal links generally dominate in their importance, state support is critical for sustainability. Difficulties that generate disincentives for maintaining longer-term partnerships are related primarily to internal, bureaucratic problems and external factors such as overall economic instability affecting both developed and developing countries.
La discusión sobre las políticas de financiamiento de los
posgrados que ocurre a nivel regional y... more La discusión sobre las políticas de financiamiento de los posgrados que ocurre a nivel regional y mundial está relacionada, entre otros aspectos, con la expansión de la oferta y la demanda de posgrados desde los sectores productivos y académicos, públicos y privados. En el marco de los ejes de análisis del Proyecto de la Red de Investigadores sobre los dilemas de las nuevas culturas de producción de conocimiento, el presente capítulo aborda la problemática del financiamiento del nivel de posgrado considerando las relaciones existentes entre regulación, financiamiento y evaluación. Más específicamente, busca relevar los principales estudios, informaciones disponibles y generar información sobre el financiamiento del posgrado, desde una perspectiva internacional y comparada entre Argentina, Brasil y Paraguay.
Accreditation as a form of quality assurance has spread worldwide. As a result, the public and re... more Accreditation as a form of quality assurance has spread worldwide. As a result, the public and research interests have targeted the policies that developed agencies and procedures and the responses and effects of accreditation on higher education organizations and programs. However, studies on accreditation have not analyzed two core aspects: the capacity and willingness of the accreditation agencies and the programs to perform their functions. Through qualitative interviews with key stakeholders in the regulatory agencies and universities, this study explores the issue of capacity and willingness in higher education accreditation by studying the functioning of an accreditation agency in Argentina and the responses of organizations and programs to the accreditation process. The results show that three key factors may affect accreditation monitoring, enforcement, and compliance: administrative burden, inadequate resources, and information availability. The findings are relevant beyond the national context and have research and policy implications.
Regulation of higher education worldwide has become a complex process. New developments, such as ... more Regulation of higher education worldwide has become a complex process. New developments, such as the accreditation of institutions and programmes by foreign, and usually private, agencies, has not been the focus of scholarship on regulation and quality assurance in higher education. This article addresses the issue of accreditation of graduate business programmes in Argentina by foreign accreditation agencies. Through a regulatory analysis, this study indicates that this emerging trend challenges classic understandings of regulation and programmes’ responses to them in various ways, either deciding to participate or not. Those decisions are based on intrinsic and extrinsic motivations and the responses vary by type of institution, sector and approach.
Accreditation in higher education has become omnipresent and, on many occasions, has been used as... more Accreditation in higher education has become omnipresent and, on many occasions, has been used as a synonym for quality assurance. The establishment of accreditation agencies as a worldwide phenomenon, however, is relatively recent in the history of higher education. Through a predominantly qualitative approach, this paper aims to analyze how programs from different academic disciplines perform in terms of the accreditation of graduate programs in Argentina and how different programs respond to the same accreditation process. Additionally, it analyzes the performance of private sector programs. As expected, academic disciplines play a vital role in the accreditation process, programmatic performance, and responses to this quality assurance mechanism while sector may not play a vital role. Surprisingly, soft pure programs perform better than both hard and soft applied programs. The results highlight the importance of considering both the paradigm (hard or soft) and level application (pure or applied) when analyzing the role of academic disciplines in higher education studies.
Las instituciones universitarias que dependen del cobro de aranceles han sido proporcionalmente m... more Las instituciones universitarias que dependen del cobro de aranceles han sido proporcionalmente más afectadas por la pandemia que aquellas instituciones que son sostenidas con financiamiento estatal. Este artículo se centra en el estudio de la situación del sector privado en países como Argentina, donde el aporte estatal a las universidades privadas es mínimo mientras que sus pares públicas son financiadas por el Estado nacional. Mediante comparaciones relevantes con otros países latinoamericanos (Brasil, Chile y México), este artículo muestra indicios acerca de cómo las políticas públicas y los efectos de la pandemia sobre las instituciones universitarias se diferenciaron entre el sector público y privado. Asimismo, dentro del sector privado, las universidades de élite se han diferenciado de sus pares que no lo son. Esta observación permite complejizar el análisis de un sistema universitario que lejos de ser monolítico, presenta no solo diferencias significativas entre sectores público y privado sino también al interior de los privados.
Latin America leads the world in the size of legally for-profit private higher education. This re... more Latin America leads the world in the size of legally for-profit private higher education. This reality astonishes, given three contrasting realities: The region had zero such enrollment a quarter of a century ago; its for-profit enrollment is concentrated in three countries; and the size of its total private enrollment is only a third of that of Asia. Latin America’s astonishing leap raises questions about what future for-profit private higher education might have in the vast remaining region.
The COVID-19 pandemic challenges higher-education institutions in Latin America. Switching from f... more The COVID-19 pandemic challenges higher-education institutions in Latin America. Switching from face-to-face to online instruction has profound implications regarding access in a strikingly unequal geographical region. The article highlights that the pandemic may have lasting consequences in the ways we understand the provision of higher education in Latin America. The increasing volatile and uncertain scenario requires institutions, educators, and students to adapt to the new normal shortly.
The COVID-19 pandemic has led to countless academic and policy pieces on its initial and predicte... more The COVID-19 pandemic has led to countless academic and policy pieces on its initial and predicted impacts in all social fields, higher education prominently included. This working paper has two principal purposes, inter-related and overlapping. One is to provide the best possible first answers to the pressing question of how COVID affects and will affect private higher education (PHE). Second is to suggest pathways for ongoing research into COVID impacts on PHE. Our topic of COVID impacts is huge as PHE holds a third of global higher education enrollment.
Despite their common historical roots, two higher education systems in Latin America differ drama... more Despite their common historical roots, two higher education systems in Latin America differ dramatically in their financing mechanisms. In Argentina, the national government completely subsidizes undergraduate programs in public institutions, while Chile relies mostly on tuition fees charged to individuals attending public institutions. Through quantitative and qualitative secondary sources, this paper shows that class interests (structural approach) and economic policies (ideational approach) played a major role in explaining comparative policy outcomes in these non-democratic regimes. The article makes an explicit contribution to the understanding of comparative policy choices in nondemocratic regimes.
Desde mediados de los años noventa en la Argentina se han puesto en marcha políticas de asegurami... more Desde mediados de los años noventa en la Argentina se han puesto en marcha políticas de aseguramiento de la calidad y el financiamiento para la mejora. Una de las principales debilidades identificadas es el escaso desarrollo de la función de investigación, problema éste más acentuado en las universidades privadas que en las estatales. Mediante un marco conceptual basado en la teoría de las organizaciones y metodología mixta, este estudio muestra que las universidades privadas responden a cambios de las políticas públicas por medio de modificaciones isomórficas y en forma estratégica, en base a principios de la teoría de dependencia de los recursos.
Las dinámicas público-privadas de la educación superior en Argentina muestran la convivencia de d... more Las dinámicas público-privadas de la educación superior en Argentina muestran la convivencia de dos modalidades diferentes de financiamiento de la educación superior. En el grado, las universidades públicas no cobran aranceles, son completamente sostenidas por el estado. En el posgrado tanto universidades públicas como privadas tienen como principio rector el autofinanciamiento, entendiendo esto como la cobertura de los costos mediante el cobro de aranceles y matrículas de las carreras de dicho nivel. El presente estudio, de carácter explora-torio, presenta el primer relevamiento sistemático de aranceles de carreras de posgrado de instituciones públicas y privadas en Argentina. El análisis de la información recabada muestra diversas situaciones, tales como la variabilidad de aranceles de las carreras de posgrado por sector, tipo de carrera y área disciplinar y la posible existencia de subsidios cruzados tanto en el sector público como en el privado.
A large number of countries worldwide have established quality assurance mechanisms in Higher Edu... more A large number of countries worldwide have established quality assurance mechanisms in Higher Education, ranging from the long-engrained system (United States) to more recent developments in Europe, Latin America and other regions. This study explores the way Higher Education institutions, as examples of autonomous organisations, respond to a new set of regulatory policies. The analysis of the regulatees shows that university-wide administration has gone beyond the letter of required regulations, toward over-compliance. Far from a stereotype of a main external regulator (accreditation agency) trying to impose the stated regulations and the regulatee simply resisting, the latter adds a kind of self-regulation. Below the university-wide administration, at the programme level—the primary regulatee target of external regulators—matters take more typical, anticipated form. Mixed compliance characterises programme-level responses, including resistance strategies. Findings illuminate not only the Argentine case but also other countries that have established quality assurance agencies.
Brazil has by far the largest higher education system in Latin America, with a sizable share of s... more Brazil has by far the largest higher education system in Latin America, with a sizable share of students enrolled in private-sector institutions. Its recently established and fast-growing for-profit sector is one of the largest worldwide. The for-profit sector already surpasses the public sector in student enrollment, and its role is growing. Public policy has supported for-profit growth, ostensibly for tax revenue reasons, but the federal government has recently launched social initiatives that include tax exemption policies for the for-profit sector in exchange for need-based scholarships. Through exploratory data analysis, this study explores the role, function, and form of the for-profit sector compared with its nonprofit and public counterparts. The findings reveal that the for-profit sector shares some important characteristics with the nonprofit sector but contrasts sharply with the public sector. The study concludes that countries such as Brazil are moving toward public funding for private higher education to meet enrollment targets. These findings may be able to address issues in other countries by considering similar public policies toward private higher education.
Most countries, developing as well as developed, have adopted some type of quality assurance mech... more Most countries, developing as well as developed, have adopted some type of quality assurance mechanism. Argentina is neither an island nor an outlier in higher education reforms in general. This study is based on case study design and involved extensive fieldwork to collect interviews and official documents. This article analyzes the regulatory framework that established compulsory accreditation by identifying the main actors involved, the external factors that affect compliance, and university and program responses to them. The findings show that the regulatory framework is plagued by issues of coordination and overlap among agencies, affecting levels of compliance and types of responses at the organizational level. While the structure of incentives is clear, there are no clear sanctions or credible threats. Yet, programs tend to comply with accreditation. The study shows great variability among academic disciplines and types of programs. Findings are linked to developments in other developed and developing countries.
La cooperación académica internacional multilateral es una modalidad de articulación entre instit... more La cooperación académica internacional multilateral es una modalidad de articulación entre instituciones de educación superior cada vez más importante. Este trabajo analiza el caso del consorcio universitario de la Asociación de Universidades del Grupo Montevideo (AUGM) que se desarrolla dentro del Mercado Común del Sur (MERCOSUR). Se destacan las principales acciones desarrolladas, así como los principales desafíos que enfrenta la cooperación académica Sur-Sur en América Latina. Los resultados muestran un crecimiento en la cantidad de actividades así como en las movilidades, utilizando un esquema de cooperación basado en las universidades, con financiamiento proveniente de múltiples fuentes pero siempre fundado en convenios de eliminación de aranceles y asistencia a los becarios. El artículo finaliza problematizando sobre las posibilidades de generar una permanencia de este tipo de articulaciones en el largo plazo.
INTRODUCTION. Most higher education systems in developing and developed countries have experience... more INTRODUCTION. Most higher education systems in developing and developed countries have experienced changes in their governance structure. In postgraduate education in Argentina those changes signaled a move towards an increasing role of the state as a steering agent and of the market to enhance competition. In both cases such reinforcement has been at the expense of traditional academic power. METHOD. A regulatory space approach analysis based on archival research of the postgraduate education regulatory framework coupled with data on programs. RESULTS. The data analysis shows sharp differences between Argentina’s pre-regulatory and post-regulatory reality. Regulation through accreditation is devised to tackle information asymmetry and to inform students who are conceived of as individual “clients”. This is implemented through the official, voluntary ranking of postgraduate programs. The state plays an increasing role as regulator for competition, modifying existing patterns of governance in the higher education system, mostly at the postgraduate level. DISCUSSION. In a context of increasing changes in higher education governance there is growing evidence that despite national variations, systems are moving toward more reliance on market-friendly strategies. Still, little is known about the manner in which the institutions at the postgraduate sub-level are responding to recent challenges brought about by these new governance structures.
Este trabajo aborda la problemática de la cooperación académica internacional, en su modalidad mu... more Este trabajo aborda la problemática de la cooperación académica internacional, en su modalidad multilateral, analizando el caso de la Universidad Nacional de Córdoba en cooperación con otras universidades de la región a través de dos consorcios universitarios: la Asociación de Universidades del Grupo Montevideo y la Red de Macrouniversidades de América Latina y el Caribe.
Los resultados indican que existen aún desafíos y problemáticas que dificultan un mayor nivel de cooperación en los consorcios elegidos, aunque es posible señalar que la cooperación académica internacional multilateral implica grandes avances que son valorados de forma positiva por quienes participan o han participado de diferentes acciones promovidas por ambos consorcios.
In Pursuit of World-Class Universities: A Global Experience, 2018
In an increasingly globalized world and as part of a competitive market, higher education institu... more In an increasingly globalized world and as part of a competitive market, higher education institutions compete against each other in the search for funding and the best students and faculty members, regardless of the country of origin. Under this rationale, many governments promote the establishment of world-class institutions, primarily based on the benefits brought by these types of institutions. However, there are also costs, mainly for countries that still face problems of access and equity. It is extremely costly to open a world-class university in terms of money and time. Moreover, it is challenging to maintain these excellent institutions, given the cost and complexity of research. This chapter analyzes the higher education sector in Argentina and the conditions that may foster and deter the establishment of world-class universities in the country. Using data from different secondary sources, the chapter explores the state of research in Argentina, analyzes organizational factors that may foster and inhibit the development of world-class universities, and compares the performance of Argentine universities in global and regional rankings. The final remarks invite some discussions and problematize the world-class “gold standard” in the context of a developing country.
International Perspectives in Higher Education, 2019
This chapter shows how the establishment of the higher education system, the role of the public s... more This chapter shows how the establishment of the higher education system, the role of the public sector, and policies affecting PHE continue to shape the changing Brazilian system. It first compares Brazilian higher education to global and regional trends, which includes an analysis of massification and universalization of higher education, how key policies evolved over time, and the role of PHE. The second part focuses on recent developments in the private sector, such as the legalization of for-profit higher education institutions and the sharp enrollment growth experienced by this sector that was supported by an expansion of government loans and grants. A third part discusses accountability mechanisms that policymakers put in place to address concerns about quality in PHE. Finally, the concluding remarks highlight how the policy developments in Brazil represent trade-offs among competing options in designing a higher education system.
Gregorutti, G. y Svenson, N. (eds.) Innovative North-South University Research Partnerships in Latin America and the Caribbean. Palgrave Macmillan in the International and Development Education Book Series. , 2018
This chapter addresses North-South university partnership contributions to the strengthening of r... more This chapter addresses North-South university partnership contributions to the strengthening of research and development in Argentina. It looks at the motivations behind this type of cooperation and the principal facilitators of and obstacles to success. The work utilizes a case-study approach, as an effective tool for descriptive purposes, and presents two specific cases focused on the research units at public and private Argentinian universities with established North-South research partnerships. General conclusions indicate that international scientific cooperation between the South and the North has proven fruitful for the parties involved in these agreements; however, what triggers and grounds the association differs by case. Following a series of interviews and document analysis, findings show that while personal links generally dominate in their importance, state support is critical for sustainability. Difficulties that generate disincentives for maintaining longer-term partnerships are related primarily to internal, bureaucratic problems and external factors such as overall economic instability affecting both developed and developing countries.
La discusión sobre las políticas de financiamiento de los
posgrados que ocurre a nivel regional y... more La discusión sobre las políticas de financiamiento de los posgrados que ocurre a nivel regional y mundial está relacionada, entre otros aspectos, con la expansión de la oferta y la demanda de posgrados desde los sectores productivos y académicos, públicos y privados. En el marco de los ejes de análisis del Proyecto de la Red de Investigadores sobre los dilemas de las nuevas culturas de producción de conocimiento, el presente capítulo aborda la problemática del financiamiento del nivel de posgrado considerando las relaciones existentes entre regulación, financiamiento y evaluación. Más específicamente, busca relevar los principales estudios, informaciones disponibles y generar información sobre el financiamiento del posgrado, desde una perspectiva internacional y comparada entre Argentina, Brasil y Paraguay.
"Internationalization of colleges and universities historically has been fostered—and continues t... more "Internationalization of colleges and universities historically has been fostered—and continues to be fostered—mostly by grassroots efforts by faculty and staff members, driven by bottom-up rather than top-down approaches. More recently, though, national governments have become drivers of the internationalization of higher education, particularly because it relates to public diplomacy, national security, and economic development. But how do sub-national entities, such as state governments and their agents, influence the internationalization of higher education? This question is critical to U.S. colleges and universities, for while the federal government has played a supportive role in this agenda, higher education is primarily the responsibility of state and local
governments. Our research has found that a growing number of states are emerging as influential actors in international education efforts. This report provides an initial analysis of these previously unreported state-level trends, investigating the drivers and tools of state-level involvement in international education."
Encyclopedia of International Higher Education Systems and Institutions, 2017
This article aims at defining for-profit higher education, introducing relevant national cases, a... more This article aims at defining for-profit higher education, introducing relevant national cases, and exploring prospects of the sector. National case selection is based on geographical scope (one case per continent) and data availability.
International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences (Second Edition), 2015
The reality of educational systems and research in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) depicts ... more The reality of educational systems and research in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) depicts a complex, heterogeneous panorama that includes great disparities across the region and within each country. LAC education greatly differentiates by support from government measured by investment in education, coverage through enrollments, and quality through regional and international tests. When considered these indicators, LAC locates in the mid tier of developing regions in the world. Educational research follows similar patterns. Research quality varies greatly but there are notable improvements, as well as increased production. A handful of countries dominate the scene in production of research in education.
La riqueza del libro radica principalmente en el análisis realizado sobre la efectiva incidencia ... more La riqueza del libro radica principalmente en el análisis realizado sobre la efectiva incidencia de las políticas de reforma educativas en la micropolítica escolar. De este modo, se busca estudiar cómo esos procesos de reforma educativa, en el marco de determinados contextos históricos, políticos, sociales y económicos, promueven u obstaculizan el cambio al interior de las instituciones escolares. Asimismo se focaliza en los desafíos que enfrentan las instituciones educativas para dar respuestas a las contradicciones entre los valores sostenidos por la escuela, por la sociedad y a las demandas que la sociedad del conocimiento les impone.
Esta ponencia se propone presentar una primera aproximación descriptiva sobre la situación actual... more Esta ponencia se propone presentar una primera aproximación descriptiva sobre la situación actual de las carreras de posgrado (especialización, maestría y doctorado), según área disciplinar que ofrece la Universidad Nacional de Córdoba (UNC). A partir de los datos disponibles se analizan algunos factores que habrían contribuido a la expansión del cuarto nivel en el marco de las políticas de regulación de la Educación Superior.
During a recent "summit" meeting of leading Latin American higher education scholars and practiti... more During a recent "summit" meeting of leading Latin American higher education scholars and practitioners, key developments in Private Higher Education (PHE) became the topic of many meaningful discussions. This article reports on PHE and closely related issues, such as privatization and the comparison between the public and private sectors, highlighted at the summit.
The region’s increasing reliance on private higher education for access occurs through both the e... more The region’s increasing reliance on private higher education for access occurs through both the expansion of traditional and the emergence of new private forms. Especially the new private forms lack legitimacy in the eyes of many higher education leaders and much of the general public. But these reservations are mitigated by the convenience offered by this sector to reach enrollment targets as it is difficult to squeeze more money out of government budgets. In many cases, convenience trumps ideology.
International Higher Education - Boston College, Jan 2014
Brazil has become by far the largest higher education system in Latin America, with a large share... more Brazil has become by far the largest higher education system in Latin America, with a large share of enrollments in the private sector. A recently established and fast growing for-profit sub-sector consolidates as one of the largest worldwide. It already surpasses the public sector in enrollment and its role is growing. Public policy has backed the for-profit growth, largely for tax revenue reasons but in recent years the federal government has taken social initiatives that include tax exemption policies for the sub-sector. As indicated by fields of study, the for-profit sub-sector shares some important characteristics with the nonprofit sub-sector, contrasting dramatically to the public sector.
This chapter addresses the North-South university partnerships’ contributions to strengthening Ar... more This chapter addresses the North-South university partnerships’ contributions to strengthening Argentinian R&D, the motivations behind this cooperation, and the principal facilitators and obstacles to this endeavor’s success. The work is based in case-study approach, as an effective tool for descriptive purposes and offers a precise picture of the event under analysis. The case studies focused on two research units at public and private Argentinian universities with relevant North-South research partnerships. International scientific cooperation between the South and the North has proven to be fruitful for the parts involved in the agreement. However, what triggers and establishes the association generally differs. After the interviews we found that although personal links in general dominates, state support is paramount. Difficulties may generate disincentives to keep longer-term partnerships. In our cases, the main constraints are related to internal, bureaucratic problems and external factors such as overall economic instability affecting developed and developing countries as well.
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Papers by Dante J. Salto
Los resultados indican que existen aún desafíos y problemáticas que dificultan un mayor nivel de cooperación en los consorcios elegidos, aunque es posible señalar que la cooperación académica internacional multilateral implica grandes avances que son valorados de forma positiva por quienes participan o han participado de diferentes acciones promovidas por ambos consorcios.
Book chapters by Dante J. Salto
posgrados que ocurre a nivel regional y mundial está relacionada,
entre otros aspectos, con la expansión de la oferta y la demanda
de posgrados desde los sectores productivos y académicos, públicos
y privados. En el marco de los ejes de análisis del Proyecto de la
Red de Investigadores sobre los dilemas de las nuevas culturas
de producción de conocimiento, el presente capítulo aborda la
problemática del financiamiento del nivel de posgrado considerando
las relaciones existentes entre regulación, financiamiento y
evaluación. Más específicamente, busca relevar los principales
estudios, informaciones disponibles y generar información sobre el
financiamiento del posgrado, desde una perspectiva internacional y
comparada entre Argentina, Brasil y Paraguay.
Los resultados indican que existen aún desafíos y problemáticas que dificultan un mayor nivel de cooperación en los consorcios elegidos, aunque es posible señalar que la cooperación académica internacional multilateral implica grandes avances que son valorados de forma positiva por quienes participan o han participado de diferentes acciones promovidas por ambos consorcios.
posgrados que ocurre a nivel regional y mundial está relacionada,
entre otros aspectos, con la expansión de la oferta y la demanda
de posgrados desde los sectores productivos y académicos, públicos
y privados. En el marco de los ejes de análisis del Proyecto de la
Red de Investigadores sobre los dilemas de las nuevas culturas
de producción de conocimiento, el presente capítulo aborda la
problemática del financiamiento del nivel de posgrado considerando
las relaciones existentes entre regulación, financiamiento y
evaluación. Más específicamente, busca relevar los principales
estudios, informaciones disponibles y generar información sobre el
financiamiento del posgrado, desde una perspectiva internacional y
comparada entre Argentina, Brasil y Paraguay.
governments. Our research has found that a growing number of states are emerging as influential actors in international education efforts. This report provides an initial analysis of these previously unreported state-level trends, investigating the drivers and tools of state-level involvement in international education."