International research collaboration is a way to facilitate original knowledge production, share research equipment, promote learning together and talent pooling at a cross-border level. However, it takes place in a hierarchical and unequal global research space. Conditioned by various structural factors, researchers actively exercise their agency…

Research universities are a central part of all academic systems. They are the key points of international contact and involvement. Research is produced, disseminated and in many cases imported. For developing countries, the mechanisms for the involvement of research universities in the global knowledge economy is complex, and includes issues of…

This article focuses on higher education research and policies in small and/or peripheral countries that usually occupy a marginal position in contemporary international debates. The region discussed here is South-eastern Europe and especially the Western Balkans. First, an outline of emerging research centres and the developments in higher…

According to the Academic Ranking of World Universities, the world's top 500 universities are located in only 38 countries, with the USA alone having 157 of them. This article investigates the socioeconomic determinants of the wide performance gap between countries, and whether the USA's dominance is largely due to its economic power. A large…

The world science scenario has observed, in recent years, an important transformation. With the advent of fairly complete publication databases and the improvement of the Internet a number of world university rankings were created, with a clear bias towards research universities. Also, a new field of scientometrics has been developed, and recent…

Higher education as a field of study emerged as universities became complex institutions requiring data and interpretation for effective management and governance. The field expanded in the mid-20th century, and now includes many research and other journals, books, and other reports and publications. Academic departments and centers have been…