Background: Universities are deeply rooted in a tradition of exclusivity. However, for the past several years, they have been called upon to develop in an inclusive and socially responsible manner that does justice to the plurality of society. This has led to the emergence of diverse practices and projects around the world that are intended to…

This research addresses two important developments in the academic field: First, universities are transforming into organisational actors, gaining more responsibilities and capacities for strategic action, and second, competition has reached a new level. An important driver of competition and universities' development towards strategic actorhood…

Purpose: The purpose of this case report is to: (1) to describe outputs of a change project at Muenster University of Applied Sciences (Germany), which targeted its "operational core" of professors and (2) on this basis to derive ideas on how to ensure a high level of pervasion of change projects in the higher education sector.…

Universities in many liberal democracies, such as the US, the UK, or Germany, grapple with a pivotal question: how much room should be given to controversial utterances? On the one side, there are those who advocate for limiting permissible speech on campus to create a safe environment for a diverse student body and counter the mainstreaming of…

This study report on the outcomes and transformational potential of the European Universities initiative presents the progress, achievements, and transformational potential of the European Universities initiative, and gives insights on remaining challenges. It provides recommendations to continue making the European Universities initiative a…

Competition in higher education is intensifying worldwide and gaining increasing scholarly attention. However, it is not always easy to observe how competition actually takes place. Our research focuses on one example where competition becomes not only visible but also analyzable: State-led funding contests exemplified by the Excellence Initiative…

The present study examines university students' acceptance of e-learning according to the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). We also investigate the influence of external factors, including self-efficacy with digital media, self-regulated learning, prior experience, and affinity for technology, to extend the model with valid individual factors.…

In research practice, it is common to measure cognitive load after learning using self-report scales. This approach can be considered risky because it is unclear on what basis learners assess cognitive load, particularly when the learning material contains varying levels of complexity. This raises questions that have yet to be answered by…

This paper investigates the effects of migration and work experience on university-to-work transitions of German university graduates. We use a job search model, signaling and social network theory to discuss different links between the duration of labor market entry, graduate mobility and work experience. We apply event history analyses and make…

The field of transformative learning has garnered significant attention from researchers and practitioners in adult education due to its potential to address the complex and unpredictable challenges of societal change. This study employs a bibliometric approach, analyzing data from the Scopus database covering the years 1992 to 2023, identifying a…

Notwithstanding a recent upsurge in interest in knowledge intermediaries and their roles in innovation support systems, we know little about the interplay between the activities of academia-driven intermediaries and their publicly financed counterparts. Building on a combination of principles derived from the resource-based theory and…

Perceived fit of students is one of the most prominent predictors of study success in higher education, but when assessed directly, it provides lots of room for interpretation for the respondents. This is also true for perceived demands-abilities fit (e.g. how do one's abilities fit with study demands), which has particularly high associations…

This study explores workplace readiness, focusing on factors contributing to a positive employee experience for interns and ways universities can enhance it. Qualitative analysis of internship reports at a German university reveals the significance of management relationships, job design, onboarding, and a supportive environment. Recommendations…

Under the tendency of the marketisation of tertiary education, universities/colleges and governments across the world have increasingly regarded international education as an education services export sector. Vietnam has always been regarded as a country of importing rather than exporting international education. Nevertheless, more and more…

India, with the third largest higher education system globally, has the lowest gross enrolment ratio compared to G20 nations. The National Education Policy 2020 has made a strong recommendation to enhance the gross enrolment ratio for higher education to 50% by 2035. This figure stood at 19.4% in 2010 and 28.4% in 2021-22. The study, therefore,…