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PART Issues and Perspectives ofHigher Education

Institutions of higher education in the United Kingdom are under a binary system comprising universities on one hand and the other institutions in the nonuniversity sector on the other hand. The institutions under the latter category are operated in a different way from universities with regard to mechanisms for awarding degrees, as well as the content of the teaching.

The universities have the right to grant degrees. They are characterized by their nature as centers of academic learning and research. While most of their expenditures are supported by government grants, universities are independent corporations created by Royal Charter. They include Oxford and Cambridge, which date from the medieval age, the University of London which was the first university, created in the 19th century as a secular institution, and the new universities created after World War . Each of them has its own history of foundation. The total number of universities is only 45 (as of 1986), In addition to these, there are two, universities of a different nature: the University of Buckingham which receives no assistance from public funds, and the Open University which was created in 1969 to offer primarily to adults broadcasting and correspondence courses.

Besides universities, there are a number of polytechnics created during the 1960's and the 1970's with the aim of developing diverse human resources in response to social demands, and colleges of higher education developed during the 1970's on the basis of the expansion and reorganization of colleges of education. These institutions place emphasis on vocational and technical education, offering a wide range of courses, including courses leading to various vocational and technical qualifications, teacher training courses and doctoral courses. These institutions have no right to grant degrees. Students therein are awarded degrees by the Council for National Academic Awards.

In addition, there are various institutions called "colleges of further education, "which offer a variety of post-compulsory education. Many of them provide courses on the higher education level as well. There are about 730 non-university institutions offering higher education courses, including these further education establishments.

Institutions of higher education other than universities had been maintained mainly by local governments until 1989, when under the Education Reform Act of 1988 about 85 polytechnics and colleges of higher education of certain standards in terms of the size and teaching content became independent corporate bodies. Financially, they were to be funded by the central government, not local authorities. This structural reform is regarded as a measure aimed at responding to the economic and social needs for higher education.

The total number of higher education students in the United Kingdom is almost one million. Of this total, 440,000, less than a half, are enrolled in universities and 530,0OO in the other non-university institutions. A historical trend in higher education enrollment shows that the total number of students, which had been slightly more than 300,000 in 1960, almost doubled by 1970 and more than tripled by the middle of the 1980's.

Nearly 40% of all higher education students are part-time students. Institutions other than universities enroll twice as many part-time students as universities do. The proportion of adult students is particularly high among part-time students. While one-eighth of the full-time students are aged 25 or more, two-thirds of the part-time students are in the same age range.

In the United Kingdom today, higher education reforms are being undertaken to meet the challenge of a new age. The white paper entitled "Higher Education: Meeting the Challenge" published in 1987 by the British government made clear the following tasks faced by the British higher education system today: (1) that higher education should have closer links with industry and commerce and serve the economy more effectively; (2) participation rates in higher education should be increased to secure expanded opportunities for both young and older people; (3) quality in higher education should be enhanced, and efficiency should be increased. These proposals of the white paper are now in the process of implementation under the Education Reform Act of 1988 and under various Government initiatives.