Literature and research on higher education are analyzed in an international and comparative context. After summarizing the development of higher education as a field of study, the following kinds of research arrangements in Europe are discussed: individual scholars, university research centers/departments, independent research centers, national associations, government agencies/ministries, institutional research, and regional and governmental and nongovernmental bodies. The existing research dissemination network, which includes journals, books, and other publications, is examined. Major trends in research on higher education are also reviewed, with an emphasis on English-language literature and themes that have been considered in various countries or in comparative studies. Research topics include: the emergence of the modern university, the ideology and nature of expansion, college planning, university reform, the professoriate, student activism, governance, university-society relations, and higher education in the Third World. Finally, implications for future research are addressed, along with possibilities for cooperation and international collaboration in research and dissemination. A bibliography with 82 references and lists of international and national journals by region are included. (SW)