European universities are facing demands for better student retention, especially in countries where state funding is no longer based on the number of students, but on the number of graduates. An extensive literature on retention focuses on the characteristics of students who leave higher education without a degree. Much less is known about the…

In this article we examine how the introduction of an output-based funding scheme in Norwegian public higher education in 2003 affects pass requirement standards. Based on a survey of faculty at the institutions concerned, we find that the propensity to expect that the new funding model will affect the failing/non-failing decision in exams is…

This article analyses the implementation of market-type mechanisms in the management of universities. The question of which cultural biases have been used in the implementation of New Public Management (NPM) in Norwegian universities is discussed. Cultural theory, institutional theory, and public policy studies are applied to the analysis of a…