Until recently, modern science had been dominated by a handful of Western countries. However, since the turn of the millennium, the global science landscape has undergone dramatic changes. The number of nations where a significant proportion of research done is of high international standard has now increased considerably. China particularly…

Classifications of higher education institutions into categories that are more or less clearly differentiated through prestige and status are legion in the world of higher education. The notion of parallel categories with comparable statuses, such as those of different types of universities, is however much less well understood. This paper…

Despite the academy's commitment to the idea of meritocratic and fair principles in recruitments, promotions, student admissions and progress, gender segregation and gender inequalities continue to trouble universities worldwide. Through case-studies of two education programs at a Swedish university, we investigate how processes of formal merit,…

Various efforts have been made in higher education in Sweden to meet the demand for more transparent governance and increased efficiency and quality. The purpose of this article is to investigate how university teachers handle standardized models for assessment and examination and orientate in this field of tension between professional…

As the development of technical aids for telework has progressed, work has become more flexible in time and space. Among academics, the opportunity to telework has been embraced by most, but it is unclear how it relates to their health and well-being. The aim of this study was to determine how frequency and amount of telework is associated with…

The aim of this study was to explore how consequences from a university-wide partnership unfolded at various levels within a university and induced intra-organizational dynamics. This was achieved via an in-depth investigation of "The Bridge," a collaborative partnership between the young mid-range Swedish Linnaeus University…

Studies on academic recruitment processes have demonstrated that universities evaluate candidates for research positions using multiple criteria. However, most studies on preferences regarding evaluative criteria in recruitment processes focus on a single country, while cross-country studies are rare. Additionally, though studies have documented…

There is a debate on whether higher education in the social sciences generates stronger democratic and environmental norms among students. In our study, we focus on students' perceptions about legitimate rule in the case of environmental protection. We contribute to this debate by using a unique longitudinal data set from seven universities and…

This paper explores the introduction of centrally coordinated initiatives aimed at formalising universities' relationships to external organisations. Such initiatives are referred to as "structured relations". Based on a review of nine Swedish Universities, we identify three types of structured relation initiatives (network events,…

The aim of this study is to explore the functions that professional networks could have as sense givers during the process in which professional support staff at higher education institutions make sense of their roles. The empirical data comprise interviews with three categories of support staff at three technical universities in Sweden and a…

The purpose of this study is twofold: (1) to survey "whether" dissertations have been rejected in connection with the examining committees' sessions and, if so, upon which grounds, and (2) to conduct a problematizing discussion about the "pros and cons of written criteria" for doctoral dissertations. In Survey One (1984-2003),…

The study presented here identifies robust and time-invariant features that characterise dynamic and innovative research environments. It takes as its point of departure the results of an empirical study conducted in 2002 which identified the common characteristics of 15 dynamic and innovative public research environments, and focusses on their…

In this article, we discuss how "managerialist" and "leaderist" discourses (O'Reilly and Reed "Public Administration" 88:960-978, 2010; "Organization Studies" 32:1079-1101, 2011) are drawn upon in the context of the deregulation of Swedish higher education. As of 2011, there has been new legislation that…

It has been argued that universities are changing into becoming more professional as organizations, and this paper investigates this claim by exploring the emergence and tasks of communication departments in modern universities. Examination of universities in six Baltic and Nordic countries shows that communication departments are working closely…

The demand for developing creativity among doctoral students is found in a number of educational policies all over the world. Yet, earlier studies on Swedish doctoral education suggest that doctoral students' creativity is not always encouraged. Based on a critical hermeneutic approach and cases in four different disciplines, the aim of this study…