LIST OF PANELS

The political economy of Asia has experienced profound change over the last thirty years or so. Much of this transformation, of course, rests in the on-going expansion of Asian economies, deepening economic growth and generally increasing national incomes. Indeed, this transformation has often been enthusiastically celebrated, marking an epochal change in terms of the rise of the East as economies in Asia leap-frog ahead of their developed counterparts. A recent article in the Financial Times (October 8, 2014), for example, reported findings by the International Monetary Fund that in terms of Purchasing Power Parity (PPP), China was now the world’s largest economy, while Indonesia had overtaken the United Kingdom to become the 10th largest economy in the world.   If such absolute epochal transformations are to be believed, commensurate achievements in the development of human capital should also be apparent. Indeed, historically, investment in Asia’s higher education sector was identified as a key driver of the region’s transformation, attracting considerable resources and policy attention. But after thirty years of sustained investment into the sector, what outcomes have resulted? What role has higher education played in supporting economic and social transformation in the region? While participation rates have trended upwards, commensurate increases in higher education institutional quality or global research innovation, impact and leadership still trails in international league tables. The recent UNESCO report, Higher Education in Asia: Expanding Out, Expanding Up – The Rise of Graduate Education and University Research (May, 2014), for example, notes that the research performance and postgraduate educational outcomes in Asia’s higher education sector are not reflected in ‘over all rankings,’ with Asia underrepresented in international league tables such as Academic Ranking of World Universities, QA World Universities Rankings, and the Times Higher Education World University Rankings (pp.65-66). This panel seeks to examine developments in the higher Education sector in Asia in terms of 1) the achievements of the sector over the last thirty years or so (participation rates – access and equity, resources, research, impact and quality); 2) recent developments in the sector in terms of funding (public versus private), policy innovation, research, internationalization and rankings, and 3) challenges and future prospects for higher education in Asia. Comparative and case study country papers are welcome.

The political economy of Asia has experienced profound change over the last thirty years or so. Much of this transformation, of course, rests in the on-going expansion of Asian economies, deepening economic growth and generally increasing national incomes. Indeed, this transformation has often been enthusiastically celebrated, marking an epochal change in terms of the rise of the East as economies in Asia leap-frog ahead of their developed counterparts. A recent article in the Financial Times (October 8, 2014), for example, reported findings by the International Monetary Fund that in terms of Purchasing Power Parity (PPP), China was now the world’s largest economy, while Indonesia had overtaken the United Kingdom to become the 10th largest economy in the world.   If such absolute epochal transformations are to be believed, commensurate achievements in the development of human capital should also be apparent. Indeed, historically, investment in Asia’s higher education sector was identified as a key driver of the region’s transformation, attracting considerable resources and policy attention. But after thirty years of sustained investment into the sector, what outcomes have resulted? What role has higher education played in supporting economic and social transformation in the region? While participation rates have trended upwards, commensurate increases in higher education institutional quality or global research innovation, impact and leadership still trails in international league tables. The recent UNESCO report, Higher Education in Asia: Expanding Out, Expanding Up – The Rise of Graduate Education and University Research (May, 2014), for example, notes that the research performance and postgraduate educational outcomes in Asia’s higher education sector are not reflected in ‘over all rankings,’ with Asia underrepresented in international league tables such as Academic Ranking of World Universities, QA World Universities Rankings, and the Times Higher Education World University Rankings (pp.65-66). This panel seeks to examine developments in the higher Education sector in Asia in terms of 1) the achievements of the sector of the last thirty years or so (participation rates – access and equity, resources, research, impact and quality); 2) recent developments in the sector in terms of funding (public versus private), policy innovation, research, internationalization and rankings, and 3) challenges and future prospects for higher education in Asia.