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On the theoretical level, this chapter examines the mechanisms through which cultural and financial capital affects educational outcomes in different institutional contexts. On the methodological level, the central question in this chapter is how to resolve concerns in comparative analyses of educational attainment, such as variations in enrolment rates and study program duration across institutional settings. On the empirical level, the chapter asks whether family background predicts educational attainment in similar ways in two diametrically opposed welfare states: the United States and Norway. Differences in dropout from higher education were compared using nationally representative longitudinal data from the United States and Norway and event history and multilevel modelling techniques. The chapter also makes use of the standardized sheaf coefficient to summarize central background variables for more direct comparison of effect sizes. The findings show that whereas parents’ education level has strikingly similar effects on students’ dropout probabilities in the two countries, the effect of parents’ income varies substantially according to the institutional context. The chapter concludes that in comparative analyses of inequality in education the value of different types of family resources must be understood in light of the concrete, practical constraints of the national institutional contexts.

In recent decades, higher education institutions have been encouraged to develop their own internal management systems as a response to perceived quality challenges in the sector. These quality management (QM) systems have often been found to mainly reflect external accountability requirements, with less focus on coherent study programme development. The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between QM practices and study programme delivery in Norwegian higher education institutions.

The study examined how coordination and control of quality work with respect to educational activities take place, using data from a survey to study programme leaders in a large sample of Norwegian higher education institutions.

The main findings show that a majority of institutions have established formal advisory bodies with a QM mandate, contributing to more coherent thinking, even though the division of labour between these bodies and formal decision-making structures often is unclear. The study also shows a high level of diversity in the collaboration practices among different actors involved in QM work, indicating that QM practices are adapted to local needs.

The paper provides new knowledge as to how QM is conducted in practice at the local level. It nuances earlier studies by showing the involvement of collegial bodies in QM although such bodies may have unclear mandates and, thus, an unclear role in the QM process.

This chapter will describe and assess initiatives by the University of Oslo (UoO) in Norway, the purpose of which has been to expand and improve collaboration with universities in Africa, notably the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) in Tanzania. UoO has a long history of North-South cooperation with a wide range of institutions on the African continent. In 2009, the UoO initiated a collaborative program with UDSM entitled “Program for Institutional Transformation Research Outreach” (PITRO) III, supported by Norwegian Agency for Development Co-operation (NORAD). The chapter will situate the UoO-UDSM cooperation in relation to Norwegian aid, and compare the program with previous programs, giving attention to the ways they were developed, how problems and challenges were tackled, and the probable consequences for Tanzania’s development. The chapter will compare and contrast the structure and experiences from these programs, and will point out strengths and weaknesses. Attention will be given to the rights-based approach, an important new dimension in North-South cooperation on higher education in Africa. It will be argued that the incorporation of this approach provides a basis for developing new policies and programs that strengthen African collaboration within research, education, and capacity building in higher education.

This paper seeks to analyse how excellence and diversity are addressed in student recruitment strategies, and how these strategies are developed in eight Norwegian higher education institutions.

The study utilises a theoretical perspective that asserts that strategy is developed through practice. The authors have combined document analysis with qualitative interviews to investigate the development of institutional student recruitment strategies, their characteristics and their links to the individual institution's profile and ambitions.

The study reveals that student recruitment strategies are often grounded in inherent institutional identities, while at the same time responding to external ideas about excellence and diversity. The study also finds that higher education institutions show significant creativity in trying to adapt to these ideas and general trends, while at the same time maintaining their own characteristics and traditions. Findings suggest that student recruitment strategies are also used for accountability purposes. Given the importance of student recruitment, many higher education institutions attach surprisingly little importance to this issue.

The study encompasses only a small number of institutions in a single country, limiting the possibility of generalising aspects of the profile and content of the student recruitment strategies. Nevertheless, the analysis indicates that the processes associated with the development of student recruitment strategies are quite similar, with more emphasis on specific quantitative analytical schemes and less emphasis on other ways of organising strategy development.

The paper reveals the importance of placing greater focus on the ways in which strategic processes are organised and identifying the potential for improving the creative organisation of the strategising process.

The purpose of this paper is to present an empirically based discussion of how cooperation between higher education institutions and work organisations (WOs) can increase graduate learning experiences and employability.

Data are based on an electronic and mail-based graduate survey among Norwegian master’s degree graduates six months after graduation. 2,232 master degree graduates responded to the survey, giving a 54 per cent response rate. All subject fields were represented.

77 per cent of the graduates have some forms of interactions with WOs during their studies. The level and mode of participation differ, however, very much, and the benefits of participating differ by mode of interaction. Project-based interaction is positively and significantly associated with completing studies on time. Further, graduates who have participated in either project-based interactions or practice periods have better labour market situation after graduation than their peers. The results hold also when controlling of subject field differences and students’ abilities.

The study indicates that it is important to look at a wide range of interaction activities and look at the benefits from these activities both in terms of effects on the quality of the learning experience, as well as benefits realised in the transition to work. The data on learning benefits of interaction with WO during higher education are, however, limited, and further studies are needed on this issue in particular.

The study indicates that only certain forms of interactions between students and WOs have benefits for students; namely the ones that involve a certain degree of time and commitment. Programme officers in higher education should target more committed interaction forms, because the added value is significantly higher for the students.

The study contributes new knowledge about the external networks of higher education institutions, by looking at the role of students in such networks and by measuring the benefits by using a representative sample of students.

Narratives about educational phenomena and identities that circulate in society have the power to frame and make sense of specific educational experiences as well as general educational ideas. Some of these narratives also underwrite assumptions for policymaking and thus produce meaning, structure and alignment in an otherwise uncertain and complex field of governing. Narrative control refers to the way a specific selection of narratives and narrative plots legitimise, necessitate and normalise a specific way to understand educational purposes, processes and identities. The analyses in this chapter illuminate processes of narrative control in core documents of the latest Norwegian educational reform. Through the narrative construction of a specific educational trajectory, pupil identity and categories of deviance representing positions at risk, the documents' narrative control generates a specific standard regulating what a ‘normal pupil’ is.

In this study, we are addressing changes in managerial logics after the introduction of New Public Management (NPM)-reforms in two public sectors in Norway, namely the hospital and the university sectors. These sectors were previously dominated by professional and political logic in management, and the focus is on professionals in managerial positions. We are asking: How do professionals in managerial positions across universities and hospitals mediate between previous and newly introduced logics in management after NPM-reforms? We have chosen to compare changes in management across the hospital and the university sectors. Both sectors are largely publicly owned and dominated by professions, but their mission differs. The empirical material comprises interviews with formal leaders from dissimilar professional backgrounds, at different levels in the organisations in two cases. The findings show that management influenced by the market logic has been introduced, but in a hybrid version. The professional logic has however not been left behind, but expanded and supplied by a neo-bureaucratic logic. Leadership is functioning as a ‘catalyst’ to handle the different logics. The originality of this paper is a comparison of management in health care and higher education related to a model of hybrid management.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the development of knowledge about facilities management (FM), in particular, the management of FM services in practice, education and research. The paper questions whether we know more about optimal models for in-house or outsourcing FM after 25 years of applied research and development of best practices.

The paper is based on literature reviews, case studies and personal experiences from practice for over 25 years, concentrating on the public sector. The paper maintains an international focus on the FM development, with particular focus on the development in Norway and the Nordic countries. The knowledge development triangle, and its integration of education, research and practice, is used as an underlying theoretical framework.

The knowledge regarding management of FM services in both the public and private sector has been developed over the past two decades. The changes in both sectors is reflected in all the three aspects of the knowledge triangle. While the use of outsourcing increased significantly in popularity during the past 25 years, the Norwegian profile continues to have limited use of outsourcing.

The paper is based on a qualified selection of doctoral theses, research reports and scientific articles published in the period 1990-2015. The explorations include limited quantitative data.

The choice for FM in practice, whether fully or partly to produce services with internal resources or to make arrangements with external suppliers, is an important strategic decision regarding the choice of a procurement strategy for the company or the organisation. This decision is not necessarily about outsourcing or in-house but rather the strategic sourcing and management of the needed services.

A total of 25 years of research have shown that a simple solution and answer to the questions about in-house or outsourcing FM services is lacking. To find a good solution, it is necessary to understand the content of FM services with respect to quality and efficiency, and to understand the interaction between FM, the core activities and the users.

This chapter provides a review of existing research on learning gain and related topics in higher education. The methodology adopted is a form of systematic review. The origins and meaning of learning gain, and its relation to similar terms, are discussed. The ways in which learning gain has been applied in practice and in research are considered. The issues raised by this practice and research are examined, and the various criticisms made are reviewed. Some conclusions are then drawn.

In the autumn of 2006, two groups of students from the Faculty of Journalism, Library and Information Science at Oslo University College participated in a cooperative project with the Norwegian online reference service, Biblioteksvar.no (Ask The Library (ATL)). The students were in their third term of studies and received instruction in retrieval systems and tools. The main purpose of this paper is to evaluate the performance of the students in actual reference work. It seeks to examine a sample of questions and answers. In a wider perspective, the study highlights the value of this kind of educational strategy.

The evaluation criteria in this study are based on a qualitative analysis of actual questions and answers from the ATL, student summaries of their own work on the project and interviews with professional librarians working with the ATL service. A substantial amount of data has been collected during the project period.

Analysis shows that the students generally performed very well. This corroborates the findings from a similar project last year. The students' answers had the same level of quality as the responses supplied by professional, experienced librarians working on the ATL service. Possible reasons for this result are discussed. The study confirms the importance of the reference interview for increasing the quality of the responses.

The results of the study indicate that the ATL service should not only provide links to information sources in response to user questions, but should also include a short explanation of how the links are found. Further, patron satisfaction surveys are useful. The collection of contextual data about the question and the patron may improve the quality of the response from the service. It is recommended that the SMS‐based service be included in the student project next year so that the students will have the opportunity to participate in all three of the currently available ATL services from Biblioteksvar.no.

The paper may inspire other faculties and schools of information studies to cooperate more closely with the library profession and to prepare students for their future careers as reference librarians through participation in actual reference work from a relatively early stage in the program of study. The project described in this paper illustrates the change from traditional lecture‐based teaching to problem‐based learning in projects as outlined in The Quality Reform in Norwegian Higher Education.