Global Academic Rankings Game

Maria Yudkevich is Vice-Rector of the National Research University Higher School of Economics (HSE), and Associate Professor of Economics and a Director at the Center for Institutional Studies at HSE, Russia.Philip G. Altbach is Research Professor and Founding Director of the Center for International Higher Education in the Lynch School of Education at Boston College, USA.Laura E. Rumbley is Associate Director of the Center for International Higher Education and Lecturer in Higher Education Administration at Boston College, USA.

"Altbach, Yudkevich and Rumbley have produced one of the few books on higher education that will be used around the world. They shift the focus to the large group of institutions that are struggling to build resources and reputation. Both the successes and failures have something to teach us, and university leaders will find these case studies accessible and very helpful."—Simon Marginson, Director of the ESRC/HEFCE Centre of Global Higher Education at University College London and Joint Editor-in-Chief of Higher Education "It is often said that whether you love them or hate them, rankings are here to stay. This new volume goes a step beyond to carefully examine the impact of rankings on eleven institutions around the world. What emerges is a much more nuanced space between love and hate that evinces the power of rankings on government policy and institutional practice."--Patti McGill Peterson, Presidential Advisor for Global Initiatives, American Council on Education"This well-researched and important book brings together an impressive group of renowned academics who prepared relevant and timely case-studies of how universities position themselves in a world where policy-makers increasingly use rankings as proxies of performance. Professors Altbach, Yudkevich and Rumbley should be congratulated for this excellent contribution that offers invaluable insights into the impact of global rankings on national policy and university behavior."--Jamil Salmi, Global Tertiary Education Expert

• ContentsPrefaceChapter 1. Global University Rankings as the ‘Olympic Games’ of Higher Education: Citius, altius, fortius?Maria Yudkevich, Philip G. Altbach, and Laura E. RumbleyChapter 2. Managing Expectations – An Australian Perspective on the Impact and Challenges of Adopting a University Rankings NarrativeTony SheilChapter 3. Global university rankings from afar: The case of the Pontifical Catholic University of ChileAndrés Bernasconi and Daniela VélizChapter 4. Global Rankings and World-class University Aspirations in ChinaBie DunrongChapter 5. Embracing and Rejecting Rankings: The German CaseBarbara M. KehmChapter 6. Imposing Global University Rankings on Local Academic Culture: Insights from the National University of MalaysiaNorzaini Azman and Faridah Mydin KuttyChapter 7. Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam: Second Among Equals in the Netherlands?Kees KouwenaarChapter 8. Global University Rankings in the Polish Context: The University of Warsaw, a Case StudyMarek KwiekChapter 9. The Ranking Game on the Russian Battlefield: The Case of the Higher School of EconomicsIvan Pavlyutkin and Maria YudkevichChapter 10. Middle East Technical University: Quest for Academic Excellence not Driven by Global Rankings at one Turkish InstitutionKemal GürüzChapter 11. "There is a World out There We Can Step Into": The University of Reading (UK) and the World RankingsWilliam LockeChapter 12. Meeting the Rankings Challenge: How a Young American University Enhances its Global Position Peter N. Stearns and Kris M. SmithChapter 13. Globalization and the Continuing Influence of Rankings on Higher Education: Positive and PerverseEllen HazelkornAbout the Contributors