The HE Policy Observatory
Are you engaged in higher education as a policymaker, researcher or professional? Do you want to access comparative information on higher education systems and policies globally?
You’re in the right place. UNESCO-IESALC is developing an online portal freely accessible to everyone interested in higher education policy.
Through the HE Policy Observatory, you can gain access to essential, comparable information regarding higher education systems in most UNESCO countries. This information includes:
- The governance structures and regulatory bodies
- Key legislations around higher education
- Quality assurance regimes
- Policies aimed at funding and ensuring equitable access to higher education
- Policies for the recognition of higher education qualifications
The second version of the observatory (set for early 2024), you’ll be able to seamlessly compare this information with the mains higher education statistical indicators collected by the UNESCO Institute of Statistics. These indicators include data on tertiary teaching staff, student mobility, enrolment and graduation rates, resource allocation (government expenditure in HEIs and R&D), and contextual metrics (such as GDP per capita and demography). It will provide you with increased opportunities to make informed decisions and drive meaningful change in higher education policy and practice.
Objectives
The HE Policy Observatory will support you to:
- Access detailed, reliable, systematised and transparent information about higher education globally in a user-friendly platform
- Gain a better understanding of higher education systems and policies across countries in all world regions
- Conduct comparative analysis of higher education systems across countries and identify key policy trends
Learning from Higher Education Systems around the world
HE governance is particularly unique, articulating government policies, institutional autonomy, and academic freedom. Since HE is becoming increasingly international, with a rising number of students and institutions participating in cross-border higher education activities, policymakers could greatly benefit from learning from good practices worldwide. However, this information is currently scattered across multiple resources and platforms, and no mechanism allows the comparison of HE national policies globally.
Expected user benefits
By using the HE Policy Observatory, you will:
- Gain a clear overview of higher education systems in different countries, as well as of international trends in higher education policy.
- Be able to make decisions based on up-to-date evidence and data, for example when designing higher education programs and initiatives
- Collaborate internationally by sharing knowledge and learning from successful strategies and approaches in peer countries