The future of higher education and the future of higher education research

Abstract

Abstract Higher education research is closely linked to the debates on higher education policy and practice. It provides the information basis for decisions about the future of higher education. As the themes of the public debate on problems and reform needs in higher education change quickly, higher education research has to anticipate future problems and themes of debates in order to develop concepts and to generate knowledge well in advance. Future‐conscious higher education research might aim to identify likely future changes in thematic areas which are already in the limelight of public attention, as trends in the areas of expansion of higher education, diversification of structures of the higher education system, system steering and institutional management as well as internationalisation and globalisation suggest. Moreover, future‐conscious higher education research should try to identify thematic areas not frequently discussed at present but likely to be major issues in the future. For example, professionalisation of higher education in terms of the emergence and expansion of new administrative and service professions in higher education institutions might have far‐reaching implications in the future and is worth to be paid attention by higher education researchers.