Finnish Higher Education in International Perspective

Kari RaivioChancellor emeritus, University of Helsinki

CES-seminaari 19.6.2013

Capacity building as a national strategy

• Competitiveness in knowledge economy depends on:– Well-educated workforce– Research base to foster innovation– Enlightened population

• Focus on universities - why?– Achieving an edge in skills and competencies of workforce– Training teachers for the education chain– Training researchers– Research excellence to ”out-innovate” competitors– Ranking lists

UNIVERSITIES – INSTRUMENTS OF ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL POLICY!

Higher education attainment and economic success (OECD 2010)

How to make EU the leading knowledge-based economy ?

(Modified Lisbon agenda, 2004)

• Realization of ”Knowledge Society”– Recruit top research talent– Minimize bureaucracy– Modernize universities – Industry-academia (”Ideopolis”)

• R&D first priority– Public/private investment (at least 3% of GDP)– Tax relief– ERC/EIT– Public procurement

Capacity building is a long-term projectCASE FINLAND

• Law in late 19th century: to marry you have to be able to read!

• Comprehensive school reform in 1960-70s (primary-secondary)

• Teacher training in universities (Master´s degree)• Response to severe economic crisis in early 1990s:

– Increased investment in R & D• New university law 1.1.2010

– Autonomy– Legal status

Problems in lobbying for HE and R&D policy

• Targets are almost exclusively input-related– Investment (% GDP)– Cohort participation rate– Attainment levels

• Outputs difficult to measure– Learning outcomes– Research achievement

• Impact even more difficult to assess – and takes time!– Innovation system – economic progress– Human wellbeing

FAITH!

Tertiary educational attainment of EU countries compared to 2020 target

National expenditure per student in relation to GDP per capita (2010)

Money alone does not buy resultsCorrelation of PISA performance with expenditure

Correlation of PISA scores with expenditure

92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 090.0

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5.0 IsraelSwedenFINLANDKoreaJapanIcelandUSADenmarkAustriaGermanyOECDFranceCanadaGreat BritainNetherlandsNorwayChinaIreland

R&D investments in some countries

Sources: OECD, Main Science and Technology Indicators and Statistics Finland01-2010 DM 36109, 36054 and 218475

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Percentage of GDP

Comparison of economic wealth and scientific impact(King: Nature 15. July 2004)

SHARE OF 1% OF MOST HIGHLY CITED PUBLICATIONS 1997-2001

• USA 62.8• UK 12.8• GERMANY 10.4• JAPAN 6.9• FRANCE 6.9• CANADA 5.8• ITALY 4.3• SWITZERLAND 4.1• NETHERLANDS 3.8

• AUSTRALIA 2.8• SWEDEN 2.5• SPAIN 2.1• BELGIUM 1.7• DENMARK 1.5• ISRAEL 1.5• RUSSIA 1.3• FINLAND 1.1• AUSTRIA 1.0

GLOBAL RANKING OF UNIVERSITIES (TOP 10 IN 2011)

• HARVARD• STANFORD• MIT• UC BERKELEY• CAMBRIDGE• CALTECH• PRINCETON• COLUMBIA• U CHICAGO• OXFORD

– (U. HELSINKI 74.)

• ARWU (SHANGHAI)

• CALTECH• HARVARD• STANFORD• OXFORD• PRINCETON• CAMBRIDGE• MIT• IMPERIAL COLLEGE• U CHICAGO• UC BERKELEY

– (U. HELSINKI 91.)

• T.H.E. WORLD UNIVERSITY RANKINGS

Nations with universities among top 100

ARWU (Shanghai)• USA 53• UK 10• Germany 6• Japan 5• Canada, Australia,

Switzerland 4• France, Sweden 3• Denmark, Netherlands 2• Belgium, Finland,

Israel, Norway, Russia 1

T.H.E. World University Ranking• USA 51• UK 12• Canada 5• Australia, Germany,

Netherlands, China 4• France, Sweden,

Switzerland 3• Japan, Korea 2• Belgium, Finland,

Singapore 1

WHY ARE U.S. UNIVERSITIES SO DOMINANT?

• Genetic advantage – NO• Better researcher training – NO• Differentiation of functions - YES• Better funding – YES !• Recruitment of postdocs – Yes• Recruitment of top scientists – Yes• ”Pursuit of excellence” - Yes

– Competition– Career development– Rewards

MONEY COUNTS – NOT % GDP R & D FUNDING 2003

(OECD, bn $ PPP)

• USA 284.6• JAPAN 114.0• GERMANY 57.0• FRANCE 37.5• UK 33.6• KOREA 24.4• CANADA 19.3• ITALY 17.7

• SPAIN 11.0• SWEDEN

10.4• AUSTRALIA

9.1• HOLLAND

8.8• BELGIUM

7.6• AUSTRIA

6.4• SWITZERLAND 5.6• FINLAND

5.2

Research achievement – Nobel prizes(2000 - 2012)

Country Physiol/Medic Physics Chemistry Total

USA 17 21 17 55

UK 6 2 1 9

Japan - 3 4 7

France 3 1 1 5

Germany 1 2 1 4

Israel - - 4 4

Australia 2 1 - 3

Russia - 2 - 2

Sweden 1 - - 1

Switzerland - - 1 1

China - 1 - 1

Proportion of international university students by country (%)

DILEMMAS OF UNIVERSITIES IN EUROPE (and elsewhere?)

• Lack of realistic institutional profiling• Decreasing public funding• Meager sources of external R & D funding • Tuition income low (or zero)• Endowments insignificant• Private capital flow low• Commercial activities limited• ”Civil servant attitude”

Conclusions

• Small countries very efficient on a per capita basis– Publications– Citations– Patents

• Financial and intellectual resources limit breadth of science– Concentrate resources through competition– Find special advantages– Collaborate

• Concentrate on QUALITY!• Do not separate basic research from higher education• Collateral benefits of capacity building

Capacity building allows pursuit of happiness