Higher Education Funding Patterns Since 1990: A New Perspective

Abstract

Conventional wisdom is that the restructuring of UK universities in 1992 has had significant effects on the pattern of funding. This perception is challenged in this article by an analysis of aggregated HEFC data since 1990. The extent of the higher education funding squeeze is evident, but this can be seen as the intensification of a trend from the 1980s rather than a major policy redirection. Institutional consolidation in the sector has been minimal, with HEFC policies serving to reorganize the existing number of institutions under a single funding umbrella rather than creating new institutions or forming widespread mergers and closures. Petrifaction is also apparent in the continuing gap between pre- and post-1992 universities in terms of real research income per student capita. This is of particular interest for higher education institutions preparing for the 2001 Research Assessment Exercise.