The institutionalization of universities’ third mission: introduction to the special issue

Abstract

Globally, debates on the notion of a third set of activities aimed at linking higher education institutions more closely with surrounding society are not new. In the last decade or so, calls for a re-engagement of the university in helping to tackle the great challenges facing societies and local communities have propelled the third mission to the forefront of policy discussions – this time under the mantra of ‘relevance’ and ‘social impact’. Yet, as some of the articles in this special issue attest, there is a fundamental tension in the notion of a third mission. The chief aim of this special issue is to provide a critical assessment of the extent to which the third mission has become an integral part of universities’ core structures and primary activities – from the perspective of institutionalization. The individual contributions provide different accounts and perspectives on internal developments surrounding the third mission, but they all share the notion that major tensions and volitions surrounding its institutionalization remain largely unresolved.

Keywords:

• higher education
• third mission
• institutionalization
• universities
• special issue introduction

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Rómulo Pinheiro is an Associate Professor in Public Policy and Management at the University of Agder, Norway. He is also a Senior Researcher at Agderforskning, Visiting Professor at the Universities of Tampere, Finland, and Danube Krems, Austria, and Associate Member of the ‘Expert cultures and institutional dynamics: Studies in higher education and work’ (ExCID) research group based at the University of Oslo. Rómulo’s research interests are located at the intersection of the fields of public policy and administration, organisational studies, regional science and innovation studies, and higher education studies.

Patricio V. Langa is an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Education at the University of Western Cape (UWC), South Africa, and Eduardo Mondlane University (UEM), Maputo. He is a Visiting Research Fellow at Danube University Krems in Austria. He is also an Adviser to UEM Rector on strategic planning. Since 2011 he has been the Executive Director of the HE Quality Council of Mozambique (CNAQ). Patricio is also the President of the Mozambican Sociological Association and founder of an NGO focusing on higher education studies in Mozambique.

Attila Pausits is Head of the Centre for Educational Management and Higher Education Development at Danube University Krems in Austria and Academic Director of the Erasmus Mundus Master Programme ‘Research and Innovation in Higher Education’. Attila is Vice-chairman of ‘EAIR – The European Higher Education Society’ and an expert for higher education management and change management. He has participated in numerous international research and developments projects related to the modernization and development of European higher education.