6 - Credentials and Mobility: An Analysis of the Profile of Students Studying at Registered Private Higher Education Institutions in South Africa
Journal of Higher Education in Africa,
Vol. 5 No. 2-3 (2007): Journal of Higher Education in Africa
Abstract
Analysing the private higher education sector in relation to the public sector is not helpful, nor is aggregating student data to explain trends in private provision across a national system. This claim is illustrated by analysing the student target group identified by institutions, the profile of students enrolled and the perceptions of students of their motivation for studying at private institutions in South Africa. In South Africa, there are two distinct private sub-sectors, which target and attract a specific student base. Providers that claim to meet a demand for ‘mobility’ cater primarily for an historically privileged and newly privileged constituency, while those that claim to meet a demand for specialised ‘credentials’ cater primarily for non-traditional students. A superficial reading of race and gender, of historical ad- vantage and disadvantage, can obfuscate more than it illuminates, because age, socio-economic status, education background and citizenship interact in complex ways. Understanding the patterns of enrolment in distinct forms of provision pro- vides a useful way of understanding what private providers promise to offer, and why students are attracted to them.
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- Asmal, K., 2002, Press statement by the Minister of Education, on the Transforma- tion and Reconstruction of the Higher Education System, May 30, p14.
- Financial Mail, 2001, ‘Project MBA 2001’, report for Financial Mail, July. Geiger, R., 1986a, Private Sectors in Higher Education. Structure, Function and Change in Eight Countries, Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press.
- Geiger, R., 1986b, ‘Finance and Function: Voluntary Support and Diversity in American Private Higher Education’, in Levy, D.C. (ed.). Private Education. Studies in Choice and Public Policy, New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Jonathan, R., 2002, ‘Higher Education and the Public Good: Clearing Some of the Ground’, Perspectives in Education, 20(4), pp.89-98.
- Kruss, G., 2002, ‘More, better, different? Understanding private higher education in South Africa’, Perspectives in Education, 20(4), pp.15- 28.
- Kruss, G., 2004, Chasing Credentials and Mobility: Private Higher Education in South Africa, Cape Town: HSRC Press.
- Kruss, G. & Kraak, A., 2002, ‘Introduction. A Contested Good? Understanding Private Higher Education in South Africa’, Perspectives in Education, 20(4), ix–xiii.
- Levy, D. C., 1986a, Higher Education and the State in Latin America: Private Challenges to Public Dominance, Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press.
- Levy, D. C., ed., 1986b, Private Education, Studies in Choice and Public Policy, New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Levy, D. C., 1991, ‘Accountability and Private-Public Comparisons’, Review Es- say, Educational Policy, 5(2), pp.193-199.
- Levy, D. C., 1992, ‘Private Institutions of Higher Education’, in Burton C. & Neave, G., eds., The Encyclopaedia of Higher Education, Oxford: Pergamon.
- Levy, D. C., 1993, ‘Recent Trends in the Privatisation of Latin American Higher Education: Solidification, Breadth and Vigor’, Higher Education Policy, 6(4), p.13.
- Mabizela, M., 2000, Towards a Typology of Structural Patterns of Private-Public Higher Education in South Africa: A Contextual Analysis, unpublished MEd thesis presented to the Faculty of Education, UWC.
- Mabizela, M., 2002, ‘The Evolution of Private Provision of Higher Education in South Africa’, Perspectives in Education, 20(4), pp.41-52.
- Mabizela, M., Subotzky, G, & Thaver, B., 2000, The emergence of private higher education in South Africa: Key issues and challenges. A discussion document prepared for the Council on Higher Education Annual Consultative Conference, Education Policy Unit, University of Western Cape, November.
- Marginson, S., 1997, ‘Imagining Ivy: Pitfalls in the Privatization of Higher Educa- tion in Australia’, Comparative Education Review, 41(4), pp.460-480.
- Smit, F., 2000, ‘Private Higher Education: Shrouded in Uncertainty?’ Outcomes, 1(2), 8-10. Vergnani, L., 2000, ‘The Lost Population’, Leadership, February, pp34-39.
References
Asmal, K., 2002, Press statement by the Minister of Education, on the Transforma- tion and Reconstruction of the Higher Education System, May 30, p14.
Financial Mail, 2001, ‘Project MBA 2001’, report for Financial Mail, July. Geiger, R., 1986a, Private Sectors in Higher Education. Structure, Function and Change in Eight Countries, Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press.
Geiger, R., 1986b, ‘Finance and Function: Voluntary Support and Diversity in American Private Higher Education’, in Levy, D.C. (ed.). Private Education. Studies in Choice and Public Policy, New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Jonathan, R., 2002, ‘Higher Education and the Public Good: Clearing Some of the Ground’, Perspectives in Education, 20(4), pp.89-98.
Kruss, G., 2002, ‘More, better, different? Understanding private higher education in South Africa’, Perspectives in Education, 20(4), pp.15- 28.
Kruss, G., 2004, Chasing Credentials and Mobility: Private Higher Education in South Africa, Cape Town: HSRC Press.
Kruss, G. & Kraak, A., 2002, ‘Introduction. A Contested Good? Understanding Private Higher Education in South Africa’, Perspectives in Education, 20(4), ix–xiii.
Levy, D. C., 1986a, Higher Education and the State in Latin America: Private Challenges to Public Dominance, Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press.
Levy, D. C., ed., 1986b, Private Education, Studies in Choice and Public Policy, New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Levy, D. C., 1991, ‘Accountability and Private-Public Comparisons’, Review Es- say, Educational Policy, 5(2), pp.193-199.
Levy, D. C., 1992, ‘Private Institutions of Higher Education’, in Burton C. & Neave, G., eds., The Encyclopaedia of Higher Education, Oxford: Pergamon.
Levy, D. C., 1993, ‘Recent Trends in the Privatisation of Latin American Higher Education: Solidification, Breadth and Vigor’, Higher Education Policy, 6(4), p.13.
Mabizela, M., 2000, Towards a Typology of Structural Patterns of Private-Public Higher Education in South Africa: A Contextual Analysis, unpublished MEd thesis presented to the Faculty of Education, UWC.
Mabizela, M., 2002, ‘The Evolution of Private Provision of Higher Education in South Africa’, Perspectives in Education, 20(4), pp.41-52.
Mabizela, M., Subotzky, G, & Thaver, B., 2000, The emergence of private higher education in South Africa: Key issues and challenges. A discussion document prepared for the Council on Higher Education Annual Consultative Conference, Education Policy Unit, University of Western Cape, November.
Marginson, S., 1997, ‘Imagining Ivy: Pitfalls in the Privatization of Higher Educa- tion in Australia’, Comparative Education Review, 41(4), pp.460-480.
Smit, F., 2000, ‘Private Higher Education: Shrouded in Uncertainty?’ Outcomes, 1(2), 8-10. Vergnani, L., 2000, ‘The Lost Population’, Leadership, February, pp34-39.