Access to Higher Education. Intergovernmental Conference on Policies for Higher Education in the 80s (Paris, France, October 12-14, 1981).

Overview & Synopsis

Access to higher education in countries that are members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is addressed. The following topics are considered: principles for quantitative planning of higher education, admission policies and the institutional framework, changing links between secondary and higher education, access of new groups and new forms of attendance, coordinating admission and financing policies, and structural and qualitative characteristics of recent changes in higher education. Quantitative planning seems to reflect a pragmatic response to changing economic, demographic, and social conditions. Trends in participation rates at the upper secondary level that help explain differences between countries in their approach and policies regarding access to higher education are examined, along with recent trends and reforms in admission policies in various OECD countries. Programs and institutions with different degrees of selectivity at entry are also considered. Attention is directed to the use of secondary school grades for selection purposes, along with special entrance examinations, and interviews. Additionally, the use of preferential treatment measures for selection among pools of qualified applicants is addressed. New groups of students are considered, along with the subjects they are studying, special admissions policies, and long-term issues related to new groups of students. The question of whether selection procedures are affected by student financial status is discussed, along with whether the way an institution is financed determines their selection procedures. The report of the Working Group on Access to Higher Education is appended. (SW)