Institutional differentiation and the accommodation of enrollment expansion in Brazil

This paper addresses the subject of institutional differentiation, i.e., the impact this differentiation may have on enrollment capacity, and the ability to absorb an anticipated enrollment expansion. Based on theory and experience, the report is focused on higher education in Brazil during the late 1990s, and stems from an international comparative study on the subject with perspectives on economics, finance, governance, and public policy. The report further discusses academics between and within institutions, and their relationships to Government, examining both the ownership range as well as the extent of government control. Following a review on the types of higher education institutions, the paper examines the enrollment expansion through an agenda analysis on reform, modernization, growth, and democratization. Recommendations are suggested for more effective federal roles in higher and post secondary education, where a strengthened differentiation would be better suited for an inevitable enrollment expansion.