ABSTRACT

Universities worldwide are facing demands to change. Quality assurance, performance appraisal and the reform of governance are underway. In Ireland, state funding is reduced and alternative funding is sought from research, links with industry, the reintroduction of tuition fees and recruitment of students from abroad, especially China. It is opportune to ask: how might universities articulate a vision that includes responding to the demands of the economy and state for well-educated workers and for accountability, while also responding to the learning needs of citizens?