Higher Education Policy Change and Institutional Development in Mongolia

Changes in higher education policy in Mongolia involved an abruptness that both facilitated reform and challenged institutional managers. This article reports on the nature of these changes and their impact on the School of Economic Studies (SES) at the National University. It focuses on the negotiation between the SES, the National University and government, necessary to ensure that policy change was reflected at an operational level. The influence of policy on the content and process of reform at the SES is considered together with consequential institutional and individual behaviour patterns. Curriculum reform at an academic level could proceed within the SES unconstrained by detailed government influence, while managerial reform, essential to support the academic process, was dependent upon, and influenced by, governmental action.