Higher Education in Latin America and the Caribbean:
Challenges and Prospects
Lauritz B. Holm-Nielsen, José Joaquín Brunner,
Jorge Balán, Kristian Thorn and Gregory Elacqua
1. Introduction
Recent decades have changed the nature of tertiary education in Latin America. From
enrollment of the privileged few, post-secondary education is today a mass undertaking.
Between 1985 and 2002, tertiary enrollment has more than doubled in the region as a
whole.
The rise in tertiary enrollment has been driven by changes in both supply and demand. In
parallel with restructuring of national economies, countries in the Latin American and the
Caribbean (LAC) region have increased the supply of education at all levels. Secondary
graduates with skills and aspirations have in large numbers taken advantage of new
opportunities to pursue tertiary studies. This effect has been coupled with shifts in the
productive sector and the labor market, resulting in an upward trend in the demand for
advanced skills. Despite rising numbers of graduates, private returns to tertiary education
have been increasing, providing a clear incentive to enroll in institutions of higher
education.
Today, tertiary education is complementing the secondary level as the reference for
foundational learning and for key transitions between education and work in Latin
America. This new role and growing participation has led authors to advocate for the use
of the term tertiary education rather than higher education, thereby implying a shift to
inclusiveness, flexible learning options, and higher responsiveness to the individual
learner (Wagner, 1998).
While much has been achieved, Latin America still has a long way to go in supplying
advanced skills. Most importantly, the region faces significant new trends in the global
environment. These include increased global competition, the emergence of a worldwide
market for talent and a growing importance of knowledge as a source of value. In this
new dynamic environment, there is a critical need for people with higher-order skills able
to perform independent analysis, process complex information, and use acquired
knowledge to innovate.
For the above reasons, it is paramount that countries in Latin America continue to place
tertiary education high on the agenda. Higher education is neither a luxury good reserved
for high income nations nor an activity that can await the completion of reforms at other
levels of the educational system. Investment in tertiary education must be an integral part
of poverty reduction and development strategies in Latin America.
At the beginning of the 21st century, the fundamental challenge in LAC countries is to
accommodate increases in demand for tertiary education in circumstances of severe
resource constraints. In parallel with increases in supply, opportunities for a more
heterogeneous student body must be provided. This calls for greater diversification of
programs, teaching methods and curriculum. Little is achieved if expansion comes at the
1
cost of adverse effects on other equally important educational goals. For that reason, key
objectives such as quality, relevance and equity, as well as effective management and
financial infrastructure, must be at the forefront of reforms. Finally, tertiary institutions
have an important role to play in contributing to innovation systems by carrying out stateof-the-art research and providing skilled researchers.
The following sections will explore the extent to which LAC is prepared to meet these
challenges. The focus is on recent trends, the current status and the need for further
tertiary education reforms. Section 2 highlights approaches to the expansion of tertiary
education. Against this backdrop, the next section focuses on how tertiary education is
financed in Latin America. Section 4 moves into the content of education by discussing
the quality and relevance of tertiary education. This is followed by a section on inequities
in higher education. Section 6 presents trends in the management of tertiary education
and the final section takes a broad look at internationalization and the contribution of
post-secondary education to national innovation systems. The conclusion summarizes
strengths and weaknesses of tertiary education in Latin America and points to future
challenges and opportunities.
2. Expansion and diversification
INCREASE IN COVERAGE. The increase in tertiary enrollment in the LAC region during the
last four decades is remarkable. Today, an average of 27 percent of the relevant age
cohort in the region is enrolled in a post-secondary institution. This constitutes an annual
growth rate of 4.4 percent since 1985. Argentina and notably Chile are among the
regional leaders with enrollment rates well above 30 percent (Graph 1).
Despite impressive growth, the LAC region falls considerably behind leading economies.
As three points of reference, the OECD average tertiary enrollment rate stands today at
55 percent, Korea’s at 66 percent and Spain’s at 55 percent. Hence, there is a wide gap in
the availability of advanced skills to be closed in Latin America. A rise in relative wages
of university graduates in most countries in the region also suggests an inadequate supply
of tertiary graduates (De Ferranti et al., 2003).
Graph 1. Time series of gross tertiary enrollment in selected countries, LAC and the OECD
Gross Teriary Enrollment (%)
70
Argentina
60
Brazil
50
Chile
40
Korea
Spain
30
Bolivia
Honduras
20
LAC
10
OECD
0
1965
1975
1985
1995
1998-2000
Source: The Task Force (2000); World Bank (2002d); For Argentina: INDEC (2003) and Secretaría de Educación Superior (2003)
2
Although less pronounced, expansion has also taken place in graduate education. In 1997
students in Master’s and Ph.D. programs represented an estimated 2.4 percent of tertiary
enrollment in the LAC region as a whole. However, this number may be understated
since it does not take into account significant growth in professions such as law and
medicine, which in most LAC countries do not lead to formal graduate degrees. Despite
the higher priority given to graduate education in recent years, Latin America features a
very low production of doctoral graduates. The OECD countries produce on average one
new Ph.D. per 5000 people every year. For example, in Korea and Ireland the ratio is 1
PhD per 9000 and in Spain 1 per 6500 (National Science Foundation, 2002). In contrast,
the ratio is 1 Ph.D. per 70,000 people in Brazil, 1 per 140,000 in Chile and 1 per 700,000
in Colombia (World Bank, 2002a).
APPROACHES TO EXPANSION.
LAC countries have approached the expansion of tertiary
education in different ways. In Argentina, Mexico, Uruguay and Venezuela, public
universities have expanded and diversified and new public institutions have been created
at the regional level to absorb much of the demand. In other countries, such as Chile,
Colombia and Brazil, public education has remained restricted and a growing network of
private institutions has absorbed increases in demand.
There has been a remarkable growth in private provision of tertiary education across the
region. Faced with a rising demand for advanced learning opportunities, several
governments have deregulated the market for tertiary education bringing an end to what
had been a public sector monopoly. With the exception of Cuba, private tertiary
institutions today are found throughout the region and in most countries the private sector
has increased its coverage, complexity and visibility.
Table 1 gives an overview of changes in private sector coverage from 1985 to 2002.
Currently, private LAC institutions account for over 40 percent of tertiary enrollment.
East Asian countries also have a percentage of students enrolled in private institutions.
3
Table 1. Development of private higher education in Latin America and a selection of countries,
1985-2002*
Year
1985
2002*
Percentage of private enrollment
75%-40%
40%-30%
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
El Salvador
Dom. Republic
Peru
Brazil
Colombia
Chile
Dom. Republic
El Salvador
Nicaragua
Paraguay
Peru
Korea
Venezuela
Malaysia
30%-20%
Argentina
Guatemala
Paraguay
Costa Rica
Ecuador
Argentina
Guatemala
Mexico
Portugal
Thailand
20%-10%
Costa Rica
Ecuador
Honduras
Mexico
Nicaragua
Venezuela
Honduras
Less than 10%
Bolivia
Panama
Uruguay
Cuba
Bolivia
Panama
Uruguay
Cuba
Ireland
Source: Schwartzman (2002); World Bank (2002c and 2003); Zúñiga (2003); OECD (2002a) and García Gaudilla (1998)
Note: *or latest available
NON-UNIVERSITY TERTIARY EDUCATION. Differentiation has not only occurred across
sectors. In the past 20 years, the number of universities and non-university institutions
has increased. Examples of such institutions are technical schools, teacher colleges and
vocational training facilities. Around 1950, there were 75 universities in Latin America.
By the 1990s there were about 700 universities as well as roughly 3,000 non-university
education institutions, 60 percent of them private (Schwartzman, 2003). In Venezuela,
Chile, and Brazil, for example, the non-university system accounts for 28, 30 and 32
percent of total tertiary enrollment, respectively (World Bank, 2002b and 2002c).
4
The considerable differentiation of tertiary education has several positive implications.
Today, the region features far more learning opportunities than it did a few decades ago.
For this reason, the ability to accommodate a diverse student body with different
backgrounds, skills, and aspirations has improved. Additionally, the massification of
higher education could not have taken place had it relied solely on the existing, primarily
public, tertiary institutions. Diversification is crucial to the region’s continual strive to
increase tertiary enrollment and accommodate a growing demand.
While a positive development in most respects, diversification and increased coverage
have come at a price. The vast number of institutions that differ in terms of ownership,
autonomy, funding and programs has contributed to a somewhat disjoined and
fragmented system divided among institutions with weak links between them. In
Colombia, for example, the proliferation of a highly heterogeneous university sector has
made it difficult to coordinate between entities and avoid internal inconsistencies
(Brunner, 2002a). A major difficulty throughout the region is the highly segmented
character of non-university tertiary education. These institutions often lack a clear
educational policy and strategy, raising many questions regarding quality and relevance
of the learning offered (Brunner, 2002b).
3. Financing tertiary education
INVESTMENT IN CIRCUMSTANCES OF FISCAL CONSTRAINTS. Expansion and improvement of
tertiary education presupposes adequate funding. Making room for investment in
education in circumstances of fiscal constraints and competing priorities is a stark
challenge. Graph 2 gives an overview of how a number of LAC countries fare with
regard to public and private expenditure on tertiary education.
Graph 2. Investment in tertiary education per capita in absolute and relative terms (1999)
350
2,5%
PPP $US
300
250
2,0%
200
1,5%
150
1,0%
100
0,5%
50
Pe
ru
o
Pa
rg
ua
y
Ja
m
ai
ca
bi
a
ex
ic
M
l
om
Co
l
Br
az
i
le
Po
rtu
ga
l
Ar
ge
nt
in
a
M
al
ay
sia
Ch
i
Sp
ai
n
O
EC
D
Ire
la
nd
0,0%
Ko
re
a
0
Percentage of GDP
3,0%
400
Public investment per capita
Private investment per capita
Total investment per capita
Total investment in tertiary education relative to GDP
Source: OECD (2002a), World Bank (2002d) and World Bank (2002b and 2003)
Note: Dollar amounts reflect investment in tertiary education per capita, PPP (current international dollars)
LAC countries invest about the same percentage of GDP on tertiary education as the
average OECD country, with the exception of Colombia and notably Chile that commit a
higher percentage of GDP. While this indicator reflects a country’s willingness to defer
consumption to invest in human capital, expenditures relative to GDP does not reveal
5
how regional spending weighs against high-income competitors. To achieve such
comparability, Graph 2 includes per capita investment in purchasing-power-adjusted
amounts, roughly reflecting how much education the allocated resources will buy in each
country. In terms of actual spending per capita, the region falls considerably short of the
OECD average. For example, Korea and Ireland allocate more than double the resources
LAC countries spend on tertiary education. Argentina and notably Chile are the regional
leaders, whereas Peru, Jamaica and Paraguay are among the countries that invest the least
in absolute terms.
The costs of insufficient regional spending per capita on tertiary education are likely
considerable. Allocating fewer resources than high-income countries reduces the
prospects of “catching up” and hampers the ability to create high yielding comparative
advantages in the knowledge economy. Hence, leveling the playing field by closing the
gap in human capital formation would require the LAC countries to invest for several
years more in education relative to GDP than the OECD.
EASING FISCAL CONSTRAINTS THOUGH PRIVATE PROVISION. Generally, public funding is
not available to private tertiary institutions in Latin America. Private institutions are
supported by public resources primarily in the form of indirect subsidies, such as student
aid. Hence, in several countries private provision has allowed for the expansion of
tertiary education without committing considerably more public resources. As is evident
from Graph 2, Chile allocates less public funding for tertiary education than does Mexico
and notably Argentina. In fact, it allocates almost twice the amount of private resources
as all countries in the sample with the exception of Korea. This difference
notwithstanding, due to private sector expenditures, Chile exceeds other countries in the
region, as well as Malaysia and Portugal, in terms of total spending. In addition to
increasing the availability of resources, private provision has the potential of making the
tertiary system less vulnerable to fluctuations in the ability of the public sector to invest
in education.
FINANCING PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES. Public tertiary institutions in Latin America are
predominantly tax-financed. State involvement reflects the high priority attributed to
education by governments across the region. It also implies acknowledgement of market
imperfections that – without public subsidies – may lead to a supply of tertiary graduates
short of the social optimum. Reforms to increase reliance on cost-recovery through
student payment in one form or another are often not politically viable and are in many
cases met with resistance. For instance, in 1999, a move to raise tuition levels at
Mexico’s largest university, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, had to be
abandoned following a student strike that closed down the university for nearly an entire
year.
Although often reluctant, public tertiary institutions in a number of LAC countries are
increasingly moving towards cost sharing. As is the case with private provision, charging
tuition to students who can afford to pay may be beneficial since it provides additional
resources for tertiary education and eases the strain on state budgets. In addition, it
ensures that the costs of higher education are borne by those who receive the benefits.
6
Graph 3 shows the fraction of costs borne by students in public universities in a crosssection of countries. The graph reveals that in countries such as Chile, Jamaica, Ecuador,
Colombia and Costa Rica student financing is at similar levels as Ireland, Korea and
Spain. In other countries such as Honduras, Guatemala and Bolivia, cost-recovery is
very low, and in Argentina and Brazil, which has zero-tuition policies for undergraduate
programs in public universities, financial contributions from students are insignificant.
However, Argentina and other countries with low levels of cost sharing do charge tuition
in public graduate education, creating more competition in this segment with private
providers.
Graph 3. Cost Recovery in Public Universities in a cross section of countries
7
Ireland
Chile
Jamaica
Ko rea
Ecuado r
Co lo mbia
Spain
Co sta Rica
Thailand
Ho nduras
Guatemala
B o livia
A rgentina
B razil
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
Percentage of Costs Borne by Students
Source: Schwartzman (2003); World Bank (2002a); De Ferranti et al. (2003)
To avoid reductions in quality as tertiary education expands, greater reliance on costrecovery may be a viable option for LAC countries. As tuition shifts substantial influence
from the institution and the government to the student and the family, such a measure
would pave the way for a more demand driven system. However, cost-recovery is no
panacea. There are indications that tuition-financed tertiary education is associated with
greater inequities. In Argentina, for example, students belonging to the richest 20 percent
of the population constitute 29 percent of the student body in free public tertiary
institutions, whereas the corresponding ratio in fee-charging private institutions is more
than 60 percent (Del Bello, 2002). The composition of the student body in Brazilian
universities is similar (Schwartzman, 2003). Consequently, reliance on cost-recovery
must be tied closely to financial assistance to needy students to maintain accessibility for
low-income families.
ALTERNATIVE SOURCES OF REVENUE. In several LAC countries, public tertiary institutions
are developing new ways of raising revenue. Many universities recognize that public
subsidies will not grow in the near future. For that reason, they must be entrepreneurial in
order to raise extra funds. Some universities have begun generating income on their own
through the sale of services and renting of facilities. In Argentina, for example, the
resources generated by universities increased from 7 percent to 14 percent of the total
budget between 1991 and 1996 (Johnstone, 1998). Hence, exploring new sources of
revenue can provide greater flexibility for tertiary institutions in Latin America to be
innovative and improve quality. It may also increase relevance since the sale of services
requires universities to be responsive to the needs of society.
INTERNAL INEFFICIENCIES. In many LAC countries evidence suggests that addressing
problems of low internal efficiency may eventually help free up resources at tertiary
institutions. Throughout the region graduation rates are very low and have deteriorated in
8
recent decades with rising costs per student as a consequence. Low internal efficiency is
particularly prevalent in countries with open access to universities. In Argentina, for
example, university first year dropout rates are at 50 percent and a large increase in
student intake has not materialized in high numbers of university graduates (Graph 4 and
Marquis, 2003). Assuming that it takes five years to compete a tertiary education, only
one in eight admitted students graduate in Argentina, whereas the comparable ratio is 3:1
for Chile and 2:1 for Colombia.
Graph 4. Efficiency: Student intake relative to graduates in Argentine* and Colombian universities
300000
Number of students
250000
200000
150000
100000
50000
0
1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000
Annual number of graduates in Argentina
Annual student intake in Argentina
Annual number of graduates in Colombia
Annual student intake in Colombia
Source: Ministerio de Educación, Ciencia y Tecnología de Argentina (2002) and ICFES (2000)
Note: *Universidades Nacionales (approximately 85 percent of tertiary enrollment)
Graph 5 gives a rough estimate of the efficiency of tertiary institutions in selected
countries. While the graph arguably does not reflect differences in quality, it stands out
that Brazil, Venezuela and Colombia have similar levels of enrollment as Mexico, Peru,
Malaysia and Thailand but spend a much higher percentage of GDP on tertiary education.
Similarly, Argentina, Portugal and Spain have higher enrollment rates than Chile, yet
spend more than a percentage point of GDP less on higher education.
9
Graph 5. Tertiary education expenditure as a percentage of GDP by gross tertiary enrollment rate
70%
Gross enrollment rate
60%
50%
40%
Korea
Spain
Argentina
Portugal
30%
Thailand
Peru
20%
Mexico
Ireland
Chile
Venezuela
Colombia
Malaysia
10%
0%
1,0%
OECD
1,2%
1,4%
Brazil
1,6%
1,8%
2,0%
2,2%
2,5%
2,7%
Tertiary education expenditure as percentage of GDP
Source: OECD (2002a) and World Bank (2002d)
Another source of low efficiency in some institutions is the high proportion of overhead
expenditures and salaries of non-teaching staff. In Argentina and Brazil student-teacher
ratios are very low. In federal universities the ratio is 9 to 1, compared with an average of
16.7 to 1 in the OECD, 17.4 to 1 in Ireland and 15.9 to 1 in Spain. The student teacher
ratios in Malaysia are 19 to 1 (OECD, 2002a). Another source of low efficiency is
salaries for retired faculty members. In Argentina and Brazil salaries of active professors
and pensions for retired faculty members represent 80 and 90 percent of the total budget,
respectively, leaving only limited resources for non-salary expenditures for educational
purposes (Marquis 2003 and World Bank, 2002b and 2003). These figures are
considerably lower in high-income countries. For example, Korea spends less than half
of its budget on the compensation of teachers (OECD, 2002a). Thus, these figures
suggest that budgetary constraints in some LAC countries are not solely a matter of
obtaining additional resources.
4. Teaching, quality and relevance
NECESSITY OF NEW PEDAGOGICAL APPROACHES. The significant expansion of tertiary
education in Latin America entails a great diversity of interests, skills and aspirations of
10
admitted students. Despite the massification of tertiary education, university curricula
remain somewhat elitist and have not been fully developed to include a varied mix of
teaching methods, learning content and programs. The above-mentioned high regional
dropout rates and delays in graduation are testimony to this fact.
Most LAC countries have a long way to go in adopting a pedagogical model that involves
student participation and an emphasis on “learning to learn” methodologies.
Reproductions of content and sole reliance on classroom instruction are still prevalent
and little focus is placed on cultivating skills such as creativity, reflection and
entrepreneurship. Adoption of a more problem-based mode of knowledge formation is
often hampered by entrenchment of university departments and the dominance of a
discipline-led approach among instructors (Altbach, 2003). In addition, tertiary students
are usually required to follow a tradition of high specialization at the beginning of their
studies. This generates rigidities in the learning process and goes against the international
tendency of more general and module-based undergraduate education and specialization
at the graduate level.
One reason for concern is the loose ties between Latin American scholars and tertiary
institutions. More than 60 percent of academics in the public sector and 86 percent in the
private sector are only part-time and many of them hold more than one job (World Bank,
2002a). While mobility may bring some benefits, part-time employment often goes
against attempts to establish a critical mass of professional instructors and researchers
and efforts to create attractive learning environments in which teachers and students have
time to interact.
IMPROVING TEACHING METHODS. Processes to adjust pedagogical methods to changing
circumstances in the LAC region and the global economy are slowed by deep-rooted
practices and reward structures that emphasize seniority rather than performance
(Altbach, 2003). To overcome such obstacles, teaching awards have been established in a
number of countries to increase visibility of good practices and encourage excellence in
teaching and research. Mexico, for example, has a major program that gives national
recognition to outstanding members of academia (El-Khawas, 1998a).
Innovative approaches to teaching are also gaining momentum in the region. Brazil,
Colombia, Mexico and Costa Rica, among others, have established distance-learning
programs reaching tertiary students in remote areas and addressing the educational needs
of adults. Instituto Technológico de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM) in
Mexico, for example, operates a virtual university, which provides distance education to
an excess of 12,000 students throughout the Americas. To overcome cross-national
inconsistencies and provide the means for certification of skills, ITESM has formed
partnerships with local universities such as the Universidad Católica in Chile and the
Instituto Tecnológico de Buenos Aires in Argentina (UNESCO, 2002 and Burkle, 2002).
LOW QUALITY PROBLEMS.
LAC countries are striving to elevate the quality of tertiary
education. Several countries are establishing structures for ongoing improvements and
there is an increasing recognition that quality of education must be addressed in its own
right. Countries in Latin America face a multitude of quality problems in tertiary
education. These include overcrowded universities, deteriorating physical facilities, lack
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of equipment, obsolete instruction material and outdated curricula. Provision of high
quality education is also hampered by deficient learning outcomes in primary and
secondary education. In addition, Latin American universities often devote significant
time and resources to upgrading skills of secondary graduates ill-prepared for tertiary
education (Brunner, 2002b).
Insufficiently qualified teaching staff is another major concern. As is evident from Graph
6, university professors with a doctoral degree are not prevalent in the region. Less than 4
percent of professors in Mexico and Colombia have doctoral degrees and only one in ten
have a Ph.D. among the regional leaders, with the exception of Brazil. One-third of
Brazilian professors hold a doctoral degree. Deficient levels of highly skilled university
faculty is also reflected in the fact that the share of professors with a master’s degree is
less than 26 percent in Latin America as a whole (García Guadilla, 1998).
Graph 6. Professors with doctoral degrees in selected LAC countries
Percentage of teaching faculty
35,0%
30,0%
25,0%
20,0%
15,0%
10,0%
5,0%
0,0%
Brasil
Chile
Argentina* LAC average Venezuela
Mexico
Colombia
Source: Brunner (2002a), World Bank (2002c); García Gaudilla (1998) and Schwartzman and Balbachevsky (1996)
Note: *Only public universities
Quality of tertiary education in LAC countries is not merely a question of an institution
being public or private. The private tertiary sector is comprised of both elitist and demand
absorbing institutions, the latter primarily serving students from low-income families.
Weak or nonexistent procedures for accreditation of new tertiary institutions in some
LAC countries have made it impossible to uphold high standards in the private sector.
Some private institutions are regarded as little more than “diploma mills” that provide
few opportunities for graduates in the labor market.
QUALITY ASSURANCE. Concerns about quality, deregulation of higher education, and
growth in private provision have given rise to an increased focus on academic standards
and quality assurance mechanisms throughout Latin America. Governments increasingly
want to make sure that students receive value when investing time and resources in
tertiary education (Balán, 1996). A tangible sign of this trend is the establishment of
independent national accreditation agencies and committees. Such systematic modes of
quality control generally involve the certification of new tertiary institutions and
12
accreditation of existing programs based on previously established standards and
expectations.
In recent years, accreditation agencies for undergraduate programs have been created in
Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Mexico, and
Nicaragua. One example is the Argentine Comisión Nacional de Evaluación y
Acreditación Universitaria (CONEAU). Created by law in 1995, CONEAU is an attempt
to establish a centralized and uniform system for monitoring the quality of universities
(Hansen and Holm-Nielsen, 2002a). CONEAU plays a key role in granting legal status to
new institutions, either public or private, and closely monitors the latter for a number of
years. While the most common arrangement is a single national agency, countries such as
Colombia and Mexico have taken a more pluralist approach by establishing separate
agencies for different regions, purposes, and types of undergraduate programs.
Accreditation of graduate education is also expanding in the region. The prime example
is Brazil, which has a long-standing tradition for quality assurance of its graduate
programs through the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior,
CAPES (Balbachevsky, 2003).
Methods of quality assurance used throughout the region include external peer-review,
quantitative performance indicators, and student assessments. In addition, institutional
self-assessment focusing on strengths and weaknesses is considered a key ingredient in
all quality improvement efforts (DePietro-Jurand and Lemaitre, 2002). There is also a
trend toward putting emphasis on learning outcomes and acquired competencies of
students rather than inputs and process aspects of education. Making good use of
collected information and self-assessment processes requires universities to have the
skills and resources to examine their programs critically and know how to improve them.
For some institutions in LAC this entails strengthening the administrative capacity and
nurturing a culture of improvement to ensure that quality assurance initiatives result in
the desired change (El-Khawas, 1998b).
In circumstances where Latin American governments often neither have the resources nor
the means to manage the tertiary system from above, indirect measures of quality
assurance are sometimes used. One possibility is to make public and private tertiary
institutions compete for high scoring students. In Chile, for example, attempts have been
made to align incentives and quality improvement by tying a fraction of public subsidies
to the quality of students tertiary institutions are able to attract. Another, not yet very
widespread, option is to limit financial aid to students attending certified institutions
(Hauptman, 2002).
LACK OF INFORMATION ON LABOR MARKET RESPONSES. Effective labor market feedback
systems, such as tracer surveys and regular consultations with employers and recent
graduates are indispensable for adjusting curricula and programs to meet the needs of
society. Yet, few governments and institutions in Latin America collect such information
on a regular basis. Very little data is available on career paths of tertiary graduates,
making it difficult to uncover potential discrepancies between supply and demand of
highly skilled labor. Despite increased labor-market responsiveness due to the rise of
private tertiary education, programs in Latin America are still predominantly offered on
the basis of tradition or scholar preferences (Levy, 2002).
13
LOW RELEVANCE AND LABOR MARKET IMBALANCES. Graph 7 shows the degree to which
tertiary education is perceived to meet the needs of a competitive economy. It is striking
that, with the exception of Chile, every country in the region falls short of the OECD
average. Mexico, Argentina and Venezuela fare the worst while Colombia and Brazil
receive a marginally better evaluation. Whilst cross-national surveys should be
interpreted with caution, the data suggest that, with the exception of East Asian countries
sampled, tertiary education in Latin America lags high-income nations in terms of
relevance for the productive sector.
Graph 7. Degree to which university education meets the needs of a competitive economy
10
9
IMD Schore (1-10)
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
Ireland
Chile
OECD
Spain
Colombia
LAC
Mexico
Brazil
Malaysia Argentina Thailand
Korea
Source: IMD Survey, World Competitiveness Yearbook (2001)
Note: The values 0 and 10 reflect that university education, respectively, does not and does meet the needs of a competitive economy.
Note: Variables are normalized on a scale of 0 (lowest) to 10 (highest).
The relative wages of tertiary graduates are on the rise in Latin America. Still, there is
clear evidence of labor market imbalances. In Argentina, for example, unemployment
among highly educated people has risen from 29 percent of the unemployed in 1990 to 38
percent in 1999. Some careers turn out vast number of graduates despite the lack of
demand in the economy. Today, Argentina features more physicians per 1,000 citizens
than the United States. By contrast, other careers, such as engineering, are in undersupply
(Hansen and Holm-Nielsen, 2002a). Another example is Venezuela where the
unemployment rate among tertiary graduates currently is around 17 percent (World Bank,
2002c). This is over five times the OECD average (OECD, 2001).
IMPROVING RELEVANCE. Recognizing the need to improve the relevance of tertiary
education and address imbalances, some countries have established labor market
monitoring programs. Chile and Colombia have recently set up labor market
observatories to monitor and analyze the occupational performance of tertiary graduates.
Better information on labor market responses and experiences of graduates in their early
careers is expected to guide manpower planning, curricula adjustments and investments
in higher education. Other relevance-improving measures pursued across the region
include initiatives to boost labor mobility between tertiary institutions and the productive
sector and increase participation in international networks.
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5. Equity and financial aid
INEQUITIES IN TERTIARY EDUCATION. Expansion of tertiary education in Latin America
has paved the way for better access to advanced training for less-privileged groups.
However, as graph 8 illustrates, there is a strong relationship between a country’s level of
inequality and access to higher education. As enrollment of students from low-income
families has increased so has enrollment of groups already over-represented in the
system. The end result appears to be a distribution of students that is very much the same
as before the expansion. Tertiary education in Latin America still remains largely elitist
with the majority of students coming from wealthier segments of society.
Graph 8. Inequality and Enrollment rates
tertiary enrollment rates
70%
Korea
60%
Spain
50%
Portugal
40%
Ireland
Uruguar
Bolivia
Thailand Peru
30%
20%
Jamaica
10%
Chile
El Salvador
Colombia
Mexico
HondurasBrazil
Malaysia
0%
25
30
35
40
45
50
55
60
65
gini coeficient
Source: World Bank (2002d)
Graph 9 shows the economic background of students enrolled in tertiary education in a
number of countries. In Brazil persons belonging to the richest 20 percent of the
population comprise more than 70 percent of the enrolled students whereas the poorest 40
percent make up just 3 percent of the student body. In Mexico inequities are also
prevalent with the least affluent 60 percent of the population accounting for only 18
percent of tertiary enrollment. Colombia, Chile and particularly Argentina fares
somewhat better, but access to tertiary education is still highly unequal.
Graph 9. Fraction of student population enrolled in tertiary education from each income quintile
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
Q5 (High income)
50%
Q4
40%
Q3
Q1/2 (Low income)
30%
20%
15
10%
0%
Brazil
Mexico
Colombia
Chile
Argentina
Spain
Source: World Bank (2002a); Del Bello (2002) and Delannoy (2000)
Regressive patterns are particularly widespread in LAC countries. For example, a
significant proportion of tertiary students attended elite private secondary education.
Students who can afford to pay for high quality secondary education are often better
prepared for university entrance exams. In countries with zero-tuition policies, this may
lead to the paradoxical situation where affluent students are over-represented in free
public tertiary institutions while students from low-income families are left with fewer
choices, usually involving paying for education in private institutions or forgoing tertiary
education altogether. In countries where tuition is charged in public as well as private
tertiary institutions, less privileged students generally have few options to pay for
schooling let alone living expenses. As rates of return of tertiary education have risen
relative to primary and secondary education, regressive enrollment patterns in tertiary
education translate into higher returns on educational investment for richer families. This
is a recipe for mounting inequalities in already unequal societies.
FINANCIAL AID. An effective response to inequities is targeting financial aid to the most
vulnerable in pursuit of equal educational opportunities. Such assistance can be provided
both in the form of credit and non-repayable assistance such as scholarships and
fellowships. A financial aid system that relies entirely on credit can serve as an obstacle
to increasing access for many of the students for whom assistance is most intended. A
viable formula is making grants available to students with high need and merit and
providing loans to students with some need and excellent academic records (Hauptman,
2002).
Despite its remedial implications, the supply of financial assistance in Latin America
does not come close to meeting demand. Credit for education is generally scarce and the
availability of scholarships remains very low. Until the recently established program to
improve financial aid in Colombia, the loan agency ICETEX only provided loans to 6
percent of students. Another example is Venezuela where only 8 percent of tertiary
students receive some form of aid. Financial aid has a value of about one-fifth of the
minimum wage and no aid is available to non-university education, where the bulk of
needy students are enrolled (World Bank, 2002c). The low level of financial aid
available in Latin America is not always targeted to students from low-income families.
In Mexico, for instance, the likelihood of receiving a scholarship for university studies
rises with the level of income (De Ferranti et al., 2003).
To unleash the full potential of its populations, expanding access to higher education for
academically qualified but financially needy students in LAC countries is important.
Financial aid can, however, be a serious drain on public resources since interest rates and
repayments are usually low. A promising example of a financially sustainable student aid
16
program is the Sociedad de Fomento a la Educación Superior (SOFES) in Mexico.
Participating private universities buy shares in the designated student-loan company,
which is capitalized by the government and the World Bank. Interaction with students is
the responsibility of universities that lend-on funds to students on unsubsidized terms. To
date, the program has had single-digit default rates. This is partly due to a provision
under which a university has to replenish SOFES or becomes ineligible for further funds
if more than 10 percent of its portfolio is non-performing. Even as this and other
initiatives in the region hold considerable promise, they operate on a relatively small
scale and much more needs to be done.
FEW GENDER INEQUALITIES. Income inequality does not translate into gender differences
in tertiary enrollment. As Graph 10 shows there are few differences between men and
women, and in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, Honduras and Uruguay, female
students represent the majority of student enrollment, the opposite of Korea, which
enrolls a higher percentage of men. Not only do Latin American women enroll in large
numbers, they also perform better than their male counterparts, and graduate at higher
rates. In Colombia, for example, of the cohort enrolled in 1995, 53 percent of women
graduated while only 43 percent of their male colleagues completed their studies (World
Bank, 2003).
Graph 10. Gender distribution of tertiary students
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
Men
50%
Women
40%
30%
20%
10%
re
a
Ko
hi
le
C
a
M
ex
ico
M
al
ay
si
ol
o
m
bi
a
ai
n
C
Sp
ila
nd
an
d
Th
a
Ire
l
or
al
va
d
El
S
ur
a
s
zil
on
d
H
Br
a
a
tu
ga
l
Po
r
en
tin
Ar
g
U
ru
gu
ay
0%
Source: UNESCO, 2003 and World Bank 2002b, 2002c, 2003
When examining what Latin American women study, it is found that true to their
counterparts around the globe, most women major in traditional fields. Women are
generally over-represented in education, social sciences and fine arts while the opposite is
true for engineering and hard sciences. The share of women among tertiary faculty is also
high throughout Latin America. One example is Argentina, where women outnumber
men in full-time university positions (Marquis, 2003).
6. Management of tertiary education
DECENTRALIZATION AND INSTITUTIONAL AUTONOMY. Historically, central and federal
governments in Latin America have had a significant role in planning and controlling
tertiary education from above. Universal rules and regulations and reliance on common
system-wide practices left limited room for institutional innovation and differentiation. In
17
many LAC countries the ministry of education determined staffing policy, budgetary
allocations, student admission policies, and institutions had little influence on the number
of positions, the level of salaries, and promotions (Schwartzman, 2003).
As educational opportunities and private sector provision expand, rising sector
complexity has made the model of top-down state control difficult and undesirable to
uphold. Most central or federal governments in Latin America have responded by
transferring powers to the regional or state level. Provinces now manage non-university
tertiary education in Argentina, states have a central role in university education in
Mexico, and municipalities and states provide a significant part of post-secondary
education in Brazil. As a result, funding for tertiary education has become more
geographically dispersed and the number of tertiary institutions outside major
metropolitan areas is on the rise.
In parallel with the process of decentralization, greater autonomy has been granted to
tertiary institutions. By reducing micro planning and control, institutions have been given
more flexibility in managing resources, personnel and learning content. In Venezuela, for
example, the 1999 constitution guarantees the largest universities autonomy. Universities
now have greater freedom to plan and organize programs, appoint their own authorities,
designate personnel and administer the budget (World Bank, 2002c). Behind this and
similar reforms in the region is the general assumption that those closest to the daily
operations are in the best position to make decisions and to implement them. Hence,
managers are given more leeway to make changes and transform institutions should
opportunities arise or circumstances require it.
FOCUS ON ACCOUNTABILITY AND INCENTIVES. Greater autonomy, deregulation and
privatization are not incompatible with continuing quality control and maintaining a
steering role for government. In parallel with deregulation and delegation of authority,
supervising ministries in LAC countries increasingly rely on establishing a framework
that provides incentives for desirable behavior in all areas of the tertiary system
(Thompson, 1998). Such efforts entail holding institutions accountable for their use of
public resources and creating systems that reward efficiency and quality. The abovementioned accreditation agencies are testimony to the importance attributed to
performance and learning outcomes in the region.
Much of the budget reform agenda in Latin America has moved away from negotiated
budgets where resources are allocated in accordance with traditions or political influence.
Such allocation principles are deemed undesirable since they do not reward highperforming institutions or foster efficiency. Instead, a number of LAC countries are
attempting to establish a closer link between activities and the disbursement of public
subsidies. The Fondo para el Mejoramiento de la Enseñanza Universitaria (FOMEC) in
Argentina is one such example. Designed to accelerate a process of constructive change
and institutional modernization, the fund supports projects developed and proposed by
tertiary institutions themselves. Proposals are reviewed and selected by committees of
peers according to transparent procedures and criteria. Thus far, selected projects have
targeted the need for reforming curricula, updating equipment, strengthening Master’s
and PhD programs, and providing graduate fellowship support (Marquis, 2000).
18
INTERNAL GOVERNANCE STRUCTURES. There are important differences between sectors
with regard to internal management, each with their pros and cons. Many private
institutions have a centralized, efficiency-oriented management structure similar to that
of private enterprise. There are generally few mechanisms for internal consultation and
faculties often have limited influence on issues pertaining to overall planning and
management. While such arrangements are highly efficient and simplify institutional
reengineering, they do little in terms of nurturing a feeling of ownership among scholars
and tend to reduce the flow of information and ideas from below.
By contrast, most public tertiary institutions are governed by internally elected academic
leaders represented in academic councils. In Brazil, for example, federal universities rely
on collegial decision-making processes and elected leadership in each faculty,
department, or institution (Schwartzman, 1998). Such an arrangement is by many
accounts a central component of a vital and creative academic community. It does,
however, run the risk of politicizing and decelerating necessary management decisions.
In addition, internal elections do not provide a solid basis for professional leadership, as
selected academic leaders are rarely trained in the management of large, complex
institutions (Altbach, 2003). For these reasons, public tertiary institutions are generally in
a weak position to take advantage of the opportunities arising from the process of
decentralization.
FEW EXTERNAL STAKEHOLDERS TAKE PART IN INTERNAL MANAGEMENT. Strong links
between universities and society in the management of tertiary institutions is an effective
means to improve the relevance of programs and strengthen national innovation systems.
However, public as well as private universities in Latin America do not have a strong
tradition of involving and consulting key stakeholders. Few tertiary institutions in the
region have a governance structure allowing for participation by representatives of
industry and civil society (World Bank, 2002a). This inward orientation of faculty and
management is reflected in Graph 11, which gives a rough assessment of university
openness. Besides Chile, every sampled LAC country falls considerably below the
OECD average.
Graph 11. Degree of knowledge transfer between universities and industry
5.0
IMD Score (0 to 10)
4.0
3.0
2.0
1.0
0.0
OECD
Chile
Brazil
Colombia
Mexico
Venezuela
Argentina
Source: IMD Survey, World Competitiveness Yearbook (2002)
Note: The values 0 and 10 reflect that knowledge transfer is, respectively, insufficient and sufficient.
19
The lack of openness of tertiary institutions comes at the expense of taking due account
of broad societal interests and realizing the full potential of cross-sector synergies and
cooperation.
IMPROVING FLEXIBILITY IN TERTIARY EDUCATION. An issue of rising importance in the
management of tertiary institutions is the degree of flexibility between and within
different learning settings. In the majority of LAC countries it is difficult to transfer
credits from one program to another let alone between institutions or between programs
in different countries. In Venezuela, for instance, almost no agreements exist between
universities to allow for the transfer of students or exchange of professors. Students
wishing to transfer between institutions rarely receive credits for previously completed
coursework, and often must take supplementary courses, even if the transfer is for the
same degree program (World Bank, 2002c). Despite relatively few language barriers,
there has thus far been no attempt in the region to establish cross-national transfer
systems such as the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS). Strengthening vertical and
horizontal linkages between institutions and programs in Latin America would reduce
transaction costs of tertiary students, improve efficiency and facilitate a focus on student
demand for learning opportunities rather than the supply of predefined programs.
7. Productivity, innovation and internationalization
RISING DEMAND FOR ADVANCED HUMAN CAPITAL. In recent years, the LAC countries have
opened their economies by pursuing policies of trade-liberalization and encouraging
foreign investment. Integration into the world market has improved the region’s access to
technology and amplified the importance of knowledge as a factor of production.
Productivity and competitiveness gains associated with the use of new technologies have
particularly increased the demand for advanced human capital. As a result the relative
wages of workers with tertiary education are on the rise everywhere in Latin America. In
Brazil, for example, returns to tertiary education rose by 23% between 1982 and 1998
while returns to primary and secondary education decreased in the same period (Graph
12).
Graph 12. Indexed returns by level of education in Brazil (1982=100)
130
120
110
100
90
80
70
60
1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998
Tertiary
Upper secondary
Primary
Lower secondary
Source: Blom; Holm-Nielsen and Verner (2001)
20
Note: All series have been normalized, so that the relative wages are given a value of 100 in the 1982
The payoffs to tertiary education are high in most LAC countries. Table 2 shows that the
rate of return is twice as high as secondary school in Argentina, Chile and Colombia, and
more than five percent higher in Mexico, Brazil and Bolivia.
Table 2 Rates of Return to Secondary School and Tertiary Education
Argentina
Bolivia
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
Mexico
Secondary
8.05
8
15.19
11.67
5
10.05
Tertiary
16.06
14
22.25
23.74
18
15.5
Source: De Ferranti et al. (2003) and Duryea, Jaramillo y Pagés (2001)
The striking feature of Latin America is the fact that the rise in relative wages has taken
place in parallel with increases in the relative supply of workers with tertiary education.
Observed wage-changes may therefore, in fact, understate the shift in demand for tertiary
graduates.
INNOVATION AS DRIVER OF ECONOMIC GROWTH. Access to advanced human capital is not
only crucial in the productive sector but is also a central component of national
innovation systems. Extensive empirical evidence shows that the ability of public
institutions and private firms to interact in a concerted way to generate and adopt
knowledge, technology and products is a core determinant of economic growth
(Lundvall, 1992 and De Ferranti, 2003). As is revealed in Graph 13, Latin America’s
innovative capacity leaves ample room for improvement. Among other things, there are
low numbers of scientific publications, patenting of innovations is not very widespread
and public researchers have few incentives and little tradition to collaborate with the
private sector.
21
Graph 13 Indicators of LAC national innovation systems
Intellectual Property is well protected (2000 WEF)
10
Private sector spending on R&D (2000
WEF)
Technology Assessment Index (2001
UNDP)
8
6
4
Patent applications granted by the USPTO
2000 (per million pop.) (2000 USPTO)
Total expenditure for R&D as % of GNI, 19871997 (2001 WDI )
2
0
Number of technical papers per million
people 1997 (2001 WDI)
Scientists and engineers in R&D per million
1987-97 (2001 WDI)
Availability of Venture capital (2000
WEF)
OECD
Research collaboration between companies and
universities (2000 WEF)
LAC
East Asia
Source: World Economic Forum (WEF); United Nations Development Program (UNDP); World Bank (2002d), and U.S. Patent and
Trademark Office (USPTO)
Note: Variables are normalized on a scale of 0 (lowest) to 10 (highest).
LOW INVESTMENT AND PRIVATE SECTOR INVOLVEMENT IN R&D. Total investment in
research and development (R&D) almost doubled in Latin America between 1990 and
2001. Increases in spending were particularly large in Mexico, Chile and notably Brazil,
which has traditionally given high priority to research in federal universities (World
Bank, 2002b). However, Latin America still has a long way to go in terms of R&D
investments. In 2000, LAC countries allocated on average 0.54 percent of GDP to R&D,
while the corresponding figure for the OECD was 2.24 percent (OECD, 2002b). For
example, Ireland and Korea allocate 1.54 and 2.7 percent of GDP to R&D, respectively.
(World Bank, 2002d)
There are large structural differences between Latin America and the OECD with regards
to the finance and execution of research. In OECD countries private industry is the main
sponsor of R&D. The reverse is true for the LAC region, where the bulk of research is
financed by governments and carried out by public research institutes and universities. In
Peru and Chile, for example, industry accounts for only 10.2 and 14.9 percent of the
research, respectively (Hansen, 2002b). In contrast, industry conducts and funds nearly
two thirds of all research in OECD countries (OECD, 2000). Research activities in
private tertiary institutions are also generally very limited in Latin America due to a focus
on instruction and low availability of qualified researchers among the faculty. In addition,
the high percentage of part-time scholars place private institutions in a weak position to
carry out research. Supplementing public resources by encouraging private sector
investment in R&D would provide Latin America with a much stronger basis for research
and commercialization of innovations.
INADEQUATE STOCK OF RESEARCHERS. In addition to being centers of research, tertiary
institutions play an important role as suppliers of researchers. In fulfilling this role,
evidence suggests that universities in Latin America are challenged by considerable
shortages of researchers and scientists. In 1999, the region featured only 0.32 researchers
per 1000 inhabitants, which is alarmingly low when compared to the OECD average of
5.51 (OECD, 2002a). This gap can in part be explained by the low priority given to
22
graduate and post-graduate programs, which translates into low annual Ph.D. production
in the LAC region. It also stems from a general lack of career opportunities for young
researchers, especially in the private sector (Mullin, 2000).
INTERNATIONALIZATION AND LABOR MOBILITY. In recent decades, cross-national
knowledge creation and diffusion has gained importance in both education and research.
Acknowledging the value of building networks, many universities in Latin America
participate in international twinning programs among other things providing
opportunities for young researchers to gain experience abroad. In keeping with this trend,
foreign providers have entered the higher education market in Latin America. European
and U.S. based institutions, such as the University of Bologna, New York University, and
the University of Heidelberg now offer programs or are establishing branches in Latin
America. Within the region there are also examples of universities that have begun to
operate across borders. One such example is the above-mentioned Instituto Technologico
de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey.
Studies abroad, circulation of skilled workers and participation in international networks
offer many opportunities for Latin America to access state-of-the-art knowledge, transfer
technology and create new businesses. Recognizing this potential, several LAC countries
encourage tertiary students to gain international experience and return when their studies
are complete. In Colombia, for example, the COLFUTURO program provides loans to
students wishing to pursue graduate studies abroad at prestigious international
universities. For students that return to Colombia part of the loan is pardoned (De
Ferranti, 2003).
The United States is the single most important destination of students, skilled workers
and scientists from the LAC region. The number of Latin American students coming to
the United States increased by 40 percent between 1993 and 2000. In fact, taken as a
proportion of tertiary enrollment, Latin America has more students today in the United
States than any other region (Graph 14). A considerable number of students and workers
also stay for extended periods in Southern Europe, particularly Spain and Italy (IOM,
2003).
Students abroad/tertiary enrollment
Graph 14 International students in the US relative to tertiary enrollment in their region of origin
0.06
0.05
0.04
0.03
0.02
0.01
0
Europe
Africa
1993
Asia
Latin America
1998
Source: De Ferranti (2003)
23
While there are many opportunities associated with internationalization, permanent
migration erodes Latin America’s knowledge base and drains scarce resources. Every
year emigration to the United States claims a significant number of the region’s better
educated population. This is especially the case for Central America and the Caribbean,
showing a cumulative loss of tertiary graduates above 10 and 30 percent, respectively.
Estimated rates for South America are much lower, with a peak of 8 percent for
Colombia (Wodon, 2003).
Despite the risk of brain drain, evidence from the region suggests that the best strategy to
reach the international knowledge frontier is to actively engage it rather than turn inward.
For Latin America the challenge is to provide quality education and adequate
opportunities for employment and merit-based career progression in order to retain
talented individuals. A prominent example is Mexico, which runs a program targeted at
researchers who have recently completed their Ph.D. abroad. The program gives
incentives to return by establishing research positions, providing higher wages and
covering repatriation expenditures. Between 1991 and 2000 the program funded the
repatriation of more than 2,000 Mexican researchers living in 33 different countries
(Wodon, 2003). Other examples include Columbia and Chile, which have established
centers of excellence to raise the quality of research and to lure back highly skilled
nationals. There are also efforts are under way to tap migrants' skills abroad. UNDP has
launched a program to encourage qualified migrant professionals to return to their
countries for short periods of time as teachers, consultants or researchers. Another
example is Colombia's government effort to set up a network of expatriate researchers
and engineers which operates in over 30 countries. It fosters joint research projects
between foreign and local universities. Uruguay also is developing a similar program.
(The Economist, 2002) Reinforcing such initiatives will place the region in a better
position to profit from internationalization by harnessing feedback effects and drawing on
the experience and skills of returnees.
8. The way ahead
This article has in broad lines provided an overview of tertiary education in Latin
America. Considerable progress has taken place in recent years. Enrollment is on the rise,
educational opportunities are expanding, new models of finance are being explored,
quality assurance mechanisms are being widely adopted and institutions are increasingly
held accountable for their performance. Today, LAC countries offer many possibilities
for students wishing to enroll in advanced education and recent advancements hold
considerable promise for bringing the region closer to the knowledge frontier.
Important progress notwithstanding, many problems persist and there is still a need to
place tertiary education high on the reform agenda. Investment in education is
insufficient, programs are often of dubious quality and relevance, inequities are
widespread, graduation rates are low, credit transfer mechanisms are virtually nonexistent and the stock of researchers leaves much to be desired. In addition, the region is
challenged by the internationalization of education and a worldwide market for academic
talent.
24
The adoption of a proactive approach to tertiary education by setting strategies for the
medium and long term would help the region shape the agenda for the future rather than
addressing pressing issues as they surface. In that regard, it is paramount that countries in
the LAC region strengthen their capacity to generate and analyze higher education data.
Filling up information gaps on learning and labor-market outcomes would create a strong
basis for long-term policy decisions and targeted investments in tertiary education.
This overview indicates that LAC countries are relatively well attuned to global trends in
post-secondary education. While the region appears to be on track it may, however, not
be moving at an adequate pace. As LAC countries improve tertiary education, highincome nations also continue to advance rapidly. For this reason, Latin America should
not only seek to create learning opportunities for all at the current rate of the OECD
countries, but aim at closing the gap by catching up to what leading economies will
achieve in the future. Boldly welcoming this challenge by applying creative and
innovative approaches to tertiary education will be an important key to the success of
Latin America in the global knowledge-based economy.
25
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