In this paper, the influence of publicly available performance data on the improvement of the quality of master programmes in the Netherlands is researched. Using the theoretical framework of ...Show moreIn this paper, the influence of publicly available performance data on the improvement of the quality of master programmes in the Netherlands is researched. Using the theoretical framework of (quasi-)market competition, information provision/asymmetry, and choosing a provider, a theoretical argument will be crafted to explain how public performance data can improve the quality of an organization. Using fixed effects models on cross-sectional time-series panel data constructed by public data from the ‘Nationale Studenten Enquête’ and enrollment data from the VSNU this relationship will be researched to see whether students are responsive to study programmes with better evaluation scoring. The data shows that there is a significant effect between a better NSE score of a master programme and an increase in student enrollment. This effect ranges between 3.3% and 13.42%. However, with an R-squared between 0.001 and 0.006. Thus students are responsive to a better NSE score. This paper has both scientific and societal relevance because it contributes to the scientific debate on whether public performance data has the potential to increase the quality of an organization, and for policymakers, it is important to better understand how and if these information schemes work.Show less
The internationalisation of higher education is an undeniable fact and Dutch universities (of applied sciences) are most eager to participate. Almost all of them have an international student- and...Show moreThe internationalisation of higher education is an undeniable fact and Dutch universities (of applied sciences) are most eager to participate. Almost all of them have an international student- and staff body and they participate in international research. However, the rise of internationalisation also leads to issues. This thesis explores such an issue; how do we measure the quality of internationalisation? Private parties offer a solution here. For example, the European Consortium for Accreditation in Higher Education (ECA) has a framework to test internationalisation in higher education for quality. The question then is: do ECA-accredited programmes actually offer 'better' internationalisation than their counterparts without such accreditation? Using NSE data, this question is examined. Do accredited programmes score better on internationalisation than the same programmes (at different institutions) without predicate?Show less
