Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Efficiency, costs, rankings and heterogeneity
T2 - the case of US higher education
AU - Agasisti, Tommaso
AU - Johnes, Geraint
PY - 2015
Y1 - 2015
N2 - In this paper, we estimate a variety of models to evaluate costs in US higher education institutions. A particularly innovative feature of our approach involves the estimation of latent class and random parameter stochastic frontier models of a multiproduct cost function: this allows us fully to accommodate both the heterogeneity across institutions and the presence of technical inefficiencies. Such methodological strategy is essential in analyzing the US HE system, which is characterized by a strong internal differentiation. Our main findings are two. First, on public policy grounds, the estimates suggest that global economies could be achieved by effecting a reduction in the number of institutions providing undergraduate instruction, while increasing the number of institutions engaged in postgraduate activity. Second, the current existing rankings turn out as coherent with ratings provided by the calculation of efficiency scores.
AB - In this paper, we estimate a variety of models to evaluate costs in US higher education institutions. A particularly innovative feature of our approach involves the estimation of latent class and random parameter stochastic frontier models of a multiproduct cost function: this allows us fully to accommodate both the heterogeneity across institutions and the presence of technical inefficiencies. Such methodological strategy is essential in analyzing the US HE system, which is characterized by a strong internal differentiation. Our main findings are two. First, on public policy grounds, the estimates suggest that global economies could be achieved by effecting a reduction in the number of institutions providing undergraduate instruction, while increasing the number of institutions engaged in postgraduate activity. Second, the current existing rankings turn out as coherent with ratings provided by the calculation of efficiency scores.
KW - costs
KW - efficiency
KW - rankings
KW - stochastic frontier
KW - latent class
KW - random parameter
U2 - 10.1080/03075079.2013.818644
DO - 10.1080/03075079.2013.818644
M3 - Journal article
VL - 40
SP - 60
EP - 82
JO - Studies in Higher Education
JF - Studies in Higher Education
SN - 0307-5079
IS - 1
ER -