Finnish mergers : Change in the Context of Continuity

Abstract

This chapter focuses on three prominent university mergers in Finland which took place during the last decade. In order to understand the mergers and the developments that led to them, we highlight broader higher education policy change, most notably the making and implementation of the new Universities Act (558/2009). The changing discourse around the role of higher education (Nokkala, 2016) and the changing of the Universities Act took place in parallel to the merger processes, thus forming the broader political context which the structural development took place. In our analysis, we take as our central perspective the roles of the national actors to introduce national translations and solutions and local interests into the forum of national policy making (Kauko, 2014); while recognising the roles of international discourses (Nokkala, 2007, 2016) and policy influences (Piironen, 2013; Kallo, 2009; Kauko and Diogo 2012). In 2009, there were 20 universities in Finland. In 2016 the number was 14.