Classifying University and College Closures from Around the World

Abstract

University and college closures have become an increasingly prevalent issue across the world. Yet much of the understanding on this topic has often been siloed into domestic studies rather than taking on global considerations. This article offers a categorization of institutional closures across the world using four typologies: system contraction, mergers, political pressures, and conflict and war. These classifications provide a globally unified lens on this growing trend in higher education retrenchment.