Ríos Jara, Héctor; (2023) Making and contesting university markets. Neoliberalism and free education campaigns in England and Chile (2010-2020). Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).

Text PhD Thesis. Making and contesting university markets in England and Chile. HRJ.pdf - Submitted Version Access restricted to UCL open access staff until 1 July 2027. Download (2MB)

Abstract

My research explores the dynamic contention and resilience of neoliberalism in higher education. The study compares the interaction between fees and loans policies and free education campaigns in England and Chile during the past decade. The comparison examines four main questions: 1) why neoliberalism is contested by society, 2) how student movements oppose neoliberalism, 3) what have social movements achieved and 4) why neoliberalism remains resilient. The research is a historical comparative study based on similarities between cases. The research adopts a qualitative perspective, using interviews with policymakers and activists and documents as data. The results show that in both cases, free education campaigns had a limited impact on higher education policy and party politics. In England, activists could not stop two successive reforms in what was a case of market advancement. On the other hand, Chile represents a case of market pullback where activists partially shifted the policy path, achieving a reform that includes a free education policy and a new regulation. The victories, however, did not result in the elimination of fees and loans, which have continued to be dominant instruments of higher education funding policies. The research concludes that neoliberal policies in higher education are resilient because they are embedded in society by social coalitions that support and make sense of fees and loans. The study distinguishes between market coalitions, which describe alliances of stakeholders that favour and defend market-orientated policies, and market societies, which are fractions of students that depend on market policies and engage with market exchanges not being supportive of free education campaigns. The research concludes that the resilience of neoliberalism relies on the deployment of different forms of collective action that successfully create and embed competitive markets in society.

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