Nuevas dinámicas de la regionalización universitaria en América Latina

Abstract

Regional inequality regarding access, graduation, equity and quality is one of the historical characteristics of higher education in Latin America. This inequality is associated with the initial character of the elite university service and the ways structural inequality in the region has been assumed. However, this reality is changing due to a process of massification that reduces university regional inequalities with diverse modalities. This article is a reflection derived from a broader regional comparative research that studies the changes within the processes of regionalization. Also, it shows the greater tendency toward forms of decentralization (new institutions and different mechanisms) over traditional forms of decentralization (offices, sub-offices or subsidiaries) that characterized the regionalization of higher education in the continent. This research reveals various mechanisms of regional higher education services, mainly public but also private, which are also those who have supported over the years the expansion of enrollment and have increased coverage.