This special issue aims to deepen the understanding of the Europeanisation of universities from 1980 to the mid-1990s. By focussing on five universities situated in different European contexts, we aim to provide insight into how Europeanisation has taken place and changed higher education. The geographical diversity and the main differences between universities provide the opportunity to show both differences and similarities in the process of European integration that the academic system underwent during a crucial period in contemporary history. In addition, we will relate the transformations of the universities to more general and overarching currents during this period. One of them is the acceleration of European integration in the years around 1990 when new areas became part of the political project. Another one is the emergence of the so-called knowledge society as a new political discourse and self-understanding. In this context, our comparative approach will be analytically rewarding, where we draw on our expertise of individual universities set in different societies and academic systems.
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