Higher Education Policy: The Evolution of a Journal

This paper looks back at 20 years of Higher Education Policy. It pays attention to the emergence of the journal, analyses the nature of the 656 contributions over time, investigates who contributed to the journal and what the affiliations are of the contributors. Finally, it addresses the geography of the journal: which countries — over time — have been discussed in the contributions? The analysis shows the evolution of a journal focusing on information exchange with a majority of single-author contributions, many of them administrators and managers in higher education; to a more scholarly journal, with a diversity of contributors (academics, managers and administrators). In terms of content, important policy issues throughout the two decades (university autonomy, marketization, internationaliza-tion, quality assurance, governance, etc.) are clearly represented. The analysis of contributors shows the rich variety of countries and institutions that have brought the journal to what it currently is