Due to the critical role played by the state in higher education in the developing countries, and earlier even in the advanced countries, today higher education is no more elitist, it is somewhat democratized with a large proportion of socioeconomic weaker sections participating in higher education. This also helped in attaining self reliance in manpower needs of the economy. Higher education is rightly and increasingly viewed as an, if not the only, effective instrument of socio-economic mobility of the weaker sections of the society. It is also widely recognized that higher education is an important factor of economic growth, and it is education that makes the basic difference between the developed and the developing countries.

This book narrates the status and trends higher education in the context of global economic reforms. It will be an immensely useful reference tool for students, teachers, educational planners, policy makers, educational administrators and research scholars.