HIGHER EDUCATION CHALLENGES AND SERVICE QUALITY

In the context of globalization, privatization and liberalization, major changes occurred in the educational environment, thus redefining the metrics of excellence for Higher Education. Fierce competition has pushed universities to gradually grant more importance to marketization of education, which lead to the repositioning of Higher Education as a global commodity. The educational industry is since witnessing many reforms where the center of gravity shifted from quality to quantity, therefore transforming the elite model into a mass education system. This paper is concerned with improving the students¿ learning and quality of services in the private higher education sector. Socio-Economic Approach to Management will be pursued to help universities better balance between their external and internal environments. This intervention research will focus on enhancing the management and quality of services to achieve higher sustainability and performance by transforming hidden costs into added-value.