THE REASONS AND CONTROVERSY OF THE MASSIFICATION OF HIGHER EDUCATION

Abstract

In the second half of the 20th century, an impressive scale of expansion of higher education systems was observed all over the world. After the Second World War, this phenomenon, regardless of regional and national characteristics, acquired a universal character. However, in Ukraine, the massification of higher education has its own dynamics, which is determined by the peculiarities of the historical, political, cultural, social and economic development of our country. The study of the massification of higher education in Ukraine allows us to identify some contradictory trends. On the one hand, the level of coverage of the population by higher education continues to grow even in periods of crisis; while after graduation, specialists with higher education face a reality that is unable to offer them opportunities for professional self-realization; in conditions of economic instability and constant fluctuations in the level of poverty, the deepening of social inequality, which in turn leads to inequality in the field of education. On the other hand, the increase in demand for higher education in Ukraine and, accordingly, the expansion of the network of higher education institutions contradict the national strategy of sustainable development. The goal of this article is to analyze the socio-economic development of Ukraine, which affects the formation of contradictory trends that lead to the massification of higher education. To achieve this goal, the reasons for the massification of higher education in Ukraine are investigated; the consequences of this phenomenon are considered in the context of productive development and social stratification of society, and attention is also focused on the change in the functionality of higher education institutions caused by massification.