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The conditions are examined under which market rationale has, since 1989, been imposed on Romanian universities through a series of reforms aimed at liberalizing, democratizing, and Europeanizing institutions. Transformations include not only changes in legislation, but also a shift of boundaries between public and private universities, or of the symbolic hierarchy of disciplines, as well as a new balance between internal and external markets of higher education. We study the commercial, managerial, and professional rationales through accounts provided by advocates of these reforms, their opponents and the persons affected by them. Attention is focused on how social scientists have contributed to implementing reforms and to assessing their impact. Statistic data / Figures complement the data gathered through interviews, observations and questionnaires.

The conditions are examined under which market rationale has, since 1989, been imposed on Romanian universities through a series of reforms aimed at liberalizing, democratizing, and Europeanizing institutions. Transformations include not only changes in legislation, but also a shift of boundaries between public and private universities, or of the symbolic hierarchy of disciplines, as well as a new balance between internal and external markets of higher education. We study the commercial, managerial, and professional rationales through accounts provided by advocates of these reforms, their opponents and the persons affected by them. Attention is focused on how social scientists have contributed to implementing reforms and to assessing their impact. Statistic data / Figures complement the data gathered through interviews, observations and questionnaires.