'This is a timely book which will be essential reading for all those interested in the impact of devolution on higher education in the UK. Drawing on a variety of data sources, it provides an authoritative analysis which questions some of the rhetoric which has surrounded these issues.' Jim Gallacher, Centre for Research in Lifelong Learning, Glasgow Caledonian University Are we witnessing the demise of a common UK higher education system and the emergence of a new system in Scotland, post-referendum? Considering the context of further devolution, the claims of differing social values, and social policy drift within the UK, this study of higher education policy across Scotland and the rest of the UK examines key themes such as institutional governance, approaches to tuition fees and student support, cross-border student flows, widening access, internationalisation and research policy. Throughout the book, higher education is used as a lens through which to interrogate the claim that, alone in the UK, Scotland remains a bastion of collectivism and social democracy. It reveals some uncomfortable truths. Scottish universities may have flourished since devolution, attracting growing numbers of international students and expanding their research income, but elite institutions in particular have failed to increase the proportion of students from poorer backgrounds, thus reproducing rather than challenging wider social inequality. Even with increasing devolution, higher education systems are increasingly interlinked, not only within the UK but internationally, and policy approaches based on the permanence and inviolability of national boundaries are no longer tenable. This book looks to highlight new directions for policy and education in Scotland and the UK in an increasingly global environment. The book features critical analysis of: - Tuition fees policy in Scotland and across the UK - The impact of tuition fees on widening access and cross-border student flows - University governance and regulation - Internationalisation and research policy Sheila Riddell is Director of the Centre for Research in Education Inclusion and Diversity at the University of Edinburgh (CREID: www.creid.ed.ac.uk). Her work explores themes of social justice and equality across a range of policy fields including education, social care and employment. Elisabet Weedon is Deputy Director and a Senior Research Fellow of CREID at the University of Edinburgh. Her main research interests are in the area of further and higher education, equality and social justice in education. Sarah Minty is a Research Fellow at CREID at the University of Edinburgh. She has particular interests in higher education policy and social justice.