Origins of the knowledge economy : Higher education and Scandinavia’s development, ca. 1800–1929
Ford, Nick LU
(2025)
In Lund Studies in Economic History
- Abstract
- High school and university-level education was long an elite pursuit. However, with economic growth and rising technical complexity, the need for specialised knowledge and skills increased. In the run-up to and during industrialisation, higher education systems admitted a growing number of students and diversified across an increasing range of courses and types of educational institutions.
Denmark, Norway and Sweden provide rich case studies for examining the growth of higher education during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. I examine higher education through two lenses: To what extent did changes in the provision of higher education increase access to education beyond a small elite in society? How did changes in the... (More) - High school and university-level education was long an elite pursuit. However, with economic growth and rising technical complexity, the need for specialised knowledge and skills increased. In the run-up to and during industrialisation, higher education systems admitted a growing number of students and diversified across an increasing range of courses and types of educational institutions.
Denmark, Norway and Sweden provide rich case studies for examining the growth of higher education during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. I examine higher education through two lenses: To what extent did changes in the provision of higher education increase access to education beyond a small elite in society? How did changes in the provision of and access to higher education influence Scandinavia's development in the lead-up to and during industrialisation?
This dissertation comprises four papers that explore key developments in Scandinavian higher education including:
- the admission of female students
- the opening of Norway's first university
- the introduction and expansion of polytechnic education
- the growth in demand for highly trained engineers.
Using detailed individual-level data on the graduates of higher education, my results offer new insights into social mobility and economic development during a critical period of history. (Less) - Abstract (Swedish)
- Gymnasie- och universitetsutbildning var länge en elitens domän. Med ekonomisk tillväxt och ökande teknisk komplexitet växte dock behovet av specialiserad kunskap och färdigheter. Inför och under industrialiseringen tog systemen för högre utbildning emot ett ökande antal studenter och breddades med ett växande utbud av kurser och typer av utbildningsinstitutioner.
Danmark, Norge och Sverige utgör rika fallstudier för att undersöka högre utbildnings tillväxt under 1800- och det tidiga 1900-talet. Jag undersöker högre utbildning genom två perspektiv: I vilken utsträckning ledde förändringar i tillhandahållandet av högre utbildning till ökad tillgång till utbildning utanför samhällets lilla elit? Hur påverkade förändringar i... (More) - Gymnasie- och universitetsutbildning var länge en elitens domän. Med ekonomisk tillväxt och ökande teknisk komplexitet växte dock behovet av specialiserad kunskap och färdigheter. Inför och under industrialiseringen tog systemen för högre utbildning emot ett ökande antal studenter och breddades med ett växande utbud av kurser och typer av utbildningsinstitutioner.
Danmark, Norge och Sverige utgör rika fallstudier för att undersöka högre utbildnings tillväxt under 1800- och det tidiga 1900-talet. Jag undersöker högre utbildning genom två perspektiv: I vilken utsträckning ledde förändringar i tillhandahållandet av högre utbildning till ökad tillgång till utbildning utanför samhällets lilla elit? Hur påverkade förändringar i tillhandahållandet av och tillgången till högre utbildning Skandinaviens utveckling inför och under industrialiseringen?
Avhandlingen består av fyra artiklar som utforskar centrala utvecklingar inom skandinavisk högre utbildning, inklusive:
- kvinnliga studenters inträde
- öppnandet av Norges första universitet
- införandet och expansionen av teknisk utbildning
- den ökande efterfrågan på högt-utbildade ingenjörer.
Med detaljerade individdata om högre utbildningens examina ger mina resultat nya insikter om social rörlighet och ekonomisk utveckling under en kritisk period i historien. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/b862d931-0970-4992-a712-886ce5e90df3
- author
- Ford, Nick
LU
- supervisor
- opponent
-
- Professor Modalsli, Jørgen, Oslo Metropolitan University
- organization
- alternative title
- Kunskapsekonomins ursprung : Högre utbildning och Skandinaviens utveckling, ca 1800–1929
- publishing date
- 2025
- type
- Thesis
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- economic history, human capital, higher education, industrialisation, social mobility, innovation, ekonomisk historia, humankapital, högre utbildning, industrialisering, social rörlighet, innovation
- in
- Lund Studies in Economic History
- issue
- 115
- pages
- 304 pages
- publisher
- Department of Economic History, Lund University
- defense location
- EC3:211
- defense date
- 2025-01-23 14:15:00
- ISSN
- 1400-4860
- ISBN
- 978-91-989641-4-1
- 978-91-989641-5-8
- project
- The life course of graduates: Assessing the economic effects of education in Scandinavia, 1880–1920
- Origins of the knowledge economy: Higher education and Scandinavia’s economic development
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- b862d931-0970-4992-a712-886ce5e90df3
- date added to LUP
- 2024-12-07 08:57:28
- date last changed
- 2025-04-04 14:56:09
@phdthesis{b862d931-0970-4992-a712-886ce5e90df3,
abstract = {{High school and university-level education was long an elite pursuit. However, with economic growth and rising technical complexity, the need for specialised knowledge and skills increased. In the run-up to and during industrialisation, higher education systems admitted a growing number of students and diversified across an increasing range of courses and types of educational institutions.<br/><br/>Denmark, Norway and Sweden provide rich case studies for examining the growth of higher education during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. I examine higher education through two lenses: To what extent did changes in the provision of higher education increase access to education beyond a small elite in society? How did changes in the provision of and access to higher education influence Scandinavia's development in the lead-up to and during industrialisation?<br/><br/>This dissertation comprises four papers that explore key developments in Scandinavian higher education including:<br/>- the admission of female students<br/>- the opening of Norway's first university<br/>- the introduction and expansion of polytechnic education<br/>- the growth in demand for highly trained engineers.<br/><br/>Using detailed individual-level data on the graduates of higher education, my results offer new insights into social mobility and economic development during a critical period of history.}},
author = {{Ford, Nick}},
isbn = {{978-91-989641-4-1}},
issn = {{1400-4860}},
keywords = {{economic history; human capital; higher education; industrialisation; social mobility; innovation; ekonomisk historia; humankapital; högre utbildning; industrialisering; social rörlighet; innovation}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{115}},
publisher = {{Department of Economic History, Lund University}},
school = {{Lund University}},
series = {{Lund Studies in Economic History}},
title = {{Origins of the knowledge economy : Higher education and Scandinavia’s development, ca. 1800–1929}},
url = {{https://lup.lub.lu.se/search/files/201703903/Thesis_Nicholas_Martin_Ford_LUCRIS.pdf}},
year = {{2025}},
}