Abstract:

Mergers among public universities and have been taking place in recent decades just as often and on a larger scale as private universities. However, many management processes related to mergers of public universities vary between public and private universities. One of such cognitive and practical gaps in managing university mergers is brand management in both public and private universities. The aim of the article is to examine various strategies, methods of managing university brands in merger processes, as well as differences between public and private universities in the field of brand management. The research methods will be: literature review and comparative analysis of 4 cases of mergers of universities implemented in three European countries in the years 2000-2015.

Mergers of private universities, according to the literature on the subject, are more conditioned by economic goals and implemented using business methods of brand management. In the university sector we are dealing with both acquisitions and mergers. However, the term fusion is more often used for public universities, as usually the merger of universities does not change radically the founding and ownership structures. Public mergers have their own characteristics that are different from private universities. They occur quite often in recent decades as the implementation of public policies. They have various goals, including: qualifying for world university rankings, strengthening their position in international research networks, increasing the efficiency of university management and increasing the quality of education. In relation to the macro scale, university mergers also increase the chances of access to education in less developed countries or improve the quality of education through internationalization of existing study programs.

Brand management in university merger processes should be based on the assumption of consistency between the university's identity and trends in the higher education sector. International comparison of four mergers of universities lead to recommendations on macro level of public policy and on mezzo and micro level of university management.