HIGHER EDUCATION IN ISRAEL: NATIONAL REALITIES AND STRATEGIES FOR DEVELOPMENT IN THE XXI CENTURY

Introduction. The article presents the results of a discursive analysis of the problem of state regulation and development of higher education in the State of Israel in the 21st century. Purpose. Discursive analyzed of national realities and strategies for development higher education in Israel in the XXI century. Results. This study explores the issue through English-language sources. The database used in this study contains official administrative data from several public agencies – the Ministry of Education, the Council for Higher Education, The Taube Center for Social Policy Studies. The facts and data presented in the article reveal changes in the regulatory policy of the country. This paper examines the policy of the Council for Higher Education (CHE), the responsibilities, governing bodies of the higher education institutions. Findings indicate that state education policy played a crucial role in advancing path breaking institutional change in the 21st century. Originality. In the present article, the changes that have happened in Israel are reviewed. Until the 1990s, the system of higher education in Israel was composed of a small number of institutions, almost all universities. In 1995, the new system was legally recognized by Amendment 10 to the CHE Law. Since then the system of higher education has significantly expanded, both in terms of the number of institutions (7 universities, 1 open university, colleges, incl. 27 academic teacher training colleges) and the number of students. Major characteristics of modern tertiary education in the country are done: the tertiary education landscape, the increase in the number of applicants of academic degrees. The combination of methods of theoretical study contributed to the definition of the main trends of its development: institutionalization of the system, diversification, internationalization, the introduction of quality standards. The article highlights the key features of institutional quality assurance system. Findings indicate that the internationalization and convergence of knowledge affect universities and their staff; most higher education institutions operate international programs to attract foreign students; the Erasmus Mundi program operates effectively in Israel. The study is focused on the anglicization of scientific communication & the universities: English has become the de facto second language of academic life, the majority of the Israeli scholars publish their research findings in English and outside Israel. It is concluded that the state educational policy is aimed at the increasing of the country's higher education competitiveness in the world. Institutions of Higher Education contribute greatly to the growth of the authority of Israeli science in the international arena