DOI: 10.46340/eppd.2025.12.2.5
Larysa Shaulska, D.Sc. in Economics
Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Kyiv, Ukraine
Vadym Vergeles
Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Kyiv, Ukraine
Dmytro Baiura, D.Sc. in Economics
Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Kyiv, Ukraine
Vasylyna Kolosha, PhD in Economics
Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Kyiv, Ukraine
Liliia Tarasenko, PhD in Economics
Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Kyiv, Ukraine
How to cite: Shaulska, L., Vergeles, V., Baiura, D., Kolosha, V., & Tarasenko, L. (2025). Mergers and Acquisitions of Higher Education Institutions in Ukraine: Necessity or Strategic Choice. Evropský politický a právní diskurz, 12, 2, 54-66. https://doi.org/10.46340/eppd.2025.12.2.5
Abstract
The strategic priorities of university development are to ensure the quality of education and advancing research to create societal impact. Implementation of the strategy requires the autonomy of educational institutions and ensuring their participation in regional economic growth through optimized and efficient use of resources. An unpopular but potentially productive mechanism for achieving such goals is mergers and acquisitions (M&A) of universities, which can ensure a more efficient allocation of resources and strengthen institutional capacity.
The article explores the key trends, motivations, and the impact of M&A processes in Ukraine and other European countries, in particular in the context of higher education. A comparative analysis of M&A in business sector and universities has been conducted, allowing the identification of common patterns and unique features of this process in the educational sector. It has been established that under financial constraints, demographic changes, and the current need to enhance international competitiveness, university M&A strategies can ensure the optimization of resource allocation in the academic environment.
The study covers the main trends, causes, and economic factors behind the M&A of Ukrainian HEIs, reflecting the specifics of the Ukrainian higher education system. The paper systematizes the main risks that accompany M&A processes – cultural, administrative and organizational gaps, financial difficulties, risks to the quality of education, and suggests ways to minimize them.
The obtained results confirm the authors’ hypothesis about the influence of the target setting, which serves as the basis for the merger decision, on the outcomes of this process. A forced or compulsory decision is highly likely to generate more challenges than benefits. In contrast, a conscious strategic move and the implementation of all M&A stages under strategic management can significantly strengthen institutional capacity, improve education quality, and foster innovation and international competitiveness of universities. The authors conclude that the merger process can be a forced response to external pressures, as well as a strategically justified choice aimed at enhancing the competitiveness of higher education.
Keywords: mergers and acquisitions, higher education institutions, competitiveness, management efficiency, quality of education, international competition, strategic management, university reorganization, resource optimization
References
Adamu, A. Y. (2019). University Mergers in Finland. Mergers in Higher Education: Practices and Policies. STUDERA PRESS, 289-306. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/332834303_University_Mergers_in_Finland
Bakhrushyn, V. (2023). Modernizatsiia merezhi zakladiv vyshchoi osvity Ukrainy: deiaki yevrointehratsiini aspekty [Modernization of the Network of Higher Education Institutions in Ukraine: Some Aspects of European Integration]. Vyshcha osvita [Higher Education], 5 (26), 112-125.
https://science.iea.gov.ua/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/8_Bakhrushyn_526_2023_112-125.pdf [in Ukrainian].
Bileviciute, E., et al. (2019). Competitiveness in Higher Education: The Case of University Management.
Journal of Competitiveness, 11(4), 5-21. https://doi.org/10.7441/joc.2019.04.01
Bonnet, C., & Schain, P. J. (2020). An Empirical Analysis of Mergers: Efficiency Gains and Impact on Consumer Prices. Journal of Competition Law & Economics, 16(1), 1-35. https://doi.org/10.1093/joclec/nhaa001
Bouwman, C. H. S. (2013). The Role of Corporate Culture in Mergers & Acquisitions. In: Perrault, E. (ed.), Mergers and Acquisitions: Practices, Performance and Perspectives. https://ssrn.com/abstract=2307740
Bruce, T. (2012). Universities and Constitutional Change in the UK: the Impact of Devolution on the Higher Education Sector. Oxford: Higher Education Policy Institute.
Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine (2021a). Pro utvorennia Ukrainskoho derzhavnoho universytetu nauky i tekhnolohii [On the establishment of the Ukrainian State University of Science and Technology]. https://zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/258-2021-%D1%80#Text [in Ukrainian].
Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine (2021b). Pro utvorennia Derzhavnoho biotekhnolohichnoho universytetu [On the Establishment of the State Biotechnological University].
https://zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/431-2021-%D1%80#Text [in Ukrainian].
Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine (2021c). Pro reorhanizatsiiu Luhanskoho natsionalnoho ahrarnoho universytetu [On the Reorganization of Luhansk National Agrarian University].
https://zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/1498-2021-%D1%80#Text [in Ukrainian].
Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine (2021d). Pro reorhanizatsiiu Universytetu bankivskoi spravy [On the Reorganization of the Banking University].
https://zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/1806-2021-%D1%80#Text [in Ukrainian].
Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine (2024a). Pro reorhanizatsiiu Odeskoho derzhavnoho ekolohichnoho universytetu ta Fizyko-khimichnoho instytutu zakhystu navkolyshnoho seredovyshcha i liudyny MON Ukrainy ta NAN Ukrainy [On the reorganization of Odesa State Environmental University and the Physico-Chemical Institute for Environmental and Human Protection of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine
and the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine].
https://zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/7-2024-%D1%80#Text [in Ukrainian]
Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine (2024b). Pro reorhanizatsiiu Mykolaivskoho natsionalnoho universytetu imeni V. O. Sukhomlynskoho [On the Reorganization of V. O. Sukhomlynskyi Mykolaiv National University]. https://zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/6-2024-%D1%80#Text [in Ukrainian]
Education Reform Act (1988). Legislation. https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/40/contents
Higher Education Funding Council for England (2012). Collaborations, Alliances and Mergers in Higher Education: Consultation on Lessons Learned and Guidance for Institutions. https://dera.ioe.ac.uk/id/eprint/13978/8/12_06_Redacted.pdf
Higher Education Funding Council for Wales (2011). Future Structure of Universities in Wales. https://www.advance-he.ac.uk/knowledge-hub/welsh-government-future-structure-universities-wales
Kalashnіkova, S., & Orzhel, O. (2022). Optymizatsiia merezhi zakladiv vyshchoi osvity: teoretychni osoblyvosti ta praktychni rekomendatsii [Optimisation of the Network of Higher Education Institutions: Theoretical Features and Practical Recommendations]. International Scientific Journal of Universities and Leadership, 13, 89-129. https://doi.org/10.31874/2520-6702-2022-13-89-129 [in Ukrainian].
Kremen, V. H., et al. (2022). Merezha derzhavnykh zakladiv vyshchoi osvity Ukrainy: analitychnyi ohliad konkurentospromozhnosti [Network of State Higher Education Institutions in Ukraine: an Analytical Review of Competitiveness]. Herald of the National Academy of Educational Sciences of Ukraine, 4(1). https://doi.org/10.37472/v.naes.2022.4122 [in Ukrainian]
Liu, Q., Patton, D., & Kenney, M. (2018). Do University Mergers Create Academic Synergy? Evidence from China and the Nordic Countries. Research Policy, 47(1), 98-107. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2017.10.001
Musselin, C. (2018). New Forms of Competition in Higher Education. Socio-Economic Review, 16(3), 657-683. https://doi.org/10.1093/ser/mwy033
ReferNet Finland (2010). VET in Europe – Country Report. https://www.cedefop.europa.eu/files/2010_cr_fi.pdf
Shevchenko, L. (2016). Mergers and Acquisitions in Higher Education. Actual Problems of Economics, 11(185), 160-167. https://dspace.nlu.edu.ua/bitstream/123456789/12561/1/Shevchenko_160-167.pdf
Tampere University (2019). Tampere3: Towards a New University. https://www.tuni.fi
United Nations (2024). Ukraine: Over 6 Million Refugees Spread Across Europe.
https://unric.org/en/ukraine-over-6-million-refugees-spread-across-europe/
Ursin, J. (2019). Higher Education Reforms in Finland: From a Ponderous to a More Agile System?
In: Higher Education System Reform, 67-77. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004400115_005
Ushenko, N., et al. (2023). Strategies for Strengthening Business Economic Security with Account to Global Financial Challenges. Financial and Credit Activity Problems of Theory and Practice, 6(53), 300-317. https://doi.org/10.55643/fcaptp.6.53.2023.4178
Välimaa, J. et al. (2014). University Mergers in Finland: Mediating Global Competition. New Directions for Higher Education, 168, 41-53. https://doi.org/10.1002/he.20112
Verlanov, Y. Y., & Kazarezov, A. Y. (2009). Akademichni svobody ta avtonomiia universytetiv: novyi format ekonomichnykh vidnosyn z derzhavoiu [Academic Freedoms and University Autonomy: A new Format of Economic Relations with the State]. Scientific Papers of the Petro Mohyla Black Sea State University. Economics, 109(96), 32-36. https://lib.chmnu.edu.ua/pdf/naukpraci/economy/2009/109-96-6.pdf [in Ukrainian].
Vitrenko, Yu., et al. (2017). Ekonomichni vidnosyny u systemi vyshchoi osvity: modernizatsiia v umovakh innovatsiinoi ekonomiky [Economic Relations in the Higher Education System: Modernization in the Context of an Innovative Economy]. Kyiv: Institute of Higher Education of the National Academy of Educational Sciences of Ukraine [in Ukrainian].
Vlasova, I. (2018). Zlyttia/ukrupnennia universytetiv za umov rozshyrennia ekonomichnoi avtonomii [Mergers of Universities in the Context of Increased Economic Autonomy]. International Scientific Journal of Universities and Leadership, 2(6), 117-133. https://doi.org/10.31874/2520-6702-2018-6-2-117-133 [in Ukrainian].
Wilson Center (n.d.). Migration & Displacement.
https://ukraine.wilsoncenter.org/migration-displacement