The problem of a market-oriented university

Economy- and technology-driven theories dominate current explanations of social change. The political orientations of the European Union and many of its member states are increasingly based on the idea of knowledge economy where public organisations move towards market-orientation. Among the other producers of knowledge, universities are expected to become part of the innovation system where innovation stands for product making and the final goal is to contribute to the international competitiveness of the national economy. This study focuses on the complicated role of public universities as adaptors of market forces logic. The focus of attention is on the reorientations that Finnish universities have made in terms of commodification. At the same time universities have elaborated new aggressive strategies in order to strengthen their scientific basis and to distance themselves from the demands for new managerialism. One of the key problems in this process is related to the difficulties to integrate the two traditional university functions into the third one, i.e. commercialisation. We make some observations concerning EU policies, but concentrate mostly on changes that have taken place during recent decades in Finland by analysing market-orientation in three Helsinki area universities. In the context of current technology policy, all disciplines have been seen as potential contributors to market competition. However, social sciences produce knowledge that cannot be classified by using pure economic concepts. To sharpen our analysis of market-orientation we study three social science departments at the respective three universities. This analysis indicates the importance of scientific identity as a component of market-orientation. It also shows the importance of contextual issues and the tensions that arise between scientific and commercial orientations.