Mergers and acquisitions : the latest university fashion?

Purpose: This paper aims to describe and explain a contemporary phenomenon. Design/methodology/approach: This is an analysis of research reports and fiction texts. Findings: Universities use mergers and acquisitions to improve their ranking positions, ignoring the effects on research and teaching. Research limitations/implications: More attention should be paid to current managerial fashions. Practical implications: An opposition to thoughtless fashion following may lead to positive changes. Social implications: If you mean “societal implications”, the state of universities is very important to democratic societies. Originality/value: These are not for the author to judge.