Being Resilient Between the Region and the Higher Education System? Views on Regional Higher Education Institutions in Estonia and Finland

Abstract

The chapter investigates the organizational resilience of the regional higher education institutions (RHEIs) located in the peripheries of Estonia and Finland, focusing on two case studies: Kuressaare College, Estonia and the University Consortium of Seinäjoki, Finland. The aim is to explore the sources and strategies of the organizational resilience of RHEIs, which must be resilient in two respects: they are exposed to changes in the higher education system (HES), and they are impacted by the processes in their region that is, in turn, a part of a larger economic and administrative system. We found that the resilience of RHEIs within regions and the HE system develops in a coevolutionary manner over the course of history; here, progressiveness and flexibility are the most important strategies for RHEIs.