Why the paradigm of the world-class university is an implausible dream for most institutions of higher education Universities have become major actors on the global stage. Yet, as they strive to be "world-class," institutions of higher education are shifting away from their core missions of cultivating democratic citizenship, fostering critical th "This is a superb book. With elegant and accessible prose, Mittelman shows how the virulent forces of globalization are threatening the essence of the university to such an extent that its original and fundamental purpose is being derailed at a heavy cost to the long-term well-being of society."-Ahmed I. Samatar, coeditor of The African State: Reconsiderations