Special issue editorial: democratic decline and the changing state-university relationship in Europe

Since the 1990s, European higher education has been reshaped by neoliberal policies promoting internationalization and competitiveness. Yet this trajectory now collides with resurgent nationalism and illiberal governance. Across Europe, governments have sought to limit academic freedom, politicize universities, and reclaim control over knowledge production, often by reframing global engagement as a threat to national identity and sovereignty. Far-right movements instrumentalize neoliberal mechanisms–such as funding and evaluation–to reward ideological allies and marginalize dissent. The resulting tensions reveal how universities have become arenas where struggles over democracy, globalization, and cultural values intersect. Bringing together comparative and national case studies, this special issue examines how these dynamics transform higher education’s political and institutional role. It shows that neoliberal and nationalist agendas increasingly intertwine, challenging assumptions about autonomy and universality while redefining the place of the university in Europe’s shifting geopolitical landscape.