Higher Education and Social Development in the Post-Soviet Georgia

The changes in the post-Soviet countries and transition to market economy and democratic society had its impact on the role of higher education in the society. The main objective of the dissertation was to study skills formation and utilisation system in the post-Soviet Georgian transition context. The author focused the study on the role of the higher education in the social development in Georgia through the effects of the transition upon skill formation and utilisation process. The study developed comprehensive system for analysing skills formation in the post-Soviet transition and addressed the linkages between education, transition and the market economy in form of shifts in economy, demography and education sector. The dissertation argued that the outcomes of liberalization and democratization are quite specific in the post- Soviet transition context. It furthermore claims that educational system had much wider implications for social development of the country and was closely related to the economic, demographic and skill shifts.