1 RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN UNIVERSITY AND NON-UNIVERSITY SECTORS IN THE ONTARIAN AND QUEBEC HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEMS Working Paper by Olivier Bégin-Caouette 2014-02-01 Higher education is sometimes mistaken for "university education". Universities generate the knowledge taught in other institutions and they train most of the other institutions' instructors. Yet, differentiation - i.e. the division of higher education by mission as well as supported by distinct beliefs, structures and traditions (Clark, 1983) - is a core feature most higher education systems. For instance, Denmark counts 12 universities, 16 culture-focused institutions, 23 high-level centres, 11 institutions of continuing education, 16 vocational schools, and 15 post-secondary schools (OECD, 2005). Diversity is believed to increase performance, access, market-responsiveness, innovation and balance between mass and elite education (van Vught, 2008; Weingarten, 2010). But in an environment increasingly competitive, different institutions, such as colleges and universities, are growing more alike (Morphew & Huisman, 2002). In this context, I will examine the variation in the relationship between universities and colleges in two distinct Canadian provinces: Ontario and Quebec. After having presented how sectors have evolved, I will compare the two jurisdictions in terms of four policy challenges associated with segmentation: access, transfers, degrees and research.