At the request of the government of Chile, the OECD has conducted a review to identify key changes in the Chilean education system mainly from 2004 to 2016, and to evaluate where education in Chile stands today. Specifically, the review looks at how the Chilean education system is promoting equity and quality in early childhood education, schools, vocational education and training and higher education (HE). To carry out this study, the OECD reviewed national and international data and findings, and collected views and evidence through interviews with stakeholders across the Chilean education system. 

Chapter 4 focuses on “Improving higher education and research in Chile”. The OECD finds that Chile benefits from a rich pool of talented instructors, researchers, administrators and students in HE who are dedicated to the country’s academic, social, economic and cultural development. Nevertheless, HE in Chile has not succeeded in developing or actualising a coherent vision of the system’s role in society and its appropriate structure. Previous reforms have not succeeded in achieving this either. Atomised and isolated actors, ideological conflicts and an imperfect market (in terms of providers) have continued to drive the system's evolution. The result has been insufficient quality and entrenched inequities, with great consequences for many students and for Chilean society as a whole.