Roberta Bassett

Roberta Malee Bassett is Global Lead for Tertiary Education and Senior Education Specialist at the World Bank, providing technical expertise for projects related to tertiary education reform initiatives around the world. She has been team lead for a variety of tertiary education projects in the Africa and Europe/Central Asia regions, spanning topics such as finance and quality assurance reform, internationalization of higher education, equity and access, research and competitiveness, and skills development. She currently serves on the Editorial Board of Higher Education Quarterly and the International Advisory Board of the International Network for Higher Education in Africa (INHEA). Prior to joining the World Bank in 2009, Roberta served on the academic staff of the Centre for Higher Education Policy Management and Policy at the University of Southampton (UK); research fellow in the Center for International Higher Education at Boston College (2000-2005); and Managing Editor of The Review of Higher Education (2000-2004) and of Educational Policy (2004-2005). She also has extensive university administration experience, including serving as: Assistant Dean and Director of Summer Session at Stanford University (1995-2000) and Residence Director at Simmons College (2000-2004). She is the author/editor of numerous publications on topics related to higher education, including: The WTO and the University: Globalization, GATS, and American Higher Education (2006); International Organizations and Higher Education Policy: Thinking Globally, Acting Locally? (2009) and The Forefront of International Higher Education: A Festschrift in Honor of Philip G. Altbach (2014).

Roberta holds a B.A. in Political Science from Columbia University; MA in Higher Education Administration from Stanford University; and PhD in (International) Higher Education from Boston College.