Abstract:
This study discusses the phenomenon of making claims of excellence by
universities, which we interpret as a response, inter alia, to the hitherto unfamiliar context
of scarce and diminishing resources. The main objective is to understand how claims of
excellence are mobilised by higher education institutions to achieve ‘‘competitive
advantage’’. The paper argues that most claims of excellence do not derive from evidence
and are a misrepresentation of reality geared at attracting resources. It is further argued that
by making claims of excellence universities take advantage of the experiential nature of
their goods and services, and the phenomenon of information asymmetry. Those targeted
by these claims only discover the true excellence of the university’s goods and services
after consuming them and of course, providing resources
