Ion POPA1, Nicolae ISTUDOR2, Simona Cătălina ȘTEFAN3, Corina-Elena MIRCIOIU4 and Silvia Melania GAL5
Abstract. Beyond the traditional mission of teaching and research, universities face the challenge to articulate sustainable forms of competitive advantage. The academic literature mentions numerous key factors, but the need for an integrative framework that highlights the major perspectives, and their characteristic elements persists. The paper aims to explore the multidimensionality of competitive advantage in higher education context from the perspective of scientific production that addresses this topic. Using data from the Web of Science query and the PRISMA model, a conceptual framework focused on five interconnected dimensions emerged: the educational dimension, the research dimension, the community relationship dimension, the social responsibility and sustainability dimension, and the internationalization dimension. The study provides a reference framework for understanding competitive advantage in higher education, which can serve as a benchmark for both research and practice of strategic management in higher education.
Keywords: competitive advantage, higher education, content analysis, multidimensionality, PRISMA model.
1 Bucharest University of Economic Studies, 6 Piata Romana, 1s district, 010374, Bucharest, Romania; : 0000-0003-0703-3828; ion.popa@man.ase.ro (corresponding author)
2 Bucharest University of Economic Studies, 6 Piata Romana, 1st district, 010374, Bucharest, Romania; : 0000-0002-4581-4548; nicolae.istudor@ase.ro
3 Bucharest University of Economic Studies, 6 Piata Romana, 1st district, 010374, Bucharest, Romania; : 0000-0003-4731-6785; simona.stefan@man.ase.ro
4 Bucharest University of Economic Studies, 6 Piata Romana, 1st district, 010374, Bucharest, Romania; : 0009-0004-2450-7903; corina.mircioiu@man.ase.ro
5 Bucharest University of Economic Studies, 6 Piata Romana, 1st district, 010374, Bucharest, Romania; : 0009-0006-3625-5138; galsilvia21@stud.ase.ro
PUBLISHED in Journal of Knowledge Dynamics, Volume 2, No2