(GDP = gross domestic product = Bruttoinlandsprodukt)

By Chris Havergal

Twitter: @CHavergalTHE

Expansion of higher education systems around the world is likely to continue, according to a study that found a strong correlation between opening universities and significantly increased economic growth.

An analysis of data on 14,870 higher education institutions in 78 countries over six decades, presented at the annual conference of the Royal Economic Society, reveals that doubling the number of universities in a region results in a 4.7 per cent increase in gross domestic product per capita in that region within five years, on average.