During the last decade Finnish universities have been obliged to respond to changing socioeconomic pressures. In the welfare state period, the university policy emphasised social and regional equality and democratisation.The universities were expected to contribute to the common good. But from the end of 1980s, the goals of welfare state have been complemented or substituted by the neo-liberal ideals that rely on the logic of market forces.This has meant new social values and roles for the universities. The universities are pushed to specify their areas of expertise and compete for both public and private resources. These pressures stem from national technology and innovation policies as well as from the policies of the European Union. In this article we explore these two periods of change from the aspect of the universities. Because the universities differ in their size, disciplinary composition and background they also experience the pressures differently. We take a close look at three leading Finnish universities during these two periods and their responses to the almost opposite pressures of welfare state ideology and neo-liberalism.

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