Third mission indicators for new ranking methodologies

Some terms and definitions of «continuing education» in various national educational systems require clarification and comparison. Teaching and research are obviously recognised as two main missions of universities. Nevertheless, in recent years, another important task completed by universities is being discussed in order to reflect all contributions of universities to society. It is commonly known as «Third Mission». The concept of the «Third mission» of universities including lifelong learning as its integral component is also quite vague. The interpretation of the «Third Mission» phenomenon largely depends on understanding of universities as educational institutions in changing circumstances. The issue requires further study in order to identify specific objectives and activities that can be attributed as the activities in the framework of the «Third mission». The authors of the article believe that thanks to different opinions that appear during scientific discussions on the subject more fundamental principles are found to explain the nature of this mission. In this article it is treated as a new strategy based on action in three different directions: continuous education; technology transfer and innovation development, the involvement of universities in social life. The article describes the results of three stages of Delphy research used to formulate the criteria (indicators ) to assess the performance of the universities in the framework of the «Third mission».