Career prospects in British universities

A manpower planning model is used to examine the likely effects of slower university growth on the career prospects of staff in British universities. Various policies have been suggested as ways of easing the expected promotion blockages, such as lowering the age of retirement, changing the tenure arrangements and encouraging mid-career secondment of staff to other organisations. It is found that, for the British university system, such policies would have to be very drastic to be effective in keeping promotion ages at their present values.An alternative approach is suggested in which the senior grade sizes would be allowed to vary over time so as to prevent staff promotion prospects from declining, and the cost of such a policy is estimated. The model is also used to give some indications of the future prospects for postgraduate students seeking university employment.     

Recruitment of men and women as academics by Australian universities

Entry of men and women to an academic career was studied through a survey of 230 men and women who in 1991 held a full-time appointment at lecturer level or above in Arts and Science disciplines in an Australian university. The women more often than the men had learned about the position they obtained from a source inside the department in which the job was being filled, had been encouraged by senior members of the department to apply, and had gained a position that was filled without advertisement. However, these differences arose because more of the women than the men had been a tutor in the department where they gained a lectureship. There were no differences in terms of how men and women had been recruited when allowance was made for this factor and whether a person had been residing within Australia immediately prior to appointment. The results are discussed with reference to why men have in the past and now do substantially outnumber women among academics in Australian universities. Although the survey suggests men and women who gained positions were recruited on similar bases, successful applicants need to be compared with unsuccessful applicants to obtain comprehensive understanding whether selection practices have disadvantaged women.The survey reported in this article was undertaken while Ray Over held an appointment as Visiting Professor in the Faculty of Education at Griffith University.     

Changing attitudes of Australian academics

This article reports on the changing work-related attitudes and demographics of academic staff in Australia, in four universities and four former colleges of advanced education (CAEs, comparable to polytechnics), surveyed in 1979, 1984 and 1990. The surveys were of all academic staff in each institution, with response rates averaging 47%. As in other countries, the former binary system of education has recently been ended by reconstituting colleges of advanced education as universities. Differences in work-related attitude are examined, and shown to differ consistently between the types of institution, across the elapsed time, and between the sexes, ranks and academic disciplines of the respondents. In particular, each institution has shown a sustained increase in academic staff alienation and dissatisfaction over the eleven-year period. The differences in demographics and in work-related attitudes between original universities and former colleges of advanced education remain after the ending of the binary system. The differences are discussed in relation to a number of current policy issues, including the ending of the binary system of higher education. Since similar policy changes and similar pressures are occurring in a number of countries, the findings of the study have implications beyond Australia.     

From mentoring to monitoring: the impact of changing work environments on academics in Australian universities

In 1996, the Art and Design Admissions Registry (ADAR) merged with the Universities and Colleges Admissions System (UCAS). This ended a 30-year specialist admissions system designed for the needs of Art and Design. One of the main reasons put forward for this change was to unify admissions and harness the benefits of a 'one address system'. This study set out to test this claim and evaluate any advantages or disadvantages which the UCAS system has had on the Art and Design students applying to Higher Education (HE), and the role of the Further Education (FE) tutor in providing progressional support and guidance. The study focused on the level of unity, choice and clarity which the system offered FE students and staff, and found that duality (as opposed to unity) currently exists; student choice is increased only for those using Route A or making split applications, but has been reduced for those using Route B only. There is a lack of clarity over UCAS procedures and form-filling, and there is confusion over the diverse use of Route A and Route B by HE and students. The study observes that HE administrators, rather than FE staff and students, are the primary benefactors of a unified system of applications.     

Australian academics: Career patterns,work roles,and family life-cycle commitments of men and women

Men and women who held a full-time appointment at lecturer level and above in Australian universities in 1988 were compared in terms of the career paths they had followed, geographic mobility, domestic responsibilities, work roles, and levels of performance as an academic. Women had more often spent a period outside the workforce or in part-time employment due to childcare responsibilities. They more frequently had followed their partners to another city or country, they more often had been a tutor (a non-tenurable position) before becoming a lecturer. The survey indicated that substantially more women than men pursuing a full-time career as an academic were combining substantial household labour and childcare with employment. However, even when number of children and ages of children were considered, there were no differences between men and women in self-rated performance in such academic roles as research, teaching, and administration. The results are discussed with reference to the question of why in numerical terms there have been so few women academics in Australian universities.     

Privatization and competition policies for Australian universities

“Privatization” encapsulates an ideological shift towards market principles such as competition, commercialization, deregulation, efficiency and changing forms of accountability. In higher education, the privatization trend includes the full gamut from the creation of fully private institutions which operate without government financial support, to reforms in largely government-funded institutions operating in more of a quasi-market mode. This article examines privatization policies and speculates on their origins and their ramifications for universities around the world. In particular, it describes the impact of corporate managerialism (the import of management practices from the private sector) in institutions still largley under the control of governments, and focuses on examples of the particular effects of this ideological shift in three Australian universities. It argues that some traditional academic values should be preserved as important attributes of universities that enable them to operate in the public interest and maintain their role as a critical voice in society.     

Australian science and technology academics and university-industry research links

Australian science and technology academics see advantages in closer research links with industry but at the same time are aware of potential dangers. Academics in these areas with industry research funding tend to be older and more senior than those without such funding, and a higher proportion of them hold national competitive grants. These industry-funded academics tend to spend longer hours at work and more time on postgraduate teaching, administration, committee work and interaction with colleagues. They also have better publication records.     

Developing female middle-managers in Australian universities

Universities should be developing female middle-managers for reasons of gender balance (Aitkin in The Last Boilerhouse Address, Canberra University 2001), the skills shortage, pending mass retirements (Chesterman in Not doable jobs?’ Exploring senior women’s attitudes to leadership roles in universities. Women’s Higher Education Network Conference, Bolton, 2004) and sustainable, post-bureaucratic organizations (Kira and Forslin in J Organ Change Manage 21(1): 76–91, 2008). Investigating the learning and development of women managers is timely. Research assumes that women in academe have the qualifications, experience and skills for management. Is this the case? The paper provides the first national demographic and development profile of women middle-managers in academic and the research-neglected administrative streams in Australian universities, with a sample of 342 women (46% response rate). Age is a particularly notable demographic with the majority of academics within 5–10 years of retirement. Nearly 60% of academics experienced few current development opportunities and their discipline-based qualifications did not prepare them for management. However, a greater number of administrative managers received relevant preparatory training. Once in their current management roles women experienced markedly fewer development opportunities. If higher education institutions are learning organizations, continuous learning should be evident (Watkins in Adv Dev Hum Res 7(3): 414, 2005). Our research shows this is far from the case.     

Similarity grouping of Australian universities

The Unified National System of Australian Universities was created out of universities, institutes of technology and colleges of advanced education. In this study similarity clustering of universities within this system is attempted based on two data sets: one based on evaluative ratings and the other on quantitative performance indicators. With the exception of three traditional universities that tended to cluster together across data sets no consistent clustering emerged. Within data sets there was no tendency for the emergent clusters to reflect the origins of the institutions in any consistent manner. It is suggested that the Unified National System has not reduced diversity.     

The motivations, values and future plans of Australian academics

The Australian academic profession is more differentiated than is acknowledged in national and institutional policies and academic roles are more diverse than many academics themselves may recognise. However, the evolution of the nature and purposes of the profession and its implicit diversification have been incremental and largely unplanned. A consequence of this piecemeal approach is the attitudes and pressures on academic staff uncovered by this study, including a widespread intent to leave the Australian higher education sector for other work, or work in overseas universities. The study is based on a large-scale survey of over 5,500 academics across 19 Australian universities, and explores the attitudes, motivators and career plans of the present academic workforce in Australia.     

Contemporary induction to teaching in Australian universities

Australia has 42 universities. In 2015/16, 30 of 40 universities reviewed provided one or more days of teaching induction for their staff, while 10 did not. Twenty-six of the 30 teaching induction program directors were surveyed and 24 of those were interviewed to provide a snapshot of professional development for new teaching staff in Australian universities. The key findings of that research showed that almost two thirds of universities did not pay sessional staff to attend a teaching induction program; just over half the programs included peer observation of teaching; only one in five programs offered mentoring opportunities; three quarters of programs included assessment; and approximately a third of programs provided credit towards an award course. We conclude that all universities need to provide new teaching staff with a longer teaching induction program, which will support them to develop student-centred, scholarly behaviours and attitudes.     

The banality of exclusion in Australian universities

ABSTRACT

The systematic exclusion of asylum seekers from Australian higher education reveals much about present day Australia. This essay begins with a brief context and outline of the international refugee crisis and Australia’s reaction. Next, consideration is given to how this nation has identified itself historically and how it has behaved in recent times towards refugees. Australia’s values are then discussed in relation to those of Canada, a similar country in many ways. With this context established, this article then turns to examine the specific issue of access to higher education for young people seeking asylum. Implications of this exclusion and what it means for national identity is discussed. Arendt’s theory of bureaucratic indifference is employed to interpret and understand Australia’s behaviour. The main contribution of this article is the connections made between asylum seekers, educational exclusion, higher education, national identity and Arendt’s theory, that may have application in other contexts.     

Aspects of promotion procedures in Australian universities

This paper describes formal procedures for the promotion of academics in Australian universities within the general context of economic constraints and increasing pressures on promotion to higher categories. Government statistics show that, over the last decade, tertiary education in Australia has become more expensive to maintain. In the universities the major reason for this has been the rising cost of the academic staff establishment, a trend which has come under increasing public scrutiny. Financial restrictions have resulted in a lack of recruitment and a consequent lack of staff mobility. With annual progression within the staff categories, there is now a concentration of academics at the top of the respective salary scales and the problem is compounded by a naturally rising age factor. Promotion opportunities and a system of tenure have led to a situation in which more than half of academic staff are in the senior categories. Recent studies show that academics themselves are becoming more concerned about promotion issues.A comparison is made of formal promotion procedures before the passing of recent federal legislation on equal opportunity in employment. Although there are differences in detail, procedures for promotion to senior lecturer and reader/associate professor reveal a very high level of consensus on what constitutes rewardable academic performance. Nevertheless, promotion opportunities for academic staff are of necessity becoming more restricted, a trend which has far-reaching implications for the Australian university system.     

Correlates of career advancement in Australian universities

Academics in Australian universities who were lecturers in 1978 and senior lectures by 1988, or senior lecturers in 1978 and readers/associate professors by 1988, are compared with academics who had remained at the same level of appointment over this period. Career advancement was associated not only with demographic variables, but with work habits, and level of performance in research-related academic roles. These measures were themselves intercorrelated. The variables that most distinguished the academics in the sample who had been promoted from those who had not included rate of publication in refereed journals, level of citation, research grants applied for and obtained, and the number of PhD students under a person's supervision. Likelihood of promotion was correlated negatively with self-reported commitment to teaching. This demonstration that career advancement is associated primarily with an academic's record of achievement in research is consistent with claims in the literature about the incentive and reward system operating within Australian universities.     

Management development in Australian colleges and universities

Management development is a relatively recent concern in Australian higher education. Historically, management of colleges was deemphasized; instead, a gentlemen's approach to academic governance has predominated. Recently, as a result of an emerging administrative crisis, colleges and universities have started experimenting with new approaches to management. This article explores the applicability of a general management development model to the Australian context. The model, which identifies a dynamic relationship between the structural characteristics of an institution and its management needs, was developed from research on American colleges and universities. Based on the analysis of three case studies the model appears applicable to the Australian setting, especially for large and complex institutions which confront simultaneous pressures to develop the planning and management capability in basic units, and to increase coordination and planning at the institutional level.     

A site of struggle: Black academics at historically white universities in South Africa

Abstract

This article examines the identities of three black academics at historically white universities in South Africa. Three portraits that highlight politics within the professoriate as constituting a site for struggle are crafted. The wish is to shift the present focus in the South African literature by addressing the variety and complexity of black academics' everyday involvement in their oppression, demonstrating how that works. The analyses are set against the background of globalisation and the transformation of higher education worldwide. It is argued that the future of tertiary education in South Africa and elsewhere is likely to be influenced by battles within the academy about issues of diversity in regard to race, class and gender. Its outcomes are far from predictable.     

Honouring the incomparable: honours in Australian universities

The Honours undergraduate degree in Australia is unlike that in most other countries. It has taken on a particular significance as a qualification, as a pathway to and a pre-requisite for direct entry into doctoral programs. This paper explores the outcomes of a study that suggests that the aims, outcomes, curriculum, pedagogical practices, purposes and enrolment patterns of Honours vary substantially across disciplines and university types. It addresses the questions about the diverse nature of Honours programs and questions what this diversity means for Australian higher education in the context where global standardisation of awards is rapidly occurring. Honours is seen variously as a qualification, an experience, or a program. These variations are discussed and it is demonstrated that Honours globally has not one, but many meanings. These meanings are often poorly understood within, and outside the academy. These multiple meanings create confusion about what Honours stands for and inhibit communication about the role and purpose of Honours both within Australia and in a global context.     

Can performance management work in Australian universities?

Performance appraisal and performance management are much discussed topics at the moment and are widely promoted as tools for maximising the effectiveness of an institution's human resources. This paper will consider the lessons to be learnt from consideration of the private sector experience, and discuss the issues raised in a recent review of a performance management program implemented for general staff at the University of New South Wales (UNSW). The matters highlighted by the review appear to be common to most Australian universities, and we argue that until these issues are addressed performance management, including appraisal, is unlikely to work effectively in the university context for either general or academic staff.