Help wanted: A profile of institutional research, 1970–1985

Institutional research has been profiled several times in the literature. These profiles have typically included only an examination of the history and functions of the profession. A different perspective of the field is obtained from a content analysis of the employment classified advertising published in theChronicle of Higher Education from 1970 through 1985. Using this technique of analysis, it is possible to compare and contrast institutional research as it appears in literature with the profile of the field obtained from the content analysis. The functions of institutional research and the qualifications of the people employed to perform these functions have changed since the advent of the profession. Institutional research, its past, the qualifications of its people, and possibilities for the future are examined in this paper.