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Article
Publication date: 8 May 2017

Katie Brown and Anna Mountford-Zimdars

The purpose of this study is twofold: to make explicit academics’ tacit knowledge of academic employment and to develop the educational research and employability skills of 12…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is twofold: to make explicit academics’ tacit knowledge of academic employment and to develop the educational research and employability skills of 12 postgraduate researchers.

Design/methodology/approach

Twelve postgraduate researchers from ten different disciplines conducted 24 semi-structured interviews (12 with early career academics, 12 with senior academics). Respondents shared the skills, experiences and attributes sought when hiring and their lived experience of being academics.

Findings

The importance given to both explicitly stated (publications, teaching experience) and implicit (values, behaviour) factors varies greatly among individual academics. There is a mismatch between stated job requirements and the realities of academic life. A students-as-partners project fosters critical engagement with these questions and offers other benefits to participants.

Research limitations/implications

Most respondents work at one research-intensive English institution, potentially limiting generalisability to teaching-led and international institutions.

Practical/implications

Researcher development programmes should make explicit the range of factors considered in hiring while also encouraging critical engagement with the realities of academic work. Through students-as-partners projects, postgraduate research students can uncover first-hand what academic life is like and what hiring committees are looking for.

Originality/value

Through involving students-as-partners, the research question changed to reflect the actual concerns of those contemplating an academic career. Students gained invaluable awareness of academic hiring and insights into academic life, as well as transferable skills.

Details

Studies in Graduate and Postdoctoral Education, vol. 8 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2398-4686

Keywords

Open Access
Book part
Publication date: 12 December 2023

Audrey Harroche and Christine Musselin

The French higher education system has experienced reforms since the 2000s that gradually emphasized the executive power of universities and the centralization of decision-making…

Abstract

The French higher education system has experienced reforms since the 2000s that gradually emphasized the executive power of universities and the centralization of decision-making. This culminated with the excellence initiatives (Idex) that concentrated 7.7 billion euros on only nine institutions to create “world-class” universities and made their leaders responsible for the local allocation of this substantial endowment. The universities’ executives had four years to complete changes in governance in order to see their institution permanently awarded the title and the funding of Idex. The hiring process is one of the elements that this policy impacted the most within these universities, enabling leaders to create new kinds of positions and control the hiring process. However, by looking at the hiring practices within three different Idex, we will show that collegiality did not disappear but rather it evolved: in the three cases, the closest colleagues have been marginalized but decision-making remained collective and in the hands of academics chosen by the university executives. Variations in the intensity of this evolution could be observed according to two dimensions. First, the scientific reputation of the university: the higher it is, the less collegiality is transformed. Second, the level of external pressures: the less collegial universities have relaxed their hiring practices after the evaluation that permanently granted them the label of Idex.

Details

Revitalizing Collegiality: Restoring Faculty Authority in Universities
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80455-818-8

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 11 January 2019

Jill Allen, Jessi L. Smith and Lynda B. Ransdell

As universities grapple with broadening participation of women in science, many ADVANCE funded institutions hone in on transforming search committee practices to better consider…

Abstract

Purpose

As universities grapple with broadening participation of women in science, many ADVANCE funded institutions hone in on transforming search committee practices to better consider dual-career partners and affirmative action hires (“opportunity hires”). To date, there is a lack of empirical research on the consequences and processes underlying such a focus. The purpose of this paper is to examine whether and how two ADVANCE-recommended hiring practices, dual-career hiring and affirmative action hiring, help or hinder women’s participation in academic science.

Design/methodology/approach

In two experiments, the authors tested what happens to a science candidate’s evaluation and offer when that candidate reveals he or she has a dual-career partner (vs is a solo-candidate, Experiment 1) or if it is revealed that the candidate under review is the dual-hire partner or is a target of opportunity hire (vs primary candidate, Experiment 2). A random US national sample of academic scientists provided anonymous external recommendations to an ostensible faculty search committee.

Findings

Evaluators supported the job offer to a primary candidate requiring a heterosexual partner accommodation. This good news, however, was offset by the results of Experiment 2, which showed that support for the partner or affirmative action candidate depended on the evaluator’s gender. Taken together, the research identifies important personal and contextual features that sometimes do – and sometimes do not – impact hiring perceptions of women in science.

Originality/value

The authors believe the effects of such an emphasis on opportunity hires within ADVANCE funded institutions may be considerable and inform changes to policies and practices that help bring about gender equality.

Details

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, vol. 38 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-7149

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 28 July 2021

Kamil Luczaj and Olga Kurek-Ochmanska

The purpose of this paper is to uncover the basic motivations of the administrators (referred to also as “managers”) to hire foreign-born employees in the academic system, which…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to uncover the basic motivations of the administrators (referred to also as “managers”) to hire foreign-born employees in the academic system, which is relatively ethnically homogenous and where the proficiency in Polish is still a strong asset. By doing this, the authors make an attempt to theorise the value of internationalisation of higher education in the academic peripheries.

Design/methodology/approach

This study reports the finding of 20 qualitative interviews with the deans and other senior academic officials serving managerial functions at Polish public and private universities.

Findings

The four basic motivations expressed directly by the mangers were (1) the crave for cultural diversity, (2) willingness to “Westernize” the academe, (3) a need for academic achievement and (4) staff shortages. In the discussion, the authors show, however, that the discursive order of these institutional motivations to hire international faculty is incompatible with motivations of international faculty to seek employment in Poland and statistical data regarding their concentration in different academic centres.

Originality/value

The paper tackles crucial issues regarding staffing (including recruitment and retention) and diversity hiring in a country with an “emigration culture”, similar to other East European states, namely a place from which highly skilled workers emigrate. A relocation to Poland is a rather unusual reverse migration, or “stepping down”, to a periphery to use it as a possible stepping stone for career progression.

Details

International Journal of Educational Management, vol. 35 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-354X

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 21 November 2022

Hugo Horta

Academic inbreeding, whereby universities select their academic staff from among their own graduates, is a prevalent practice worldwide. This chapter presents a review of academic

Abstract

Academic inbreeding, whereby universities select their academic staff from among their own graduates, is a prevalent practice worldwide. This chapter presents a review of academic inbreeding research and discusses its relevance to leadership. The definition of academic inbreeding is examined, including its rationale and conceptualization. Then, the mechanisms through which academic inbreeding comes to be and the mechanisms that sustain the practice are presented and elaborated upon. Empirical evidence about the effects of academic inbreeding on scholarly practices is considered. Considering that the effects of academic inbreeding tend to be mostly detrimental to a university which aims to be creative, proactive, engaged with external communities, and producing knowledge with the highest levels of quality, policies to deal with this phenomenon are needed. Leadership in this context faces often difficult challenges since the curtailing of academic inbreeding is necessary but often deeply entrenched in traditions, culture and norms, habitus and power structures of the universities.

Details

International Perspectives on Leadership in Higher Education
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80262-305-5

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 9 April 2018

Jisun Jung

The purpose of this paper is to explore the development and challenges of doctoral education in Korea. In particular, it focusses on the differences between overseas and domestic…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the development and challenges of doctoral education in Korea. In particular, it focusses on the differences between overseas and domestic doctorates in terms of training, supply and demand in the academic workforce, their academic entry-level jobs and employment status.

Design/methodology/approach

This study applied document analysis to mainly secondary data sources. The data were drawn from the Statistical Yearbooks of Education, Annual Science and Technology Statistics, the Database for Overseas Doctorates Registration and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Findings

The findings indicate that the doctoral education system in Korea, in terms of both size and quality, has demonstrated significant development for last four decades. However, the results also show that overseas doctorates have relative advantages for their academic job entry over domestic doctorates, and the major research universities are more likely to hire those with overseas doctorates than domestic doctorates.

Originality/value

This study presents the evolution of the doctoral education system in Korea, which has not yet been considered in the international research.

Details

Asian Education and Development Studies, vol. 7 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2046-3162

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 6 June 2008

Michael Gallivan and Raquel Benbunan‐Finch

The paper seeks to provide a structured review of the literature on gender and scholarly career outcomes in the social sciences and discuss its relevance to research on IS…

Abstract

Purpose

The paper seeks to provide a structured review of the literature on gender and scholarly career outcomes in the social sciences and discuss its relevance to research on IS scholarship, in order to guide researchers who seek to conduct studies on the role of gender in academic IS careers.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors review the literature to identify all published studies that compare (or theorize about) various academic career outcomes for men and women in the social sciences.

Findings

In comparing the literature from the IS field with other social science disciplines, the authors conclude that gender has been entirely overlooked in studies of IS scholars' publication patterns and other career outcomes. Propositions are developed for researchers in order to guide future studies that examine the relationship between gender and academic career outcomes.

Research limitations/implications

The paper focuses on studies that compare research productivity and other career outcomes for men and women in social science disciplines. Studies in other disciplines such as engineering, physical sciences, arts and humanities, are omitted. Studies that focus on women only or studies that examine the general antecedents to scholarly outcomes but which ignore gender are also excluded.

Practical implications

This paper seeks to open up a discussion of gender as a valid issue for investigation regarding career outcomes for IS scholars. The authors seek to motivate other researchers to examine whether women are achieving parity in the IS academic field.

Originality/value

This paper provides a comprehensive, structured literature review to systematically study whether gender plays a role in research productivity and other career outcomes for IS scholars.

Details

Information Technology & People, vol. 21 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0959-3845

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 15 May 2007

Clive R. Boddy

This paper aims to investigate and comment critically on the influence that an observable career requirement for marketing academics, the PhD, has on their teaching, their…

1544

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate and comment critically on the influence that an observable career requirement for marketing academics, the PhD, has on their teaching, their research, and the much‐debated “gap” between marketing academics and marketing practitioners.

Design/methodology/approach

A review of the literature and of secondary sources of general data is combined with the author's own past research findings to arrive at a coherent, personal point of view.

Findings

A strong focus on “scientific” research in the marketing discipline has caused a form of academic myopia, and precipitated a debate on the role of research in business schools, somewhat belatedly. The conclusion in this paper is that academic research skills, and doctoral study in particular, are not a de facto prerequisite for effective teaching of an applied discipline to future practitioners. The PhD is not necessarily the good predictor of future publication that it is assumed to be. The research output of doctoral researchers, typically with little or no business, is seen as irrelevant by business, contributing to the academic‐practitioner divide.

Practical implications

The findings link current recruitment policies with future performance, and rekindle the debate on the pernicious role of the PhD in marketing education.

Originality/value

The author dares to question the research foundations on which modern universities have built themselves, and the role of doctoral research in the transmission of knowledge from business schools to business.

Details

Marketing Intelligence & Planning, vol. 25 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0263-4503

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 3 August 2015

Katharine Ridgway O'Brien and Michelle R Hebl

This study aims to foster work-family balance goals by evaluating the utility of two types of video-based realistic job previews on creating accurate expectations among future…

1318

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to foster work-family balance goals by evaluating the utility of two types of video-based realistic job previews on creating accurate expectations among future academics.

Design/methodology/approach

The first realistic job preview divulged information specific to jobs in academia. The second divulged work-family balance information specific to academia. Participants viewed one of the two realistic job preview conditions or a third control condition in which they did not watch a realistic job preview. Participants then indicated their knowledge about job and work-family characteristics in academia and their changing expectations.

Findings

Results supported both types of realistic job previews as a way to communicate information about academia, and individuals also expressed changing their own expectations as a result of viewing the realistic job previews.

Originality/value

This study implemented a classic tool – the realistic job preview – to communicate work-family balance information in a new and dynamic way.

Details

Gender in Management: An International Journal, vol. 30 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1754-2413

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 September 2023

Weiqiao Xu and Ruifeng Hu

The academic experience of top management team (TMT) has a positive impact on firms' innovation performance. However, existing studies predominantly focus on the educational…

Abstract

Purpose

The academic experience of top management team (TMT) has a positive impact on firms' innovation performance. However, existing studies predominantly focus on the educational qualifications and institutional prestige of TMT, failing to comprehensively evaluate whether TMT possess genuine academic experience and the role of academic competence. This article aims to examine whether TMT academic competence has a potential influence on firm innovation performance and to understand the mechanisms behind this relationship.

Design/methodology/approach

Using firm-level metrics of Chinese listed firms and TMT scholarly publication data spanning 2000–2021, this paper investigates whether TMT academic competence can promote firms' innovation performance and conducts a moderated mediating effect analysis.

Findings

(1) Academic competence of TMT can contribute positively to firms’ innovation performance; (2) university–industry collaboration partially mediates this relationship; (3) the mediating effect is enhanced by cognitive proximity and (4) distance proximity does not diminish the mediating effect.

Research limitations/implications

Outcome of this study can assist academia in further understanding the impacts of TMT on firm innovation and aid government in promoting university–industry collaboration. Simultaneously, it can help firms adjust their TMT selection and training strategies to enhance innovation performance.

Originality/value

This article, as the first to construct an index of academic competence and to explore whether it has an impact on firms' innovation performance and its inherent mechanism, can provide a new research perspective for the study of the impact of TMT's characteristics on firms' innovation.

Details

Management Decision, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0025-1747

Keywords

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