What do university students understand about faculty work? Undergraduate (mostly first-year) students (N = 317) at a research university gave definitions of tenure, estimated how much time faculty spend teaching, and rated fictional faculty members. Most students could define tenure but could not describe how it is earned or its role in academic…

Full-time teaching-focused faculty at research universities may hold alternative titles such as Assistant Teaching Professor, Instructor, or Lecturer. We manipulated the title of a fictitious faculty target to investigate how such titles are perceived. Student and lay respondents (N = 317) respected and liked all targets, and their ratings did not…

Current STEM workforce issues and retention problems faced by postsecondary STEM education have renewed research efforts in this arena. A review of literature on STEM professors indicates that although this population reports difficulties integrating teaching and research responsibilities, there have not yet been any qualitative studies conducted…

Tenure, promotion, significant salary increases, let alone stature and recognition in one's field, are often dependent on the quantity and quality of research articles faculty members produce. In addition, research grants, text and professional publications may be dependent upon intellectual contributions and often equated with research published…

The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the effects of career related stress on higher education faculty members' achievement of a healthy balance between their personal lives and professional lives. Data from the 2013-2014 HERI Faculty Survey were analyzed to determine if any of the eight independent variables--lack of personal…

This article argues that neoliberalism is a critical public issue influencing the apparently private troubles of college students and teachers. For example, earning a college degree has become ever more important for success; yet, because of declining state support for public education, students are taking on extraordinary levels of debt. As a…

Tenure provides professors with a unique level of job security and utmost respect in the academy (Shea, 2002). Receiving tenure and progressing through the academic ranks are among the most visible and valued accomplishments for college and university faculty (Perna, 2001). Faculty who achieve excellence in teaching, research, and service readily…

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine how two faculty integrate equity, diversity, inclusion, and social justice (EDISJ) within their work with doctoral education at an AAU institution within two different disciplines. Due to the understanding that doctoral students imitate and emulate behaviors and values of close advisers,…

Throughout U.S. higher education, non-tenure track faculty (NTTF) are experiencing tremendous growth. Traditionally part-time instructors, increasing numbers of NTTF are full-time faculty but have lower salaries, fewer benefits, and less integration into their schools than tenure-track peers. Although this general trend is reflected in schools of…

Since 1994, the eyes of the world have been on South Africa, observing with interest the societal reconstruction project, upon which the country had embarked. In this project, higher education is both the terrain and the perceived instrument of change. In this higher education system and its mission, the academic profession is pivotal--especially,…

Academic career paths in Europe are heterogeneous, and the chances for early career researchers to become a permanent member of the academic profession differ from country to country. In some countries, the employment prospects are very insecure. It is asked whether contract conditions at universities influence the chance of taking over a mature…

Emotional labour is a state that exists when there is a discrepancy between the emotional demeanour that an individual displays and the genuinely felt emotions that would be inappropriate to display (Mann 1999b).The study examined levels of emotional labour in university lecturers and compared these data to other occupations. Employing a mixed…

Satisfaction with the quality of students, autonomy, faculty support, honorarium, and preference for teaching were significant predictors of adjunct faculty loyalty. With the exception of autonomy, these factors along with a heavy teaching load, collaborative research with full-time faculty, and satisfaction with teaching schedule were predictive…

The authors explored differences between salaries and productivity of business faculty in Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB)-accredited business programs and those without AACSB accreditation. Empirical evidence is scarce regarding these differences, yet understanding the impact of AACSB accreditation on salaries and…

When times are good, there is little urgency to evaluate fundamental assumptions, as investments can be made in new projects and structures while the old continue. Constrained resources do not allow this luxury. The current economic crisis and associated budget woes in universities requires individuals to be open to more radical and rapid change…