This article, using the example of Ukraine, aims to explore the time allocation of academics at university in a semi-peripheral state sustaining means-ends decoupling. Data emanate from the responses of 205 academics in business studies. The analysis uses degrees (qualifications) and gender as main categorizations. Findings indicate that means-ends decoupling at the state and university levels hinders academics from allocating their time to activities prescribed by the research university model, specifically, research and service.