Analysing a 'neoliberal moment' in English higher education today

2010 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 55-72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joyce E. Canaan

English higher education, like other parts of the public sector and higher education in other countries, is currently undergoing considerable change as it is being restructured as if it were a market in which universities, departments and academics compete against one another. This restructuring is producing new processes of subjectivity that discipline those who work and study in higher education institutions. Feminist poststructuralists have suggested that this restructuring is enabled partly through new forms of accountability that seemingly offer the 'carrot' of self-realisation alongside the 'stick' of greater management surveillance of the burgeoning number of tasks that academics, amongst others, must perform. This paper, located in the context of these changes, builds on Judith Butler's insight that processes of subjection to the dominant order through which the self is produced entail both mastery and subjection. That is, submission requires mastery of the underlying assumptions of the dominant order, which concomitantly introduces possibly subversive responses to subjection. This paper explores a 'neoliberal moment' I recently experienced when I had to fill out a form introduced for modules that failed to reach newly introduced marking 'benchmark' criteria. As I suggest, the process of being subjected to the disciplining that this new criterion demanded, brought me the mastery necessary to avoid such disciplining in future. However, individual subversion did not significantly challenge these forms of accountability; only a collective 'scholarship with commitment' could do so.

2012 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Javed Nayyar Malik ◽  
Rosli Bin Mahmood

This paper develops a conceptual model of public sector corporate entrepreneurship for the state government higher education institutions. The proposed model is intended to depict the main antecedents that relate to corporate entrepreneurship within the public sector higher education institution  and the impact of corporate entrepreneurship on public sector HEI’s performance, as well as factors influencing its continuous performance.


Author(s):  
Augusta da Conceição Santos Ferreira ◽  
Carlos Santos ◽  
Graça Maria do Carmo Azevedo ◽  
Judite Gonçalves ◽  
Jonas da Silva Oliveira

The public sector in Portugal has undergone major reforms, coercing institutions of higher education into greater transparency in accountability and performance indicators. The purpose of this chapter is to evaluate the level of disclosure of performance indicators by the Higher Education Institutions in Portuguese Public Universities, with a special emphasis on the obligatory nature and to evaluate if there are factors that influence the level of disclosure. This study was based on the content analysis of the management or activity reports of the 13 Portuguese public universities to calculate de level of disclosure, and used the quantitative analysis based on the Least-squares regression on the investigation of factors that influence the level of disclosure. According to the data obtained, it can be concluded that Portuguese Public Universities discloses performance indicators imposed by law and voluntarily, and it was verified that the level of disclosure is influenced by the variables dimension, financing from other sources of funding and the ranking of web of universities.


1999 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia Goldin ◽  
Lawrence F Katz

The authors trace the origins of the key features of U.S. higher education today--the coexistence of small liberal arts colleges and large research universities; the substantial share of enrollment in the public sector; and varying levels of support provided by the states. These features began to materialize soon after 1890 when the ‘knowledge industry’ was subjected to ‘technological shocks’ that increased the value of research to industry and government and led to the proliferation of academic disciplines. The consequence was an increase in the scale and scope of institutions of higher education and a relative expansion of public-sector institutions.


2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-22
Author(s):  
Shadrack Themba Mzangwa

In this article, the author seeks to explore what the unions’ members experience pertaining the recognition and operation of the public sector labour unions at the higher education institutions. A focus on this paper is made mainly on the recognition of the labour unions which operate in two of the South African higher education institutions. The objective of the study was to determine what experiences and challenges do unions’ members (both ordinary and officials of the unions) undergo and observe from their presence in operating at the higher education institutions.


Author(s):  
Edyta Piątek ◽  
Ilona Dziedzic-Jagodzka

As a result of introducing internal control of the public finances, it is necessary to introduce the elements of management accounting in public entities. In particular, the use of activity based costing enables the realization of goals and objectives in a manner consistent with the law, effective, efficient and on time. Higher education institutions as public sector entities were obliged to introduce activity based costing assumptions and in consequences to identify statutory and partial tasks and activities, media activities and media resources. Despite theoretical preparation, implementation of management accounting raises technical and organizational problems in the universities. Moreover, the data obtained in individual institutions are not comparable.


2017 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 124-143 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arleen Hernández-Díaz ◽  
Theany Calderon-Abreu ◽  
Maria Amador-Dumois ◽  
Mario Córdova-Claudio

Purpose Higher education institutions, particularly in the case of public universities, face the challenge of creating more value in an environment of increasing requirements and limitations. The purpose of this paper is to explore the relation of internal marketing (IM) with employees’ attitudinal outcomes, which aim to stimulate and retain motivated and customer-conscious contact employees. Design/methodology/approach Survey data of 94 customer-contact employees in a public higher education institution were analysed using partial least squares path modelling to explore and predict key target constructs. Findings The results demonstrate the relationship between customer-contact employees’ service empathy (SE), institutional IM initiatives and employees’ attitudinal outcomes in the public sector, specifically higher education institutions. Research limitations/implications The current study relies on self-reported data and a small sample of customer-contact employees working only on enrolment-related areas. Further studies should be designed for theory confirmation and generalizability of the results. Practical implications Top managers in public higher education institutions must encourage organizational identification through IM initiatives, such as well-established internal communication procedures. Academic management should continuously train and retain customer-contact employees that have developed SE and a sense of belonging to the organization. SE must be incorporated in the job descriptions and training of customer-contact employees. Originality/value The study contributes to the limited literature on the use of IM and SE in the public sector, specifically higher education institutions.


2008 ◽  
Vol 104 (11/12) ◽  
Author(s):  
D.R. Walwyn

Despite the importance of labour and overhead costs to both funders and performers of research in South Africa, there is little published information on the remuneration structures for researchers, technician and research support staff. Moreover, there are widely different pricing practices and perceptions within the public research and higher education institutions, which in some cases do not reflect the underlying costs to the institution or the inherent value of the research. In this article, data from the 2004/5 Research and Development Survey have been used to generate comparative information on the cost of research in various performance sectors. It is shown that this cost is lowest in the higher education institutions, and highest in the business sector, although the differences in direct labour and overheads are not as large as may have been expected. The calculated cost of research is then compared with the gazetted rates for engineers, scientists and auditors performing work on behalf of the public sector, which in all cases are higher than the research sector. This analysis emphasizes the need within the public research and higher education institutions for the development of a common pricing policy and for an annual salary survey, in order to dispel some of the myths around the relative costs of research, the relative levels of overhead ratios and the apparent disparity in remuneration levels.


2020 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 364-383
Author(s):  
L.I. Kulikova ◽  
I.I. Yakhin

Subject. This article examines the practice of first-time applying the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) by Russian higher education institutions. Objectives. The article aims to identify and address the problems associated with such application, and conduct a critical analysis of Russian universities' compliance with the requirements of the International Standards on their first-time adoption. Methods. For the study, we used observation, systematization, and a comparative analysis. Results. The article examines and describes the practical experience of the first-time use of IPSAS in the preparation of reporting by Russian educational institutions participating in the Russian Academic Excellence Project (5Top100 Project). It presents the results of the most typical reclassification adjustments of reporting items made by the universities when preparing their inductive statements of financial position as of the date of transition to IPSAS. Conclusions and Relevance. Most of the universities studied complied with the requirements of the IPSAS first-time adoption and provided comparative information in their first IPSAS financial reporting. The importance of the study is to justify the provision that financial reporting in accordance with IPSAS is appropriate to improve the international competitiveness of universities, which makes it possible to better reflect financial information on the activities of universities. The results of the study can be used in the practical activities of the Russian economy public sector organizations, and in the educational process of higher education institutions.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Miguel Cueva Zavala

This research has a singular and notable importance, because if something should concern a Higher Education Institution, it is knowing what is the destiny within society of the human resource trained in its classrooms, that product that the institution delivers to the community who are its graduates and professionals. For the Institutions of Higher Education it is satisfactory on the part of employers, that the training received in the Institution of Higher Education is indicated, that the majority of graduates and professionals are incorporated into the occupational market; that is to say; some exercise their profession and others do it in occupations that do not correspond to their profession, which is justified, being aware that one of the great problems of the contemporary world is undoubtedly the lack of demand for human resources for stable work, which according to Authorized and reliable studies of every 10 people who join the economically active population, only 3 have real possibilities of fully joining the labor market, either in the private or public sector.


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