Advanced Placement Course Credit and Undergraduate Student Success in Gateway Science Courses

Approximately two million students take Advanced Placement (AP) examinations annually. However, departmental policies that allow students to replace introductory courses with AP credit greatly vary within and across universities, even across relatively similar universities. This study examines the impact of AP credit policies on subsequent course success in Biology, Chemistry, and Physics at six large public research universities (N = 48,230 students). Examining average treatment effects for students skipping college courses using inverse-probability weights with regression adjustment, we found that students who skipped actually performed similarly well or better in subsequent courses than students who did not skip, even in contexts where lower AP scores were accepted. We also discovered wide variation in percentage of students who chose to skip when meeting their local policies. Therefore, to reduce unnecessary coursework that is burdensome for both students and universities, we suggest that departments consider modifying AP credit policies and that advisors consider encouraging students to skip when they have eligible AP scores.

How Does Ethnic Identity Relate to Adjustment for Minoritized Students? A Two-Site Comparison of Large Public Universities

Research suggests that achieved ethnic identity has positive implications for the adjustment of Adolescents of Color. However, researchers know very little about whether (or how) the impact of achieved ethnic identity extends into college years. To explore this, our study examined the effects of ethnic identity on both social and academic adjustment of Students of Color at two large public research universities with distinct enrollment characteristics. Using multiple group analyses, we tested and confirmed the developmental significance of Phinney’s conceptualization of achieved ethnic identity. In both university contexts, achieved ethnic identity related to academic adjustment for Students of Color. We found no differences in regression paths between the two institutional contexts, supporting the assertion that achieved ethnic identity plays a prominent role in student success for minoritized students across college contexts. Our study extends Phinney’s theory of ethnic identity development to the study of college adjustment.

Coming Soon to a Neighborhood Near You? Off-Campus Recruiting by Public Research Universities

Scholarship on college choice largely focuses on how students search for colleges but less is known about how colleges recruit students. This article analyzes off-campus recruiting visits for 15 public research universities. We Web-scrape university admissions websites and issue public records requests to collect data on recruiting visits. Analyses explore the similarities and differences in off-campus recruiting patterns across universities in the study. Results reveal socioeconomic, racial, and geographic disparities in recruiting patterns. In particular, most universities made more out-of-state than in-state visits, and out-of-state visits systematically targeted affluent, predominantly White localities. We recommend that future research should exploit new data collection methodologies to develop a systematic literature on marketing and recruiting practices in higher education.

Pay, Promotion, Work, Supervision, and Coworker as Dimensions of Academicians Job Satisfaction at Public Research Universities in Klang Valley, Malaysia

Recognizing and evaluating effective and principal factors that have been affected by academicians' feelings and satisfaction are imperative. This cross-sectional study aims to examine coworker's influence, pay, promotion, supervision, and work on academicians' job satisfaction at university. Job Descriptive Index (JDI) measured these factors, which comprised 72 items and proposed by Brodke et al. (2009) amongst 440 academicians who worked in public research universities in Klang Valley, Malaysia. Descriptive Statistics analyzed the achieved data. This study has illustrated that most academicians revealed a high level of satisfaction toward their pay, coworker, promotion, supervision, and work; their universities support them regarding the main factors of work and organizational structure. Based on these consequences, the universities and any other academic institutes have to the consciousness of these five main factors to improve and enhance academicians job satisfaction, leading to high outcomes and performance at the workplace.

THE MEDIATING EFFECT OF LEADERS’ IDEALISED INFLUENCE ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEADERS’ EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE AND JOB PERFORMANCE AMONG ACADEMICS IN MALAYSIAN PUBLIC RESEARCH UNIVERSITIES

Academics exert themselves tremendously to advance in higher education institutions, and their leaders’ emotional intelligence and idealised influence are fundamental to responsiveness regarding performance. The effects of transformational leadership on job performance have been established, but a single component, idealised influence, has been neglected. Hence, this study aims to investigate the potential mediating effects of academic leaders’ idealised influence between academic leaders’ emotional intelligence and subordinates’ job performance. Approximately 386 questionnaires from five Malaysian public research universities were obtained. The partial least squares structural equation model was utilised in dichotomising the measurements. Drawing from attribution theory and social exchange theory, it was predicted that academic leaders’ idealised influence will mediate the relationship between academic leaders’ emotional intelligence and their subordinates’ job performance. However, the study reveals that the relationship between academic leaders’ emotional intelligence and their subordinates’ job performance was not mediated by academic leaders’ idealised influence. This study is useful for government and higher institutions in planning, developing, and implementing programs or policies in producing highly talented academic leaders in Malaysian research universities.

Faculty International Engagement: Examining Rationales, Strategies, and Barriers in Institutional Settings

The dramatic expansion of the international dimension in higher education has incited broadened and diverse interpretations of internationalization. As faculty members are integral in achieving many of the expected higher education goals, understanding their perspectives toward internationalization process is critical. Administrative leaders also play a vital role in influencing the conditions of internationalization and working alongside the faculty. Addressing the rationales, strategies, and barriers encountered, our study seeks to provide a comprehensive understanding of faculty internationalization. Employing a phenomenological design, we interviewed 22 participants, including central administrators of two public research universities and both faculty and administrative leaders of these universities’ colleges of education. Revealing diverse rationales, strategies, and barriers, our findings confirm faculty’s initiator and maintainer roles in operationalizing internationalization. Our study also corroborates the need for sustainable mechanisms and for a consensus between faculty perspectives and institutional priorities. Recommendations are made to improve faculty engagement in internationalization.

The Relationship Between Alternative Strategies of Funding and Institutional Financial Health for Public Research Universities

The state support for public research universities has been volatile and has decreased to levels lower than before the downturn. Institutions adopt other sources of funding, but do these sources ensure financial health? This study assesses the financial security of public research universities and examines the relationship between strategies of funding and financial success. The results show that about 39.33% of the public research universities examined were financially unhealthy. The results also found state and local appropriations and institution endowments to be significantly associated with institutional financial health. The implications for policymakers and institutional leaders are discussed.

Measuring organizational mentoring climate: Importance and availability scales

Introduction: Although organizational climate may affect faculty’s mentoring behaviors, there has not been any way to measure that climate. The purpose of this study was to test the reliability and validity of two novel scales to measure organizational mentoring climate importance and availability at two public research universities. Methods: We developed 36 content-valid mentoring climate items in four dimensions: Structure, Programs/Activities, Policies/Guidelines, and Values. In total, 355 faculty completed an anonymous, structured, online survey asking about the importance (very important to very unimportant) and availability (no, don’t know, yes) of each of the items. We conducted reliability analyses and construct validity testing using exploratory common factor analysis, principal axis factoring, and oblique rotation. Results: The majority of the predominantly female, White non-Hispanic, senior, tenure-track faculty were not currently mentoring another faculty or being mentored. Analyses demonstrated a 15-item solution for both the Organizational Mentoring Climate Importance (OMCI) and the Availability (OMCA) Scales, with three factors each: Organizational Expectations, Mentor–Mentee Relationships, and Resources. Standardized Cronbach alphas ranged from 0.74 to 0.90 for the subscales, and 0.94 (OMCI) and 0.87 (OMCA) for the full scales. Faculty rated all items as somewhat to very important; however, perceived availability was very low ranging from mentor training programs (40%) to guidelines for evaluating mentoring success or managing conflict (2.5%). Conclusions: The scales will allow studying of how organizational climate may affect mentoring behavior and whether climate can be changed to improve faculty mentoring outcomes. We provide recommendations for furthering the science of organizational mentoring climate and culture.

Navigating support models for OER publishing: case studies from the University of Houston and the University of Washington

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe programs that support open educational resources (OER) publishing in academic libraries. Insights, opportunities and challenges are shared in relation to the broader open education movement. Design/methodology/approach This paper provides two case studies describing the development of OER publishing programs at large, public research universities – the University of Houston and the University of Washington. Each program takes an Author DIY approach to publishing support and is in the early years of supporting OER adoption and creation. Findings These case studies demonstrate the need for a greater focus on decision-making and workflows. They illuminate challenges and opportunities for librarians supporting OER initiatives, including adapting existing models of OER publishing, navigating institutional culture, moving OER programs beyond affordability and how to sustain and scale OER programs with shifting institutional support. Originality/value OER is an emerging program area within academic libraries, and much of the focus has been on outreach and advocacy around affordable alternatives to commercial textbooks. Little has been written about programmatic initiatives to support OER publishing. This paper adds unique examples to the OER literature and raises new questions around support for OER publishing.