Student administrative systems swing between being decentralised or centralised with a number of benefits being put forward for each scenario, including economy, consistency, customer service and control. This study makes a comparison of these systems in English universities, particularly looking at the factors which influence the centralisation or decentralisation of student administration in order to identify the factors involved, so that informed decisions can be made by university management. The research was undertaken in two main phases: firstly a questionnaire survey of university registrars (the macro study) was carried out in order to identify the current structures and systems in place for student administration; secondly case studies of four universities were undertaken. The latter mainly involved questionnaire surveys of academic and administrative staff at each institution, together with semi-structured interviews to chart the different student administrative systems and structures in place and obtain qualitative and quantitative data to assess them. From the results of the first survey, it was possible to assess the degree of the centralisation or decentralisation of the student administrative functions and cross-reference the data to examine whether certain factors were influencing the design of these structures. The results of this analysis are documented in Chapter 4, and it was noticeable that the majority of the respondents favoured the “midway” structure for student administration. Four universities were identified from the macro study to form the focus of more detailed case studies: one with a centralised student administration, one with a decentralised system, and two with hybrid systems. Key administrative functions were examined closely to determine the effectiveness, efficiency and motivational influences involved for each case study university. The research concludes that a blanket centralisation or decentralisation of student administration does not maximise the resources and gain the optimum efficiency. By being selective in which processes are centralised or decentralised, the university can gain in economy and also ensure a supportive infrastructure to enhance the student experience.

Magister Curationis - MCur / Background: Institutions offering Bachelor of Nursing programmes worldwide are under increasing pressure to graduate larger numbers of students to meet the demands of the desired nurse workforce. High academic performance, which is measured by continuous assessment and examination results, is one of the major goals of higher education. However many students experience difficulty during their second year of study at the university used in this study. Aim: The overall aim of the study is to assess whether the identified predictor variables (cognitive, non-cognitive and demographic) influence academic performance of second-year nursing students at the University of the Western Cape. Methodology: A non-experimental quantitative research approach with a cross-sectional predictive design was applied. The selected sample (n=226) included all first-time enrolled Bachelor of Nursing students for the years 2012 – 2013 at the University of the Western Cape. An all-inclusive sampling method was applied. Data were obtained from the Student Administrative System Integrated and recorded in the data collection check list. Statistical Package for Social Sciences software version 23.0 was used sort and analyse the data. Simple and multiple linear regression were done. Ethics: Permission to conduct the present research study at the University of the Western Cape was obtained from the Registrar and the Director of The School of Nursing. The Research Ethics Committee of the University of the Western Cape granted ethics approval related to the research. The researcher maintained the principles of anonymity and confidentiality throughout the study. Results: The study found that the cognitive predictor variables had the strongest predictive power in association with student performance in comparison to the non-cognitive predictors and demographic variable, besides race which rejected the null hypothesis. Conclusion: The findings provided evidence to the School of Nursing to assist them in identifying students who may be at risk of unsatisfactory academic performance and who ultimately fail to proceed to the next level of study.

Magister Commercii (Information Management) - MCom(IM) / In this thesis, the author explores the phenomena of attitudinal behaviour of some users (management and administrative support personnel) in the adaptation of enhanced information system applications (EISAs) during the last decade of the programme lifecycle of the Student Enrolment Management System (SEMS) programme at a South African university, hereinafter referred to as the University. Using the qualitative approach through Case Study Methodology and IPA in this research, the author uses research methods such as observation, content analysis, semi-structured interviews, case studies, or focus groups based on the lived experience of the interviewees. The outcome reveals that EISAs do not fail the users; instead the users of the systems failed to achieve the objectives of the EISAs at the University. It is found that personal beliefs and attitudes must be divorced from what the institution-wide objectives of the EISAs are. The notion of continually challenging and reworking previously agreed concepts and strategies is counter-productive and can become a very expensive exercise. This is evident if the total amount of money and effort spent on the SEMS programme is evaluated over the last decade. The general consensus reached at the conclusion of this research is that user attitude impacts the functionality of an application system. One of the fundamental issues highlighted is the state of mind of the people utilising EISAs in their daily work-related activities. It is found that a majority of administrative staff utilising the EISAs are physically present at the University but psychologically and emotionally absent whilst performing their daily student administrative duties. It would be useful to determine if they (the users) would be willing and able to radically change their behaviour to fit the ideal of rational discourse.