Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Greifswald.

No description available.

Inaug.-Diss.--Breslau. / Lebenslauf. "Literaturverzeichnis": p. [iv]-v.

‘Academic freedom’ in the Twenty-First Century is a contested concept and there exist many interpretations, or versions, of academic freedom, a number of which have been identified through a review of the literature. Some scholars now claim that academic freedom no longer exists in academia, or that it has become a second order value that competes with other priorities more appropriate to the now competitive business of higher education. In this context, the philosophical and legal responsibilities that Vice-Chancellors have in protecting academic freedom can no longer be taken as unproblematic, and their views may not be clear to themselves or to the staff and students in their institutions. This thesis explores the views Vice-Chancellors have on the concept of academic freedom, how they manage academic freedom and the extent to which they believe academic freedom is practised in their university. The Vice-Chancellors interviewed, of a regional and representative sample of English universities, included those from leading pre-1992 universities and new post-1992 universities as well as one private university. Vice-Chancellors were found to have paid little, or no, attention to academic freedom. They implied that academic freedom was a matter for individual subject departments, but they were resolute that they were the arbiters whenever academic freedom became an issue. Some thought that the concept of academic freedom had been misused by individual academics who raised issues motivated by political and ideological beliefs, and those who conflated it with the civil liberty of free speech. In summarising the Vice-Chancellors’ ‘version’ of academic freedom, a key finding was that they had neglected academic freedom. Consequently, one important proposal was that Vice-Chancellors in English universities should review the nature of academic freedom and consider the implications at governance and managerial levels, at departmental level and in practice. As one Vice-Chancellor admitted: “…we’ve never said to, or proven to, the outside world that academic freedom is important”.

This study addresses the gap in our understanding of the processes used to recruit and select Vice-Chancellors for Australian Universities. There are presently 39 recognised Universities in Australia and between them they provide the nation with the academically qualified leaders of the future. As such one would expect that not only would they be the vessels of our knowledge, but also that they would be managed and led in ways that were similar to those in use in the private sector. The changes that have taken place in the higher education system have meant that additional pressures have been placed upon the senior executive of each University. The transition from a binary system to the current unified system, the advent of the global community, increased technology and new management practices have created the need for University management to adopt recognised management and leadership practices. The Federal government has moved to reduce the dependence of the system upon recurrent funding and there has been an increase in managerialism within Universities. One outcome has been the need for the Chief Executive Officer (Vice-Chancellor) to develop additional management and leadership skills in order to cope with the changes occurring and the rate of change. In the United States, the selection criteria used to recruit Vice-Chancellors (or University Presidents) have changed to reflect the desire for candidates to have backgrounds in management and leadership. The role of the Vice-Chancellor is critical to the success of educational institutions that are now being managed as autonomous business units responsible for budget, growth, mergers as well as maintaining academic credibility. A literature review revealed that the work undertaken by David Sloper formed virtually our entire knowledge base of Vice-Chancellors in Australia. Sloper identified democratic and incumbency patterns, social characteristics, the legal basis for the role and what incumbents actually do. Thus we know quite a deal about the role and incumbents. However the same literature review showed that while this data existed, it did not extend to the processes that were used within the Higher Education system, to target, identify and select suitable candidates. Clearly there was also no examination as to the effectiveness of such processes or how they could be improved if necessary. Given the importance of Universities in Australia and their role in Higher Education, this lack of knowledge provided the basis for this study and the systematic review of all available data. The study also identified a paradox in addition to the lack of research on recruitment and selection practices in this unique microcosm. The paradox concerns the fact that many of the successful candidates do not come from a ‘business’ discipline as may be expected for a role considered to be the Chief Executive Officer of the institution. Yet in Australia, previous research indicated that the ‘rules’ for recruiting Vice-Chancellors have changed little and that traditionally candidates have come from the science disciplines (Sloper, 1994). While this in itself does not indicate that incumbents are lacking in fundamental management and leadership knowledge and expertise, an obvious question arises. Why are Australian Vice-Chancellors not drawn from faculties where this expertise resides or why are they not drawn from the business community? In order to further examine the processes in place and to a lesser extent the paradox, all available data was collected regarding the roles of Vice-Chancellors, the paths they have taken to the position as well as selection criteria, position outlines, job adverts and related material. This was thoroughly examined and then a brief questionnaire was forwarded to current incumbents and other involved stakeholders. Interviews were conducted to clarify specific issues and case studies prepared accordingly. Thus this qualitative study thoroughly researches the recruitment and selection practices in use, attempts to determine their effectiveness and addresses the paradox in order to provide a detailed framework that allows these elements to be explained.

Inaug.-Diss.--Heidelberg. / Lebenslauf. "Literatur": p. [5]-7.

The purposes of this study were to determine 1) the tasks that the Nigerian university vice-chancellor should perform personally, 2) the functions that the vice-chancellor should delegate to other university staff to achieve effective administration, 3) the factors that should be considered in the selection of a vice-chancellor, and 4) the criteria that should be considered in the evaluation of the vice-chancellor's job performance effectiveness. Chapter 1 includes a statement of the problem, purposes, research questions, background, significance of the study, definition of terms, limitations of the study, and basic assumptions. Chapter II is a review of related literature, and Chapter III presents information on the procedure followed in the collection and treatment of data. The analysis and evaluation of the findings are presented in Chapter IV; and the summary, findings, implications, and recommendations of the study are presented in Chapter V.

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD (Education) / Globally, women face a number of challenges as they pursue career paths to become academic leaders. This study aims to comprehend the rarity of black women vice-chancellors inside South African public universities by exploring their lived experiences as academic leaders. The study examines family backgrounds, educational experiences, previous career paths, and patriarchal obstacles as factors that affected them. The study explores how these women navigated both, their way into leadership positions and the practices inside universities. The study further probes how such women in academia have embraced the intersection of identity in relation to race, gender, age, and to a lesser extent, class. Since these women have experienced inequalities in a political context, this study used feminist theories to explore the post-colonial feminism framework, which supported the study's purpose. These female pathfinders are powerful role models, and role-modelling is a form of education that is available to all people across all walks of life. The research design followed the epistemological position assumed in the biographical approach. Semi-structured interviews and documents were used as research tools for data collection. The thematic results revealed that the participants' shared trait of middle class, professional backgrounds played a major role in their professional ascension. Furthermore, these participants formed a cohort of black women vice-chancellors that broke the proverbial glass ceiling, ending over 300 years of white, male-dominated academic leadership and practice. The common thread in these rare stories is achievement against all odds, which inspires the next generation of women leaders.

A university community encompasses persons of diverse backgrounds such as ethnicity, gender, age, religion, and languages. There are 209 universities in Nigeria, making it the country with the highest number of universities in Africa. 105 of these universities are public universities. Public universities are owned, managed, and funded by the Government (Federal or State). Nigeria is a patriarchy state where women are under represented in all career sectors, be it health economy, political, traditional, faith or academics. Fewer women have emerged as Vice-Chancellors since 1948 when the first University was established in Nigeria. As at August 2022, there are only 8 female Vice chancellors in Nigerian public universities which presents a case to investigate. This research aims to study the possible underpinning for the under-representation of women as Vice Chancellors in Nigeria public universities. Due to the interest of this research, the paper takes a social constructivism approach to understand how these realities are constructed by academics. A qualitative research method was employed. Nine (9) professors including men and women were interviewed from the academic field: four women and five men. Three (3)former Vice Chancellors (women), one former VC (man) and five academic professors. The writer used a thematic technique to analyze findings from the interview. The interview findings show that; the academic world is male dominated, there is a general society stereotype, poor lobbying strength from the female professors in a not transparent system, and low career choices by females to become academics.

No description available.