U.S. higher education is an example of a large multi-organizational system within the service sector. Its performance regarding workforce development can be analyzed through the lens of industrial and systems engineering. In this three-essay dissertation, we seek the answer to the following question: How can the U.S. higher education system achieve an equal representation of female and minority members in its student and faculty populations? In essay 1, we model the education pipeline with a focus on the system's gender composition from k-12 to graduate school. We use a system dynamics approach to present a systems view of the mechanisms that affect the dynamics of higher education, replicate historical enrollment data, and forecast future trends of higher education's gender composition. Our results indicate that, in the next two decades, women will be the majority of advanced degree holders. In essay 2, we look at the support mechanisms for new-parent, tenure-track faculty in universities with a specific focus on tenure-clock extension policies. We construct a unique data set to answer questions around the effectiveness of removing the stigma connected with automatic tenure-clock policies. Our results show that such policies are successful in removing the stigma and that, overall, faculty members that have newborns and are employed by universities that adopt auto-TCE policies stay one year longer in their positions than other faculty members. In addition, although faculty employed at universities that adopt such policies are generally more satisfied with their jobs, there is no statistically significant effect of auto TCE policies on the chances of obtaining tenure. In essay 3, we focus on the effectiveness of training underrepresented minorities (e.g., African Americans and Hispanics) in U.S. higher education institutions using a Data Envelopment Analysis approach. Our results indicate that graduation rates, average GPAs, and post-graduate salaries of minority students are higher in selective universities and those located in more diverse towns/cities. Furthermore, the graduation rate of minority students in private universities and those with affirmative action programs is higher than in other institutions. Overall, this dissertation provides new insights into improving diversity within the science workforce at different organizational levels by using industrial and systems engineering and management sciences methods. / Ph. D. / One of the goals of higher education institutions is to increase diversity within student and faculty bodies. Equal inclusion of all individuals in students and faculty populations is important to society in several ways. First, providing an equal chance for individuals’ higher education and employment, regardless of demographic characteristics, is a cornerstone of any democratic society. Second, improving educational system diversity leads to higher educational achievements, as overall diversity of U.S. universities is a key indicator of global excellence. Despite improvement over the last decades, we still do not see an equitable distribution of women and racial minorities in such populations. The disparities in minority representation are even greater at higher levels of education and academic employment, such as graduate school and tenure-track positions. In this dissertation, our focus is on the trends, processes, and performance of the U.S. higher education system as it relates to diversity. We apply innovative industrial, systems engineering, and management sciences methods to the subject of diversity in the higher education context. The goal is to investigate answers to the following question: How can the U.S. higher education system achieve equal representation of female and minority groups in its student and faculty populations? The results of this dissertation could be used to train policy makers at institution and state levels on the ways of transforming universities into better places for females and minority groups. In particular, the system dynamics model could be used as a flight simulator in performing policy tests for educational workshops. Moreover, the outcomes could inform individuals and policy makers about the barriers doctorate holders face in following a successful academic path. Finally, this dissertation could be used in system dynamics and Data Envelopment Analysis classes as both case study and teaching materials.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VTETD/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/96221 |
| Date | 03 July 2018 |
| Creators | Andalib, Maryam Alsadat |
| Contributors | Industrial and Systems Engineering, Ghaffarzadegan, Navid, Hawley, Joshua D., Van Aken, Eileen M., Hosseinichimeh, Niyousha, Triantis, Konstantinos P. |
| Publisher | Virginia Tech |
| Source Sets | Virginia Tech Theses and Dissertation |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Dissertation |
| Format | ETD, application/pdf, application/x-zip-compressed |
| Rights | In Copyright, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
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