Over the past few decades, scholars have directed increasing attention toward the socialization of physical education faculty members' recruitment, preparation, and ongoing socialization. Parallel research trajectories have, however, resulted in varied approaches to conceptualizing and labeling the phases or types of socialization experienced by…

This paper presents the results of qualitative research on academic inbreeding in Czech higher education, the first of its kind. Its focus is on exploring the significance of academic inbreeding, its types, practices, and possible solutions. The research for this paper was done among academic staff at eight institutions of higher education in the…

Traditionally, professorial recruitment has been controlled by scholars themselves selecting the best qualified candidates as a new member of the academic community according to scientific criteria. Recent studies have, however, documented that recruitment has become increasingly influenced by managers and HR personnel who approach professorial…

Rules and rationalities are the bases of analysis in rules determined governance model. Power as the ability to influence decision-making and the influence of power centres are not sufficiently examined in the literature on the governance of higher education. The article locates various centres of power in the functioning of universities and how…

Social class of origin is apparently an imperceptible attribute among doctorate holders seeking academic jobs. Yet, recent studies in different countries reveal that social class of origin may still be influencing the chances of PhD holders from low social class being hired at prestigious universities. Drawing from the theory of social and…

In the following systematic review, the author examines how rural community college leaders address the unique challenges and strengths of working in a rural environment as they strive to retain, support, develop, compensate, and invest in their employees. Factors such as geographic isolation, small population sizes, and close-knit social networks…

Seeing that the culture and governance of competition determines relations among social actors, we turn to the concept of referentiality to investigate the institutional order of competition in higher education. Defining referentiality as the description of a model standard for comparison, this study explores how higher education organizations…

California State University, Bakersfield (CSUB) continues its two-year NSF grant, "Organizational Change for Gender Equity in STEM Academic Professions Catalyst Track," that began in the Fall of 2022 to support the advancement of female faculty careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Treating the improvement…

Academic inbreeding is a recruitment practice for universities of hiring their own graduates as future academicians. Despite its benefits, it may have damaging effects on the academy. From this point of view, this qualitative research investigated whether academic inbreeding brings benefits to universities or poses risks. It was also purposed to…

Brexit raised the question of whether the UK will continue to attract internationals. Here the focus is on academic staff - a critical component of the "War for Talents" discourse and current geopolitics in the field. Despite a clear trend of loss of EU internationals, at least among western EU countries, the UK more than compensates for…

American higher education has recently embraced a new tool for advancing its commitment to "diversity, equity, and inclusion" (DEI). Many colleges and universities are now engaged in "DEI cluster hiring," a practice which ultimately embodies higher education's turn toward political and social activism. Unfortunately, it has…

In October 2022, the North Carolina Community College System (NCCCS) dashboard reported 5,266 full-time White faculty and 714 Black faculty. Only 10% of full-time curriculum instructors were Black, whereas 82% were White (Admin, 2019). Since Black faculty are underrepresented, their voices are often unheard. This qualitative research described the…

California State University, Bakersfield (CSUB) was awarded a two-year NSF grant, "ADVANCE Catalyst: Organizational Change for Gender Equity in STEM Academic Professions", that began in Fall 2022 to examine potential systemic barriers against female faculty of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) in recruitment,…

Purpose: In an uncertain and competitive higher educational landscape, expedient management of professional capital could increase knowledge capital by ensuring the recruitment and retention of experienced and highly qualified academic staff. In this paper, a case study of a private university aims to evaluate the talent management of academic…

While colleges and universities have been lauded for increasing student diversity, these same institutions have failed to achieve any comparable diversity among their faculty. In 2017, of the nation's full-time, tenure-track and tenured faculty, only 3 percent each were Black men, Black women, Hispanic men, and Hispanic women. Only 6 percent were…