We investigate how competing forces interdiscursively manifest in Japan-based higher education through a critical discourse analysis (cf., Fairclough, 1993, 1995) of 86 job advertisements. The academic profession is characterized as exhibiting high mobility, perhaps as academics are more loyal to their specialty fields than the institutions where…

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…

Faculty members are entrusted with great power to decide who deserves space within the academic profession. Given that the profession's central mission is knowledge production, such decisions inevitably concern epistemic matters, and specifically, what constitutes legitimate knowledge. From this perspective, faculty hiring is not only a matter of…

Recently, a number of inbreeding cases have surfaced that have fuelled public criticism of recruitment practices and the lack of mobility in the Swedish higher education sector. This study focuses on recruitment practices at Swedish universities, particularly the divergence between what seems to be a practice of hiring internal candidates and a…

In 2021, the Association of American Universities formed an Advisory Board on Racial Equity in Higher Education. The board conducted its work through four different subgroups, each tasked with studying promising practices and communicating potential strategies to mitigate structural barriers to equity in different aspects of the life of leading…

The Top Global University Project, launched in 2014 and scheduled to run until 2023, is the most recent of a succession of internationalisation projects proposed by the Japanese government in an effort to foster global jinzai, i.e. global human resources (GHR), and revitalise the higher education system. Yet, the concept of GHR remains vague and…

This study investigates how higher education institutions attract and retain faculty of color. There is a deficit of minority representation in professorship. Specifically, over 80% of all full professors employed at four-year institutions are White (Espinosa et al., 2019). Gasman's (2022) and Bell's (1992) literature has impacted this study…

The opportunity gap has contributed to unequal educational opportunities and success among Black youth, college students, and early career professionals. The American Psychological Association, Association for Black Psychologists, and Academics for Black Survival and Wellness (A4BL) have called psychologists to act in support of Black lives in…

A core value of the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) accreditation standards is diversity and inclusion. Using survey data collected from faculty members within the College of Business at a 4-year U.S. university, this study assesses faculty perceptions regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). The findings…

This critical qualitative research study examines how Black tenure-track faculty at predominantly White Research 1 (PWR1) institutions describe and enact their personal and professional commitments while navigating their institutions priorities and reward structure. Using a purposive and snowball sampling methodological approach, I interviewed 17…

This dissertation examines the troubling underrepresentation of staff of color in Pacific Northwest community colleges. Despite the proven benefits of racial staff diversity in promoting student success, community colleges face challenges in recruiting and retaining staff of color. Existing literature concerning non-teaching staff at community…

Women of color (WOC) faculty are vastly underrepresented in STEM departments and continue to face daunting challenges that impact their recruitment, retention, and promotion. Research demonstrates that the underrepresentation of women of color STEM faculty is occasioned by numerous factors, including structural and systematic issues such as chilly…

Academic inbreeding is a deeply ingrained practice which needs to be understood by reference to the medieval guilds. Drawing on the guild concept and associated benefits of forms of capital, a distinction is drawn between 'guild-route' academics who have followed a privileged, linear path into academe and their 'non-guild' counterparts who tend to…

Academic inbreeding is a phenomenon that has been studied mostly from the standpoint of its association with research productivity. The focus has been on knowledge creation outputs and outcomes, while little to no attention has been given to the association of academic inbreeding with knowledge creation strategies and processes in academia. This…

This essay documents approaches to growing honors affiliate faculties through community and university partnerships. The need for new strategies to prepare non-traditional faculties is shown by evidence that the student population is changing and by the critical responsibility honors programs have in the mentorship of diverse students.…