In an age of global interconnectedness of people, cultures, technology and professions, within higher education, collaborations between university staff increase in complexity and traverse time and space. Global and local changes and challenges give rise to new and hybrid university professionals -- third space professionals -- often operating…

This paper argues that higher education managers continually confront the pervasive and corrosive impact of workplace bullying, which appears culturally resilient despite extensive policy regimes. This paper provides a framework for strategic culture change, to reduce the prevalence of bullying behaviour within higher education. While the adverse…

Through the opinions expressed by 20 Spanish faculty members, this article describes the key elements of a blended learning training programme on disability. Qualitative evaluation was carried out using semi-structured group interviews and open-ended written questionnaires. Satisfaction with the training programme was analysed and its strengths…

The quality of working life (QoWL) has preoccupied practitioners and management scholars since the 1960s [Grote, G., and D. Guest. 2017. "The Case for Reinvigorating Quality of Working Life Research." "Human Relations" 70 (2): 149-167. doi:10.1177/0018726716654746], while satisfaction and occupational stress for professional…

Athletes qualify as 'elite' in club, university and national arenas, in terms of their relatively high level of ability and sporting quality. Academic staff in universities have been appointed to their posts based on their intellectual and practical research and teaching abilities/ qualities. Athletes are managed by professional sports coaches and…

There has been an increasing interest in the lived experiences of professional services staff working in the higher education sector, but little attention has been given to the role that job title plays in the shaping of working identities for this group of staff. This qualitative study employed semi-structured interviews to explore the…

There is a strong focus on the importance of student engagement in higher education, with increasing attention on how students can participate in their university's decision-making processes. Yet, although the concept appears to be almost universally accepted, it is rarely problematised. This has led some commentators to conclude that student…

The "raison d'etre" of all universities is to create and deliver "academic value", which we define as the sum total of the contributions from the 360-degree "angles" of the academic community, including all categories of staff, as well as external stakeholders (e.g. regulatory, commercial, professional and community…

The following study explores the landscape of grading systems utilised in higher education, focusing on the frequency of different types of assessment scales (including Straight Letter, Plus/Minus, and other alternative policies). Although numerous studies have explored the relationship between university grading system and student behaviour,…

Professional staff total approximately 23% of staff in universities in the UK, which in 2014/15 was the equivalent of 95,870 individuals (hesa.ac.uk). With their increasing span of responsibility, it is surprising that there has been little research into the careers of these staff. This study, part of a larger careers study, highlights some key…

This paper summarises a new method of grouping postgraduate taught (PGT) courses introduced at Oxford Brookes University as a part of a Portfolio Review. Instead of classifying courses by subject, the new cluster approach uses statistical methods to group the courses based on factors including flexibility of study options, level of specialisation,…

This study aimed to determine what the best practice guidelines were for making academic reading material available to visually impaired students at the University of Pretoria (UP) easily and efficiently. A basic literature review of relevant research data was done to help create further context for this study. A semi-structured interview with a…

This paper presents research from a small-scale study analysing how graduates and alumni feature in the strategic plans of all Irish universities (n = 7). The data suggest that the word 'graduate' is used to describe the work of the university as an enabler for the graduate, to prepare for the employment to acquire key skills, towards a foundation…

In this research informed perspective, I discuss some of the barriers students face during progression to higher education. A crucial role can be played by higher education institutions (HEIs) and other public bodies. I discuss some of the measures taken and critically evaluate these to show how these can be improved. In the absence of a…

In 2011, David Willetts issued a White Paper with the title "Students at the Heart of the System". In 2011 the headlines were, inevitably, about the new tuition fee regime which, it was hoped, would change the thinking of university leaders so that they focussed less on research excellence and more on the needs and aspirations of…