Plugin The General Organization of Research and Education1

The document discusses the structure and financing of universities in the United States. It notes that US universities integrate research and teaching across departments. This departmental structure with faculty overseeing both undergraduate and graduate programs has become the stable model since Johns Hopkins linked scientific research and graduate education in 1876. However, threats include volatile federal funding and aging infrastructure, which universities are addressing through private fundraising, endowments, and creation of multidisciplinary research centers outside the traditional department structure.

Uploaded by

hug127266

We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.

Available Formats

Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

0% found this document useful (0 votes)

31 views

Plugin The General Organization of Research and Education1

Uploaded by

hug127266

We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.

Available Formats

Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

You are on page 1/ 11

Robin Charpentier, Consultant International Relations and Cooperation, NUM

Institutional vs Customer Perspective:

Free-Standing Basic Science Research Institute Multidisciplinary Center: basic, applied clinical,

humanitarian, social sciences Research Department New Vice Provost Research Administration Office Curriculum Reform Institutional Representative: NEASC Accreditation Fellowship, Postdoctoral, Graduate Program administration Ivy League and State Universities

Financing Public funding Government Tuition Private funding Public Private Partnerships (Donations, In-kind Support) Endowments (Chairs, Professorships, Unrestricted) Capital Campaigns (Buildings, infrastructure) Alumni Giving (Directed, School-specific) Planned Giving (Bequests, etc.) Investment Strategies Academic Mission Research Teaching Community Outreach Quality Accreditation Internal/External Reviews/Advisory Boards Faculty Research/Education Tracks Appointment/Retention/Promotion Faculty Development Emeritus Status Adjuncts

Students (Graduate and Undergraduate) Admission Advising Resources International Placement Facilities Preventive Maintenance Buildings and Grounds - Routine Maintenance Planned Obsolescence Short and Long Term Campus and Building Usage Administration Structure to Implement Reforms Interface Government Funders Business Community/Employers International Entities Parents Other Universities

Compared to other countries, the US has the largest, most decentralized, and most highly differentiated arrangements for higher education (on more than 1,200 campuses) By definition, integrates research and teaching: universities exist to acquire (research) and transmit (teach) new knowledge Distinctive feature of the US Higher Educational system is the persistent concentration of money and status resources in the top tier research universities (success begets success)

1876: Johns Hopkins linked scientific research and graduate education Practice was grafted onto older existing universities such as: Harvard and Columbia This was the model when new universities were founded, so that both undergraduate and graduate instruction was offered from the beginning : Stanford 1891 and University of Chicago 1892 Feasible, due to departmental organizational structure at the time

Increasing specialization of faculty Greater stratification of University types Tier 1 vs Tier 2 Research Ivy League State vs Private Universities Liberal Arts Colleges, Religious Universities Increase in number and types of subunits

PhD programs were integrated in Universities at a

level separate from undergraduates

PhD programs were made part of departments,

which were responsible for undergraduate instruction in a discipline

In fact, model so strong, Hopkins expanded its org

structure to include undergraduate programs

This has become a stable and uniform model for

university organization across time and universities

Departments are:

Decentralized Compartmentalized Reflect disciplinary specialization

Same faculty have authority over undergraduate

and graduate programs

Vertical (silo) organization, not horizontal

(is there a better organization?)

Graduate research programs became a link:

Faculty propagated themselves and the field

through graduate students Kept faculty attentive to their Departments Kept research and teaching interlocked Functional integration of research and teaching at departmental level Model has continued, despite increased disciplinary specialization (which Departments and Professional Associations mirror)

THREATS

SOLUTIONS

Capital intensive technology-driven research Volatile federal funding; uneven, unstable funding base from external sources Equipment, campus buildings neglected Overproduction of PhDs

Universities created own fundraising programs Endowed funds for research and graduate fellowships in specific fields Scale:
Stanfords successful

fundraising campaign was for 4.3 Billion USD Harvards endowment around 300 Billion USD

Research units outside of traditional departmental structure (institutes, centers) Created to:

solve complex problems, often requiring a multidisciplinary perspective (aging, security, AI, neuroscience, imaging, global climate change, cancer) Find new knowledge at the interstices of disciplines (no more Anatomy Department at Harvard Medical School) broaden funding base (industry)

Capital intensive, applied, adaptive, flexible, quick, attractive to graduate students, best equipment Needs constant upgrades and funding, difficult to close, expensive infrastructure Trending: 1990: est. 2,000 -10,000 total in the US 2000: est. 40 300 per research university !!!