'Them and Us' - General and Non-General Staff in Higher Education

Dobson, Ian R.

doi:10.1080/713678142

Cited by 78 publications

(47 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…As one respondent suggested, professional staff were ''indoctrinated that there are boundaries, and that they… step over boundaries at [their] peril.'' This could create ''us'' and ''them'' perceptions, as described by Dobson (2000) and Dobson and Conway (2001). Perhaps because of this, there remained a sense of moving back and forth between the two domains, working round existing structures, rather than of a coalescence of activity:…”

Section: Australiamentioning

confidence: 92%

The rise of the blended professional in higher education: a comparison between the United Kingdom, Australia and the United States

2009

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This paper builds on earlier work by the author to explore the international dimensions of a study of the changing roles and identities of professional staff in higher education (Whitchurch 2008a, b). It further develops the concept of the blended professional, characterising individuals with identities drawn from both professional and academic domains, and examines the institutional spaces, knowledges, relationships and legitimacies that they construct. Comparisons between the United Kingdom, Australia and the United States are used to provide indicators of possible futures for this group of staff, including their positioning in the university community, the challenges they face, and the potentials that they offer to their institutions.

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Section: Australiamentioning

confidence: 92%

The rise of the blended professional in higher education: a comparison between the United Kingdom, Australia and the United States

2009

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“…The traditional 'academic-general staff divide', characterized by clear differences in the roles of general and academic staff and between administrative and academic activity has been blurred by the expansion and professionalisation of university administration over the past 20 years (McInnis 1998;Dobson 2000;Dobson and Conway 2003;Eveline 2004;Szerkes 2004Szerkes , 2006Whitchurch 2006a;Collinson 2006Collinson , 2007Gornitzka and Larsen 2004). One of the early commentaries on this trend was the Dearing report (1997) which coined the term 'new professionals' to refer to staff employed in dynamic and autonomous roles in growth areas of higher education in the UK.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Occupying a ‘third space’: research trained professional staff in Australian universities

Berman

Pitman

2009

High Educ

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Despite the expansion and professionalisation of university administration over the past 20 years there has been no scholarly study on the extent to which universities, which promote the value of generic skills from research degrees to prospective research students and their employers, capitalize on the research and transferable skills of PhD graduates later employed in the university sector as professional staff. Findings from this study of research-trained professional staff at one research-intensive Australian university suggests that these professionals are using their research and generic skills in management roles, to the benefit of the university. In the context of the knowledge based economy, this study suggests that universities could benefit from actively targeting the products of their own system for professional roles.

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“…Nomenclature and titlesnarratives of invisibility, marginalisation, exclusion and under appreciation Castleman & Allen, 1995;Deem, 1998;Conway, 2000;Dobson, 2000;Lauwerys, 2002;Dobson & Conway, 2003;Gornitzka & Larsen, 2004;Szekeres, 2004;Whitchurch, 2006;Collinson, 2007Gender dimensions Castleman & Allen, 1995Burton, Cook, & Wilson, 1997;Probert, Ewer, & Whiting, 1998;Currie, Thiele, & Harris, 2002;Chesterman, Ross-Smith, & Peters, 2003;Eveline, 2004;Stewart, 2004;Gander, 2010;Bagilhole & White, 2011;Strachan et al, 2012 RECONCILIATION Professional and academic staff tensions and emerging partnerships Castleman & Allen, 1995;Burton et al, 1997;Probert et al, 1998;Currie et al, 2002;Chesterman et al, 2003;Szekeres, 2004;McMaster, 2005;Gander, 2010;Bagilhole & White, 2011;Conway, 2012;Strachan et al, 2012;Krücken et al, 2013 …”

Section: Earlier Debatesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Imagining a future: changing the landscape for third space professionals in Australian higher education institutions

Veles

Carter

2016

Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management

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In the last decade there has been a shift in the discourses around professional staff in higher education that has been influenced by neoliberal agenda that focused on driving education reforms. Earlier discussions centering around nomenclature variations have progressed to those about creating and developing borderless professionals operating in the third space -a notional space where professional staff and academic staff with diverse and valuable skills work as equal professional partners on complex and multifaceted projects. This article looks at the evolution of the debates around professional staff. It considers how the notions of professionalism and professionalisation are being reconceptualised in the third space. Discussion progresses towards capability building and developmental opportunities of aspiring third space professional staff in higher education settings. Possible pathways of engaging with and empowering professional staff in designing their future careers and professional identities are considered. Building a community of research practices under the auspices of ATEM and engaging postgraduate students in the university third space project work are proposed as potential areas for further research in the field of professional staff capability building.

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'Them and Us' - General and Non-General Staff in Higher Education

Cited by 78 publications

References 2 publications

The rise of the blended professional in higher education: a comparison between the United Kingdom, Australia and the United States

The rise of the blended professional in higher education: a comparison between the United Kingdom, Australia and the United States

Occupying a ‘third space’: research trained professional staff in Australian universities

Imagining a future: changing the landscape for third space professionals in Australian higher education institutions

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