University Chancellors, Vice-Chancellors and College Principals: A Social Profile

Abstract

The careers of chancellors and vice-chancellors of British universities and of the principals of colleges at Oxbridge, London and Wales, are analysed by the use of data drawn mainly from Who's Who. Those who hold these posts play an important part in the relationship of universities with the government and other sections of society; moreover the administrative responsibilities of vice-chancellors have grown rapidly in recent years. Changes over the past thirty years in the composition of these groups are examined. The growth in the number of universities has led to wider recruitment of chancellors, notably, however, by the appointment of more members of the royal family. Among vice-chancellors and principals there has been a shift towards recruiting scientists; only Oxford colleges hold out against this change. There is still a very high level of internal recruitment of Oxford and Cambridge college principals, and Oxbridge still prepares, as undergraduates or teachers, a large proportion of those appointed at other universities. However the upgrading of Colleges of Advanced Technology has created a group of vice-chancellors with quite different career patterns. The activities of vice-chancellors outside their main careers, the honours and titles they hold, and their club memberships are analysed for the period since 1935. Changes in marital status and fertility are also examined.

Should top universities be led by top researchers and are they?

“…Taylor (1986) documents the disciplinary distribution amongst vice chancellors and principals in the UK in 1986. He also cites earlier work by Collison and Millen (1969) who showed that in the UK between 1935 and 1967 the proportion of presidents from the arts declined from 68 to 48 per cent while scientists rose from 19 to 41 per cent.…”

A social characteristics profile of Australian vice-chancellors

“…Like comparable British (Collinson and Millen, 1969) and Canadian (Muzzin and Tracz, 1981) surveys, the principal source of data is Who's Who in Australia and Who's Who. Other sources from which information has been obtained or verified are: university calendars and reports; correspondence with university registrars; records of interview with retired vice-chancellors; and also telephone conversations with university personnel.…”

Michael Banton and Sociology

“…An article or two about the family and kinship aside, there was little about gender and nothing about health or culture. Among more quirky items were a couple of articles on universities, one on the power of professors within sociology departments (Trow and Halsey, 1969) and another on the social profile of university chancellors, vicechancellors and college principals (Collison and Millen, 1969).…”