A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF
UNIVERSITY ADMINISTRATIVE SYSTEMS
By Hazel Glover MBA PhD
ABSTRACT
|
Student
administrative systems swing between being decentralised or centralised with a
number of benefits being put forward for each scenario, including economy,
consistency, customer service and control. This study makes a comparison of
these systems in English universities, particularly looking at the factors
which influence the centralisation or decentralisation of student
administration in order to identify the factors involved, so that informed
decisions can be made by university management.
The research was
undertaken in two main phases: firstly a questionnaire survey of university
registrars (the macro study) was carried out in order to identify the current
structures and systems in place for student administration; secondly case
studies of four universities were undertaken.
The latter mainly involved questionnaire surveys of
academic and administrative staff at each institution, together with
semi-structured interviews to chart the different student administrative
systems and structures in place and obtain qualitative and quantitative data to
assess them.
From the results of
the first survey, it was possible to assess the degree of the centralisation or
decentralisation of the student administrative functions and cross-reference
the data to examine whether certain factors were influencing the design of
these structures. The results of this
analysis are documented in Chapter 4, and it was noticeable that the majority
of the respondents favoured the “midway” structure for student administration.
Four universities
were identified from the macro study to form the focus of more detailed case
studies: one with a centralised student administration, one with a
decentralised system, and two with hybrid systems. Key administrative functions were examined
closely to determine the effectiveness, efficiency and motivational influences
involved for each case study university. The research concludes that a blanket
centralisation or decentralisation of student administration does not maximise
the resources and gain the optimum efficiency.
By being selective in which processes are centralised or decentralised,
the university can gain in economy and also ensure a supportive infrastructure
to enhance the student experience.
DEDICATION
I
would like to dedicate this work to Dr Geoff Wheeler, who died suddenly
just after the thesis was
submitted. Without his encouragement,
the research
would probably not have been
completed.