Higher education institutions are under increasing pressure to offer interdisciplinary education programmes; however, their implementation is not uncomplicated. Particularly where parts of a programme are delivered by different departments, academic development activities to change practices and develop a coherent interdisciplinary programme are…

The ability of graduates to proactively develop, adapt and repackage their capabilities (or attributes) is an essential aspect of employability. This study was conducted at Deakin University, where graduate capabilities have been recast as graduate learning outcomes, and employability is frequently referenced. In light of significant curriculum…

This case study of development in a technical university situates distributed leadership in higher education in an organizational perspective. Analysis of documentation from development programs and interviews with 10 faculty members showed that leadership practices were related to different institutional logics prominent in four key activities in…

International knowledge markets rely heavily on a ready supply of highly mobile doctoral students, many of whom are from the global South, to bring in revenue. The supervision of these PhD students, however, can reproduce neo-colonial knowledge relations, often in subtle ways. In settler nations, international PhD students may find that they are…

This study explores issues related to the tutor's role when initiating tutoring as an institutional strategy at a conventional university. Based on a pilot tutoring program implemented in four college courses, we investigated the perceptions of instructors, tutors and students regarding the role of tutoring and whether it affected the…

The tutorial system is considered to be a useful pedagogical intervention to improve student retention, particularly in the context of a first-year student's experience of entering university. For these novice students to achieve academic success, it is important that they are given access to the subject-specific knowledge and practices in their…

International students with English as an additional language face transitional challenges when entering a new academic culture. One such challenge involves optimising feedback to help foster their academic development, bearing in mind that feedback is not a culturally neutral entity (Nazif, A., Biswas, D., & Hilbig, R. (2004-2005). Towards an…

Students' perceptions during their first semester at university may be critical in the decision to continue or discontinue studies. In this study we consider students' perceptions of what factors enable successful transition to university. Using qualitative research, students' perceptions are obtained by in-depth interviews and focus groups that…