Within the international higher education community there is not a system nor gold standard to identify the value of higher education institutions (HEIs). For the current research, the definition of value was determined through quantitative methods considering utility and cost. The research problem underscored the importance of valuing…

Universities consist of students, faculty and staff, interacting through multiple layers of organization and on a variety of time scales. They are complex adaptive systems (CAS) yet the bulk of scholarship on higher education analyzes them using conventional social science methods, with little work that tries to understand them using complexity…

In this dissertation I examine four critical monographs on the history of higher education. This type of monograph represents an unacknowledged source of value for the field of higher education studies, which has typically relied on survey level texts that provide coverage and historical background. In contrast, critical monographs offer a narrow,…

This study examines the information seeking of scholars in the field of Higher Education. I interviewed Higher Education scholars about their use of the web, library resources, and interpersonal networking for their research. I also spoke with them about how the faculty reward system shapes their information seeking habits. I drew on information…

Using the Carnegie Project for the Education Doctorate (CPED) as a model curricular framework, this study sought to determine the structures and functions of well-run and respected non-CPED participating higher education administration EdD curricula. The qualitative approach was used during two iterations of focus groups to learn the professional…

The impact of peer-leadership programs on undergraduate students has been studied since the inception of higher education. Programs such as peer-mentoring, peer-counseling, and peer-advising are regularly used within the college environment as there are proven benefits to both student leaders and mentees. However, there is limited content on…

The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of doctoral student mothers pursuing doctorates in higher education as well as the meanings ascribed to the doctorate. This study was guided by Rich's (1976) notion of motherhood as experience and as institution held in tension with postmodernism's interest in discourse and difference. As…

Community colleges are continually faced with questions of how to best meet the learning needs of their diverse students, many of who are "nontraditional" and are often ill-prepared for college level work. These institutions are respected for furthering democracy through their commitment to educational access and criticized for falling…

The purpose of this study was to discover which southern universities have graduate preparatory programs in community college leadership and how, if at all, ethics is addressed in their curricula and in instruction. Surveys were mailed to 38 southern universities located in the Southern Regional Education Board member states. Of the 21 responses…

The mission types of 105 current doctoral programs in higher education and the extent to which their missions have changed since a similar study was conducted by Dressel and Mayhew in 1974 was studied. The curricula offerings of these programs by degree type (e.g., Ed.D. & Ph.D.) were compared with Fife's 1991 findings. Finally, the study…

Nursing educators have been encouraged to engage in the scholarship of teaching as a form of best practice in education. Despite professional documents and encouragement by leaders in the field of nursing, there is very little known about nursing educators' perceptions and engagement in the scholarship of teaching. The purpose of this…

To sustain world preeminence, 21st century university and college leaders in the United States are redesigning their institutions organizationally and culturally to align with the direction of local and global societies and markets. The New American University enterprise model at Arizona State University has become one of the leading organization…

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the experiences of 12 self-identified well doctoral students at a mid-size, western university in the U.S. to develop an understanding of the positive approaches doctoral students take to their academic pursuits. With an attrition rate of up to 50 percent in doctoral education, exploring…

This descriptive study re-examines the graduate education of doctoral students in rhetoric and composition in light of the field's civic tradition. This project explores the current preparation of rhetoric and composition students in Ph.D. programs and then focuses primarily on how doctoral programs are preparing aspiring new faculty members to…

This study examined the professional learning of participants in a science and pedagogical content knowledge-based graduate degree program, specifically the Master of Science in Science Education (MSSE) at Montana State University. The program's blended learning model includes distance learning coursework and laboratory, field and seminar…