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Re: qualifications for research admin Audrey Buck 09 Apr 2003 10:02 EST

Elsa, very well put.  Thank you.

Audrey

Office of Research Services
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-----Original Message-----
From: Research Administration List [mailto:xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG] On
Behalf Of Elsa Nadler
Sent: Wednesday, April 09, 2003 10:56 AM
To: xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG
Subject: Re: [RESADM-L] qualifications for research admin

Hello, all,
Let me be an "ivory tower idealist" and enter the fray here. First, a
graduate degree should not be "teaching job skills." Postgraduate
degrees provide insight into underlying theory and cause and effect;
they promote critical and analytical thinking. I have a doctorate in
higher education administration. It taught me nothing about how to
negotiate a contract, fill out sponsor forms, or read guidelines. It did
introduce me into the various sociological theories of organizations,
efficiency, satisfaction, etc. I also learned something about the law
and how it affects higher education. Job skills are specifically related
to the duties and responsibilities of the position in a particular
place. Learning to work with others, to work under pressure, to meet
deadlines, etc. are skills (let me emphasize the skill part) that we
learn as part of living. If we can't do that, we fail no matter what the
degree. Any intelligent individual can learn the requisite skills on the
job. Additionally, policies, guidelines and regulations (other than
federal ones) are likely going to be different at each institution, to
say nothing of inistitutional culture and  history. So, knowing how
things tick at General  University is not going to get someone very far
at  Particular University.
 At the same time, I understand the divide between faculty and
administration and fully recognize that faculty see certain facets of
administration as a burden imposed on them from above by some
power-hungry bureaucrat. Administrators too often see faculty as
inconsiderate and thoughtless egomaniacs. Faculty are going to be much
more accommodating and understanding of administrative red tape if the
head person has a postgraduate degree, because that might be viewed as
contributing to an understanding of the pressures and responsibilities
associated with their students and their disciplines. Someone who is not
familiar with the pressure of teaching and mentoring students while
simultaneously conducting research and scholarship and serving on
departmental and university committees (service) very likely does not
have a complete appreciation of what faculty do with their waking hours.
Grants administrators need to have that rapport with the faculty they
serve (and serve is the operative word here).
 My statements are gross generalities only and do not apply to all.
However, having been a graduate student recently; having worked in a
grants office, in an office funded from a federal grant AND a lab;
having friends and family who are research faculty, I am in a unique
position to see, hear and hopefully understand the attitudes,
personalities, and responsibilities that go into the mix in higher
education.
 So, the bottom line is, you set out stringent job requirements but
allow flexibility so that you get the person who has the knowledge,
intelligence, skills, personality and cultural background that will best
fit YOUR office at YOUR institution. Does a degree matter? probably not,
but it helps. Does supervisory experience help? perhaps, but more
important is a person's philosophy of supervision. Does familiarity with
A-21 help? probably, but can't anyone with intelligence learn what it
says?
 enough, Elsa Nadler

>>> xxxxxx@UILLINOIS.EDU 04/09/03 10:00AM >>>
As a Human Resources professional who has earned a Masters in Medieval
Literature, I find I may be uniquely qualified to comment on this
issue.
While my academic side says that the post-bachelor degree probably
means a
certain familiarity with the world of academia and its quirks, my HR
side
says that position qualifications ideally should be tied to the actual
work
the incumbant will be doing. So the question I think we should ask is,
"What
job skills does an individual gain through graduate study that cannot
be
gained elsewhere?"

~~Maureen

Maureen D. Kofkee, MA, PHR
Resource and Policy Analyst

University of Illinois Office of Human Resources
807 South Wright Street
Champaign, IL, 61820

217.333.2590
217.333.2789 (fax)

-----Original Message-----
From: Mike McCallister [mailto:xxxxxx@UALR.EDU]
Sent: Tuesday, April 08, 2003 4:32 PM
To: xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG
Subject: Re: [RESADM-L] qualifications for research admin

Oh please, go ahead and acknowledge Higher Ed conceit.  if I hadn't
finished my Ph.D., I'd have never had a shot at my true 3P (Peter
Principle Potential).  More and more, I think his is driven not by
researchers but by OUR bosses who want a spiffy stable.  Finally,
someone who has earned an advanced degree has at least a bit more
familiarity with the culture in which we toil.  Crazy enough to get
that degree, crazy enough to work here-- that sort of thing. THEN
they find out we've got the best jobs on campus.

Spanky

>\I disagree.  Aren't most faculty members interested in good service
>above all else?  I think most people, even in an environment that,
>on the surface, seems defined by academic credentials, look at
>intelligence, credibility, and work ethic above all else. What
>difference does a degree make?  My years spent chopping up fish and
>rats didn't help me in "supervising others, assisting faculty to
>develop proposals, including interpreting guidelines, setting up and
>monitoring accounts & expenditures, advising on compliance issues".
>
>Charlie Hathaway
>
>PHD..piled high and deep
>
>At 04:21 PM 4/8/03 -0400, you wrote:
>>rebecca-
>>yes, the degree is absolutely necessary in an academic environment,
and,
even
>>though the position is assistant director, i'd put the minimum at a
master's.
>>furthermore, i'd want to see 8-10 years experience in steadily more
>>responsible
>>research admin positions, with supervisory experience as well as
>>experience in
>>the specific areas for which this person will have responsibilties.
>>susan
>>
>>--
>>Susan B. Burke
>>Information Specialist
>>Office of Research Services
>>The George Washington University
>>2121 I Street NW, Suite 601
>>Washington, DC 20052
>>Telephone: 202-994-9136
>>Facsimile: 202-994-9137
>
>**************************************
>Charles B. Hathaway, Ph.D., Director
>Office of Grant Support
>Albert Einstein College of Medicine
>1300 Morris Park Avenue
>Bronx, NY 10461-1975
>Phone: 718 430-3642     Fax: 718 430-8822
>email: xxxxxx@aecom.yu.edu
>http://www.aecom.yu.edu/ogs
>
>
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--
Mike McCallister, Ph. D.
 Director, Research and Sponsored Programs
University of Arkansas at Little Rock
2801 South University
Little Rock, AR 72204-1099
(v) 501-569-8474
(f) 501-371-7614
(c) 501-590-5609

Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one
can go. - T.S. Eliot

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 Instructions on how to use the RESADM-L Mailing List, including
 subscription information and a web-searchable archive, are available
 via our web site at http://www.hrinet.org (click on "Listserv Lists")
======================================================================

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 Instructions on how to use the RESADM-L Mailing List, including
 subscription information and a web-searchable archive, are available
 via our web site at http://www.hrinet.org (click on "Listserv Lists")
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