Academic administration
Encyclopedia
An academic administration is a branch of university
or college
employees responsible for the maintenance and supervision of the institution and separate from the faculty or academics, although some personnel may have joint responsibilities. Some type of separate administrative structure exists at almost all academic institutions, as fewer and fewer schools are governed by employees who are also involved in academic or scholarly work. Many administrators are academics with advanced degrees who no longer teach or conduct research actively.
, a college or university is typically supervised by a President or Chancellor
who reports regularly to a Board of Trustees (made up of individuals from outside the institution) and who serves as Chief Executive Officer
. Most large colleges and universities now use an administrative structure with a tier of vice presidents, among whom the Provost
(or Vice President for Academic Affairs) serves as the chief academic officer.
may supervise various and more specific aspects of the institution, or may be CEO of an entire campus. They may report directly to the president or chancellor. The division of responsibility among deans varies widely among institutions; some are chiefly responsible for clusters of academic fields (such as the humanities
or natural sciences) or whole academic units (such as a graduate school
or college
), while others are responsible for non-academic but campus-wide concerns such as minority
affairs. In some cases a provost
supervises the institution's entire academic staff, occupying a position generally superior to any dean. In other instances the Dean of a College may be the equivalent to a Provost or Vice Chancellor or Vice President of Academic Affairs. Below deans in the administrative hierarchy are heads of individual academic department
s and of individual administrative departments from groundskeeping to libraries to registrars of records. These heads (commonly styled "chairs") then supervise the staff of their individual departments.
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
or college
College
A college is an educational institution or a constituent part of an educational institution. Usage varies in English-speaking nations...
employees responsible for the maintenance and supervision of the institution and separate from the faculty or academics, although some personnel may have joint responsibilities. Some type of separate administrative structure exists at almost all academic institutions, as fewer and fewer schools are governed by employees who are also involved in academic or scholarly work. Many administrators are academics with advanced degrees who no longer teach or conduct research actively.
Key responsibilities
Key administrative responsibilities (and thus administrative units) in academic institutions include:- Admissions
- Supervision of academic affairs such as hiring, promotion, tenureTenureTenure commonly refers to life tenure in a job and specifically to a senior academic's contractual right not to have his or her position terminated without just cause.-19th century:...
, and evaluation (with faculty input where appropriate); - Maintenance of official records (typically supervised by a registrarRegistrar (academic)In education outside the United Kingdom, a registrar or registrary is an official in an academic institution who handles student records. Typically, a registrar processes registration requests, schedules classes and maintains class lists, enforces the rules for entering or leaving classes, and...
in the US - In the UK the Registrar is in charge of all non academic matters); - Maintenance and audit of financial flows and records;
- Oversight of student life and activities, such as religious or cultural groups, career centers and public service centers.
- Library and archive management (by librarianLibrarianA librarian is an information professional trained in library and information science, which is the organization and management of information services or materials for those with information needs...
s and archivistArchivistAn archivist is a professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to information determined to have long-term value. The information maintained by an archivist can be any form of media...
s); - Maintenance and construction of campus buildings (the physical plant);
- Maintenance of the campus grounds;
- Safety and security of people and property on the campus (often organized as an office of public safetyPublic SafetyPublic safety involves the prevention of and protection from events that could endanger the safety of the general public from significant danger, injury/harm, or damage, such as crimes or disasters .-See also:* By nation...
or campus policeCampus policeCampus Police or University police in the United States and Canada are often sworn police officers employed by a public school district, college or university to protect the campus and surrounding areas and the people who live on, work on and visit it....
); - Supervision and support of campus computerComputerA computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
s and networkLocal area networkA local area network is a computer network that interconnects computers in a limited area such as a home, school, computer laboratory, or office building...
(information technologyInformation technologyInformation technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
). - Fundraising from private individuals and foundations ("development" or "advancement")
- Research administration (including grants and contract administration, and institutional compliance with federal and state regulations)
- Public affairs (including relations with the media, the community, and local, state, and federal governments)
United States
Academic administrations are structured in various ways at different institutions and in different countries.Presidents and chancellors
In the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, a college or university is typically supervised by a President or Chancellor
Chancellor (education)
A chancellor or vice-chancellor is the chief executive of a university. Other titles are sometimes used, such as president or rector....
who reports regularly to a Board of Trustees (made up of individuals from outside the institution) and who serves as Chief Executive Officer
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
. Most large colleges and universities now use an administrative structure with a tier of vice presidents, among whom the Provost
Provost (education)
A provost is the senior academic administrator at many institutions of higher education in the United States, Canada and Australia, the equivalent of a pro-vice-chancellor at some institutions in the United Kingdom and Ireland....
(or Vice President for Academic Affairs) serves as the chief academic officer.
Dean
DeansDean (education)
In academic administration, a dean is a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, or over a specific area of concern, or both...
may supervise various and more specific aspects of the institution, or may be CEO of an entire campus. They may report directly to the president or chancellor. The division of responsibility among deans varies widely among institutions; some are chiefly responsible for clusters of academic fields (such as the humanities
Humanities
The humanities are academic disciplines that study the human condition, using methods that are primarily analytical, critical, or speculative, as distinguished from the mainly empirical approaches of the natural sciences....
or natural sciences) or whole academic units (such as a graduate school
Graduate school
A graduate school is a school that awards advanced academic degrees with the general requirement that students must have earned a previous undergraduate degree...
or college
College
A college is an educational institution or a constituent part of an educational institution. Usage varies in English-speaking nations...
), while others are responsible for non-academic but campus-wide concerns such as minority
Minority group
A minority is a sociological group within a demographic. The demographic could be based on many factors from ethnicity, gender, wealth, power, etc. The term extends to numerous situations, and civilizations within history, despite the misnomer of minorities associated with a numerical statistic...
affairs. In some cases a provost
Provost (education)
A provost is the senior academic administrator at many institutions of higher education in the United States, Canada and Australia, the equivalent of a pro-vice-chancellor at some institutions in the United Kingdom and Ireland....
supervises the institution's entire academic staff, occupying a position generally superior to any dean. In other instances the Dean of a College may be the equivalent to a Provost or Vice Chancellor or Vice President of Academic Affairs. Below deans in the administrative hierarchy are heads of individual academic department
Academic department
An academic department is a division of a university or school faculty devoted to a particular academic discipline. This article covers United States usage at the university level....
s and of individual administrative departments from groundskeeping to libraries to registrars of records. These heads (commonly styled "chairs") then supervise the staff of their individual departments.