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Purpose: The higher education system must move closer to society and its requirements, and therefore, the process of transformation in the university context brings new challenges. The purpose of this paper is to present research on a case study that examines the perception of the middle managers’ role from their own perspective: how they describe it, the associated tasks, the skills perceived as necessary and what they think about the need to become academic leaders. Design/methodology/approach: The authors have adopted a mixed-method approach. Data were collected through an in-depth interview and an adapted version of the Personal Construct Grid (Kelly, 1955). Two types of analyses have been carried out: statistical analysis and content analysis following a category system. The participants were academics performing a management position selected in accordance with certain criteria relevant for the study. Findings: The research shows how their perception collides with the traditional characteristics of the university, which focus on the managerial and bureaucratic tasks of the middle managers. The study also reveals evidence of the poor visibility of these managers with no place for action due to their lack of power and decision-making opportunities. Originality/value: The participants claim that it is necessary for people who hold the position to become agents of change by creating a shared identity through teamwork and collaboration. To this end, this paper presents a proposal for the development of a framework for action.

Stress in higher education students is an issue of growing concern, as stress impacts quality of life and has been linked to drop-out from higher education. The aim was to investigate how stress was related to how far along students were in their degree program, using the Spanish Perceived Stress Scale (PSS10). We expected 1) first-year education students to experience more perceived lack of control than second-year students, 2) second-year students to experience more perceived stress than first-year students. Participants were students in three university education-degree programs (N = 399). The psychometric properties of the Perceived Stress (PS) and Perceived Lack of Control (PLC) subscales were investigated using Rasch models. One item was eliminated from each subscale. The estimated interval-level Rasch scores were utilized for testing hypotheses with general linear models. Results showed a somewhat more complex pattern than predicted as interaction effects between degree year and gender and between degree year and basis for admission were found.