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The purpose of this paper is to gain a deeper understanding of gendered practices in academia by further exploring the embodiment of gender; we do so by comparing these practices between the experiences of female and male respondents concerning gender stereotypes and the individual embodiment thereof in academics within research universities in the Netherlands. Our analysis includes interviews with 26 female and male associate professors -- thirteen pairs matched at the department and discipline levels -- which enabled us to compare academic experiences of each gender. A significant proportion of the interviewed academics perceived the Dutch academic context as a gendered and embodied professional setting and implied women are not only considered less eligible for promotion because of their gender; notably, some male respondents were blind to these stereotypes. Several of the reported stereotypes refer to the appearance of the female body and the behaviour of women and provided clarification of different career progressions.

The purpose of our research is to understand how postdoctoral researchers (postdocs) at Dutch research universities experience their working conditions, their further career prospects and opportunities, in relation to their mental health and wellbeing. The postdoc population is substantial and growing. Given that their lack of career prospects and invisibility do not coincide with their highly educated status and contribution to research, we diagnosed a dual controversy. Our recent multi-method research based on a survey amongst 676 postdocs revealed that this dual controversy results in high stress levels amongst the postdocs working at nine Dutch universities; evidence suggests that about 40% of the respondents reported serious problems concerning their mental health. Main stress factors involve lack of academic career prospects; publication and grant pressure; work--life imbalance; and the absence of institutional support. Also, several compensating factors were found, which resulted in an ambivalent or balanced situation. Encouragement from supervisors and colleagues can generally result in a better mental health.

The purpose of this paper is to gain a deeper understanding of gender stereotypes in academia by examining the informal aspects of the university as an organisation. We do so by using the concept of 'micro-political practices related to recruitment and progression in higher education institutions'. To increase our comprehension, we conducted multi-method research that included the IAT test, a vignette study, and in-depth interviews at one university in the Netherlands. Our findings demonstrate the importance of unconscious stereotypes that create a divide between both male and female respondents. We explain how unconscious stereotypes permeate micro-political practices at the university under study. Consequently, we discuss whether our case represents a gendered organisation, which reproduces male organisational features in regard to recruitment and career progression. Our multi-method approach creates additional depth for our findings, reconfirming the importance of combining different data sources.

European institutions of higher education have increasingly sought to improve the accountability and transparency of teaching and research with formal procedures and performance criteria. In a longitudinal analysis conducted in faculties of social sciences and economics at universities in the Netherlands, Sweden and the United Kingdom, we examined ways in which academics have experienced the expanded use of teaching assessments and its impact on the perceived quality of teaching. Results revealed that teaching assessments in the three countries have become more institutionalized, as scepticism of their principles have been replaced with resilience and pragmatism in assessment instruments and, among individual instructors, with sharpened focus on the operational side of teaching. Although faculty members acknowledged benefits of teaching assessments, they could not envision how the assessments would improve the quality of teaching. In response, we offer a theoretical explanation of those trends that extends the development of micro-institutional theory.

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the recent developments in the higher education system of Colombia in order to illustrate how these encourage stratification between (types of) universities and their students. We do so by discussing propositions generated by human capital theory and apply them to the experiences of students and graduates from Colombian universities. We conducted a survey (n = 700) amongst graduate and undergraduate students at 12 low-fee private universities. Four interviews with (former) students served as an illustration. The majority of undergraduate students perceived the quality of their education as poor and wanted to attend another university. Both students and graduates expressed uncertainty about finding a job and anticipated difficulties as they felt they lacked essential skills. Due to relatively unhindered privatization and marketization of the columbian higher education sector, low-quality private provision in Colombia demonstrates this structural inequality. Our study shows that investing in higher education does not always correlate positively with skills gained or future income, thereby revealing the necessity to use human capital theory in a more nuanced manner.

While postdoctoral researchers (postdocs) are an increasingly important and productive group of employees in academia, they lack further career prospects and embeddedness within their organizations. This paper provides a rare glimpse into this relatively unexplored but important group. A comparative study of two Dutch universities included a survey with both closed and open questions among 225 respondents. Our study reveals that nearly all postdocs (85 %) want to stay in the academic field, but only <3 % was offered a tenure-track position. The uncertainty of their future prospects in academia lowered their job satisfaction; this is particularly true for the social sciences and humanities. Concerning alternative career paths, only few of the postdocs spent time in preparing for a career outside academia, and less than a third attempted to develop any transferable skills, although the importance of networking was recognized. Given that postdocs seem to be trapped between their own ambitions and a lack of academic career opportunities, it is very important that, on the one hand, postdocs aim for better visibility within their organizations, while on the other hand, universities provide more clarity and openness about their further career prospects inside and outside academia.

The implementation of the Bologna Process (BP) did not go as smoothly as the Bologna Follow-Up evaluations suggest, and the consequences of the BP for the various European higher education systems and universities are much more diverse than represented in these various studies. Relatively few research and policy documents taking a more critical stance are currently available while a systematic overview of such studies is still lacking. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview and consequently reveal the most prominent views concerning the BP, as well as emphasise the critical developments over a longer period. A longitudinal literature review was carried out, consisting of 161 studies between 2004 and 2013, that resulted in a final selection of 91 studies. The article demonstrates that the studies available in this search show that issues concerning "challenges," "tensions" and "critical viewpoints" about BP exist, and yet it confirms the need for further research. It is further suggested that demonstration of the impact of the BP discourse would benefit from the adaptation of a continuously critical reflective approach as an ongoing part of the overall discussion about the BP.

Universities throughout Europe have adopted organisational strategies, structures, technologies, management instruments and values that are commonly found in the private sector. While these alleged managerial measures may be considered useful, and have a positive effect on the quality of teaching and research, there is also evidence of detrimental effects on primary tasks. The consequences of such managerial measures were investigated through 48 interviews with staff members at 10 universities in the Netherlands, Sweden and the UK. The results were analysed and interpreted within the framework of institutional and professional theory, by linking them to three central themes: "symbolic compliance", "professional pragmatism" and "formal instrumentality". These themes explain why and how the respondents dissociated themselves from the managerial measures imposed upon them. This occurred often for pragmatic and occasionally for principled reasons. (Contains 2 tables.)

Europeans have tried for decades to find a way to take a mutual stance on issues of higher education and its development. In terms of taking on the challenge of such a mutual commitment with respect to higher education, the Bologna process is a giant step for the European Union. It involves a large number of countries, representing a great variety of higher education systems, which are currently engaged in a process of striving for certain common, converging goals. The question is whether this is also the "right step" in terms of the actual organisational goals of higher education institutions: teaching students to the best of their abilities, carrying out good-quality research, and serving a constructive societal role. Is the Bologna process as such helpful in achieving these goals, or do we need to acknowledge peripheral forces that are affecting the (Bologna) process to a much higher degree than we bargained for? The purpose of this article is to explore both mainstream and more tangential issues in order to cast a more critical spotlight on the outcomes of the Bologna process and its construction(s). The article attempts to contribute to the Bologna debate, with emphasis on three contradictions, by placing these issues in a broader perspective. (Contains 4 notes.)

To achieve efficient and effective quality improvement, European universities have gradually adopted organizational strategies, structures, technologies, management instruments, and values that are commonly found in the private business sector. Whereas some studies have shown that such managerialism is beneficial to the quality of job performances of university employees, others have argued that managerialism is largely counterproductive and that it results in lower performances. The latter situation is called a "managerialism contradiction". This paper tests two lines of reasoning underlying a potential contradiction governing the relationship between managerialism and job performances, while using university employee survey data from six European countries (Belgium, Finland, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, UK). The results tend to support the assumption that managerialism, in these six countries at least, has a positive effect, albeit a modest one, on the quality of performances. The most important conclusion is therefore that there is no managerialism contradiction at work in European universities.

This paper focuses on the way lecturers observe, feel restrained by and cope with quality management systems that have been implemented in the higher education systems of the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. As two sides of the same coin, quality enhancement and quality control are of increased significance in European Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), particularly through the Bologna Process. We are interested in the way that both enhancement and control blend into the current systems, and we are concerned for too much dominance of control, as has been suggested in recent managerial literature. Analysis of 40 interviews in both countries among researchers and lecturers in traditional and universities of applied sciences showed many similarities. It is not so much the general idea of quality management that is being turned down by the respondents. They see the benefits quite clearly. Still, the general belief is that quality management in its current shape and character does not fit with the work of the individual academic, neither their teaching nor their research. The respondents worry for and resent the consequences of increased emphasis on quality assurance and control. The developments concerning the quality management of their HEIs are perceived in terms of quality assurance by the UK respondents. Instead, the Dutch are more occupied with finding ways to "how to deal with" such developments.

Societal developments have forced universities all over Europe to replace their "professional" strategies, structures, and values by organizational characteristics that could be stereotyped as "private sector" features. This trend is known as "managerialism". Since university employees generally stick to professional values, a conflict may emerge between professional employee values and managerial organization values. This conflict can result in lower organizational commitment and, consequently, lower quality of job performances. Since managerialism is, however, aimed at efficient and effective quality improvement, this situation is what we regard as a "managerialism contradiction". Affecting university employees' performances may solve or reduce such a contradiction. Since levels of managerialism differ among countries, this paper examines which factors affect the quality of job performances of 1,700 university employees in low-, middle- and high-managerialism countries. The analyses reveal that there are large differences and some similarities between the countries regarding "which" human resource management (HRM) practices affect the quality of employees' job performances. Furthermore, it appears that there are clear differences among the countries regarding "how" the HRM practices affect the quality of their job performances. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.

This contribution is based on comparative case studies of secondary schools in England, the Netherlands and Scotland. The authors conclude that although opportunities for school choice are offered in a formal sense in each of the locations studied, in certain cases choice is not particularly encouraged. In order to explain this disparity between formal education policy and actual school choice, they identified seven areas of friction which determine school choice. This approach allowed a more detailed and accurate view of the operation of school choice on a local, day-to-day basis. Active or passive discouragement of choice became apparent in factors such as availability of transport and information; bureaucratic procedures; strictly enforced admission criteria; and lack of educational diversity.

Current British educational developments related to market forces and school choice are examined in terms of educational demand, supply side characteristics, and the regulatory structure of choice. Results from panel study interviews in England and Scotland suggest that concerns about increased inequality among secondary schools are justified, especially in England. (Contains 25 references.) (Author/SV)

To purchase or authenticate to the full-text of this article, please visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9299.2007.00630.x Byline: MIKE DENT (1), NICOLETTE VAN GESTEL (2), CHRISTINE TEELKEN (2) Abstract: This symposium grew out of the sub-theme, 'New Modes of Governance in Public Sector Organizations', of the European Group for Organizational Studies (EGOS) Conference held in Ljubljana in July 2004. Our aim was to provide a forum to discuss the policy and practice and the space between in public sector management and governance within Europe. Author Affiliation: (1)Mike Dent is Professor of Health Care Organisation in the Faculty of Health and Sciences, Staffordshire University. (2)Nicolette Van Gestel and Christine Teelken are in the Nijmegen School of Management, Radboud University, Nijmegen.

The purpose of this paper is to gain a deeper understanding of gender stereotypes in academia by examining the informal aspects of the university as an organisation. We do so by using the concept of 'micro-political practices related to recruitment and progression in higher education institutions'. To increase our comprehension, we conducted multi-method research that included the IAT test, a vignette study, and in-depth interviews at one university in the Netherlands. Our findings demonstrate the importance of unconscious stereotypes that create a divide between both male and female respondents. We explain how unconscious stereotypes permeate micro-political practices at the university under study. Consequently, we discuss whether our case represents a gendered organisation, which reproduces male organisational features in regard to recruitment and career progression. Our multi-method approach creates additional depth for our findings, reconfirming the importance of combining different data sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]