Examines difficulties faced by American university branches in Japan. Notes that 30 institutions developed programs offering American-style college education during the 1980s and 1990s but that only five have survived, due primarily to culture clashes. Focuses on experiences of the Temple University branch in Tokyo, which survives, and Minnesota…

Presents data from the annual "Survey of Earned Doctorates" showing slightly increased numbers of doctoral degrees awarded in 1998, increased diversity in doctorate recipients, and declines in number of non-U.S. citizens earning doctorates. Tables and graphs show recipients by sex and ethnicity, characteristics of recipients by broad field,…

Analyzes institutional tax forms for 1997-98 earnings of presidents of 475 private colleges, finding that 13 percent earned more than $300,000, eight individuals earned more than $500,000; mean pay rose by 4 percent to $175,389. Reports that institutions claim high salaries are needed to compete with the private sector. Lists the 20 highest…

Presents data from institutional tax forms for the pay and benefits of key personnel at 475 private colleges and universities for 1996-97 and 1997-98. Institutions are grouped by Carnegie Classification and listings typically include data for six positions, such as the president, highest paid faculty member, a senior vice president, and chief…

Examines the effects of word processing and pervasive e-mail on quality of college students' writing. Reports on strategies some instructors are using to improve writing and encourage structure, including having students e-mail drafts of papers to professors, requiring student to rewrite papers, encouraging students to review printed out (rather…

Reports data showing declining male undergraduate enrollment and offers two possible explanations: that women are better prepared, psychologically and academically, for college, and/or that men are more opportunistic and are taking jobs that pay well without a college degree. Suggestions for reversing this trend include countering the…

Describes economic and professional difficulties experienced by scientists in Russia today and reports on efforts to reverse these trends in places such as Akademgorodok, a community with 35 research institutes, academies of agriculture and medicine, and a state university. Reports such positive trends as declining numbers of scientists departing…

A survey of 33,785 faculty in 378 colleges and universities found nearly one-third were 55 or older, compared with one-quarter a decade ago. Over the same period, the proportion of faculty under 45 has fallen from 41% to 34%. While more women are in academe, ethnic diversification has not progressed. The survey also examined attitudes toward…

Summarizes data from a survey of 33,785 faculty at 378 colleges and universities, including demographic characteristics, employment patterns, credentials, salary, publishing and professional activity patterns, teaching load and activities, political and professional attitudes, sources of stress, and attitudes about teaching. (MSE)

Striving to streamline student services and improve electronic communication, colleges and universities are signing on with companies that offer sophisticated World Wide Web sites through which students can accomplish basic administrative functions and receive information. The sites are often free of charge but also feature advertising messages…

A small, well-regarded Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) program that finances innovations in higher education has resisted a push by Congress to influence which institutions should receive grants. Its new round of awards includes only one of 11 institutions suggested by Congress. (MSE)

The executive vice-president of the University of Pennsylvania is credited with making significant changes in both the administration and the campus, using cost-cutting and change strategies from his business experience. Outsourcing, training for employees who might be terminated, substantial savings and new revenue, and gentrification of…

A study of over 2,000 college athletes and 1,600 coaches and administrators reveals that abuse is common in team initiations. Nearly two-thirds of athletes admitted participating in "questionable" behavior, and over one-quarter had participated in dangerous or criminal behavior. Female athletes are almost as likely as males to participate. Only…

Colleges and universities face an annual challenge to distribute housing to students. Initial student numbers usually exceed housing potential, but no-shows and early departures often even the numbers in the first few weeks of the year. Complicating factors include families' increasing ability to pay for dormitory housing, better campus housing…

Graduation rates of football players and men's and women's basketball players at National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I colleges have reached their lowest level in seven years, with fewer black athletes graduating than at any time since the mid-1980s. Eight universities graduated at least 90% of athletes enrolling between 1989 and…