Doctoral degree holders may struggle to find a job, even though they possess the highest level of education delivered by universities. Whilst learning experiences' quality has been argued to affect the doctoral degree holders' ability to get a job, little is known about the relationship between these dimensions. To shed light on this issue, the…

Student Engagement (SE) refers to the extent to which a student participates in academic and non-academic activities, invests in and commits to learning, belonging and identification with the educational institution. Despite the relevance of SE for students' success, a few valid and reliable instruments have been developed. This study presents the…

Owing to the temporary nature of their job position, postdoctoral researchers (postdocs) are among those workers in the academic sector who experience the most job insecurity as well as high levels of turnover intention and disengagement. The present study improves the extant knowledge on the effect of job insecurity on postdocs' cynicism and…

The intensification of the working life of academics in the corporate world of higher education shaped by new public management, is the backdrop for an exploration of the appropriation of opportunities for silence and quietude through the operation of internalised disciplines of self-imposed control. The paper includes a review of selected…

This research examined strategic actions in European universities through the institutional evaluation reports of the EUA. EUA reports for 21 universities from seven European countries were included in the data set. Qualitative inquiry was carried out and six sub-sections in the reports were used as established themes. The findings were then…

This article describes the characteristics of mentoring higher education students in companies which is a field the least researched, particularly when evaluateing effects of mentoring. This qualitative study is a response to this concern. The purpose of the study is to determine what mentors working with students in companies in certain European…

Today's universities are, accordingly to Clark's entrepreneurial model, sustained by managerialism, whereas collegialism may remain in contrast or work in a different way. More recent literature suggests the clash such as the potential for coexistence between managerialism and collegialism. The study analyses data from a survey of 26 universities…

In this paper, I argue for more and better learning metrics in higher education, eventually through an international, comparative assessment of students' learning outcomes. Better learning measures may help to improve transparency in the system by addressing the information asymmetry problem. If not addressed adequately, the lack of transparency…

Nowadays, assessment is widely recognized as a key element in higher education systems. Current studies are moving towards the revision of traditional modalities of testing, the individuation of alternative forms of assessment, and, above all, the analysis of conceptions that teachers and students have about assessment. The present research is…

This article focuses on the interaction between the European dimension driven by the creation of the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) and the development of national reforms to fulfil that objective. On the basis of data gathered in eight countries involved in EuroHESC project TRUE (Transforming European Universities), the curricular and the…

Similarities between French and Italian political culture of student representation include a conflictual culture in a weak national system of intermediation of interests, and a mimetic relationship with national conflictual party politics. New international topics, such as the Bologna Process or the growing commodification of education, have…

The article investigates the transitions of graduates of a middle-sized Italian university into the provincial labour market. University of Perugia administrative information and data from the job centres in the province are matched to reconstruct the timing of the university-to-work transitions of graduates since January 2004 to July 2009. Cox…