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THE IMPACT OF MERGERS ON THE SOUTH AFRICAN HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM

THE IMPACT OF MERGERS ON THE SOUTH AFRICAN HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM. 7 – 8 October 2008 CSIR ICC. Content. Purpose Transformation agenda Mergers and incorporations Process Lessons Perceptions Success What next?. Purpose.

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THE IMPACT OF MERGERS ON THE SOUTH AFRICAN HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM

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  1. THE IMPACT OF MERGERS ON THE SOUTH AFRICANHIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM 7 – 8 October 2008 CSIR ICC

  2. Content • Purpose • Transformation agenda • Mergers and incorporations • Process • Lessons • Perceptions • Success • What next?

  3. Purpose The conference was intended to offer participants an opportunity to examine and share their peculiar experiences with regard to merger-related issues with an intention to draw lessons learned for the sector and the institutions.

  4. Transformation Agenda • South African Government’s transformation agenda for higher education • White Paper 3: A programme for the transformation of Higher Education • National Plan for Higher Education • need to restructure the institutional landscape of the higher education system in South Africa • key mechanisms employed for this purpose was to merge some of the higher education institutions.

  5. Mergers and Incorporations • National plan identified the following priorities as key for the achievement of the restructuring process: • To reduce duplication and overlap in programme and service provision; • To promote the joint development and delivery of programmes; • To enhance responsiveness to regional and national needs for academic programmes, research and community service; • To help build academic and administrative capacity; and • To refocus and reshape the institutional culture and missions of the institutions as South African institutions.

  6. Business case • Imposed by legislation • Mergers are prescribed • Lock stock and barrel • Equal partners regardless of size • Interim management structures • Short term; Medium to long term • Speed

  7. Process • Significant pre-planning • Inclusive in nature / general buy-in • Lack of trust • Communication gaps • Additional burden on staff and trauma • Inconvenience to students • Student and staff strikes • Governance challenges: Senate, SRCs, EMCs • Harmonization of finances • Harmonization of student fees • Harmonization of staff conditions of service • Harmonization of finances • Plans limited by financial resources (RR or Voksie)

  8. Lessons • Access, success, quality, equity and efficiency • Leadership key; Need to acknowledge man and women • Less or no integration • Merged institutions have not received sufficient support; e.g. infrastructure, research funding • “One-size fits all” no longer appropriate • Type of merger does not guarantee success • HE should not be the privilege of the rich • Improving the academic profile of academics • Too early to determine efficiencies and effectiveness • Entrance requirements

  9. Perceptions • Mergers have failed • Universities have taken over technikons: comprehensive universities • Potential for academic drift: • Academic staff • Technikon programmes are phased-out or under threat • Working conditions and salaries cause for attrition • Student drop-out • Lower success rate and graduation rate • Merged institutions have not attracted established researchers

  10. Success • Given the size and timing: success • New institutions: college, faculty based • Incorporations • New governance structures • New human resources policies and systems • New infrastructure • Promotion policies: Professorship • New admission policies • UoTs for developing indicators appropriate for them • Elimination of programme duplication • Strengthening of teaching, research and community engagement

  11. What next? • Need to improve staff morale • Caring for staff and developing a new institutional culture • Racial issues, social cohesion, equity • Development of a plan to produce a new generation of academics • Strengthen collaboration with government, industry and civil society • Review of the PQM • Introduce and improve post-doctoral culture • Respond to global shifts to multi-disciplinary programmes

  12. Next steps cont • People: Them and us • Review cycle, monitoring • Look at non-merged institutions: What have they been up to? • Communicate with communities • public perceptions-through the media • Relaxation of centralization • Management of geographically dispersed/multiple campuses • Extent of throughput and achieving DOE targets • Intensive curricula transformation • Institutional collaboration • Definition and embedding of UoTs/comprehensives • Guidelines for funding from NRF

  13. Thank You Thank You

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