Private Higher Education Research Articles

Private Universities Survive and Thrive: From a Leadership and Human Resource Perspective

Private higher education institutions have encountered challenges in adapting to the dynamic landscape of change, prompting them to implement diverse tactics in order to ensure their survival. This study used a library research methodology to examine the techniques employed by private institutions in response to disruptive circumstances from leadership and human resource perspective, with a focus on their ability to adapt and thrive. The data collecting process adheres to the five stages of the historical method, which include the selection of a topic and the acquisition of relevant evidence, the examination of the sources from which the evidence is derived, the assessment of the evidence itself, the analysis and interpretation of the gathered evidence, and the presentation of the evidence together with a concluding statement. A comprehensive examination of the techniques implemented by the private university has yielded a typology consisting of four primary strategies: survival, synchronising, stretching, and supremacy. The four techniques exhibit interrelation and potential overlap in some instances. Nevertheless, survival is indicative of a strategy centred around survival. The act of stretching and synchronising contributes to the enhancement of survival and the potential for growth. Additionally, the implementation of a supremacy strategy has the ability to establish a favourable long-term image and foster positive connections with important stakeholders. These techniques have the potential to support the survival and further growth of private higher education in the current period of change.

Data Privacy Practices of Private Higher Education Institutions in Malaysia: A Preliminary Study

Private higher education institutions as data users are subjected to the requirements of the Personal Data Protection Act 2010 (PDPA). These institutions process employee data as well as data of potential students, active students and alumni. They also deal with data of third parties such as vendors, visitors and contractors. Ten years after the coming into effect of the PDPA in 2013, the education sector has yet to develop their personal data protection code of practice as required by the Act. The General Code of Practice (CoP) of Personal Data Protection was introduced in December 2022 with the objective to provide guidelines to the Class of Data Users who have not prepared a Code of Practice and there is no data user forum to develop the relevant Code of Practice for the Class of Data Users. As the General CoP is legally binding, it is an offence punishable under the Act for any data user for failure to comply with any provision of this General CoP. As data users, private higher education institutions need to introduce certain mechanisms to adhere to the requirements such as privacy policy and procedure. This paper aims to compare the data privacy practices of private higher education institutions in Malaysia in order to determine to what extent the law has been complied with. Being a qualitative study, this paper applies content analysis technique. Data privacy policies of four private higher education institutions in Malaysia were examined to attain the objective. The four private higher education institutions are Universiti Tenaga Nasional (UNITEN), Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP), Taylor’s University and University of Nottingham Malaysia. The data privacy policies of the four institutions are accessible on the official website of the institutions. The study indicates that in the absence of a personal data protection code of practice for the education sector as a guideline, the data privacy practices of the institutions vary from one to another. While some of the privacy policies contain provisions which are general in nature which may lead to confusion to the data subjects, the data privacy policies show that the four institutions have, to a certain extent, complied with the requirements of the PDPA in general.

Influence of Interpersonal Relationships and Organizational Commitment on Work Performance: An Analysis of Post-1990s Educators in Private Higher Education Institutions

Influence of Interpersonal Relationships and Organizational Commitment on Work Performance: An Analysis of Post-1990s Educators in Private Higher Education Institutions

Staff Perception on Job Characteristics, Motivation, Organizational Commitment and Productivity

Job characteristics, motivation, organizational commitment, and productivity are the mediating factors for an employee’s performance and a successful organization. Hence, the present study aims to observe employees’ perception pertaining to their job characteristics, motivation commitment and productivity, while working at a private higher education provider in the East Coast of Malaysia. The study employs a quantitative approach via survey questionnaire on 160 respondents. The results reveal that most of the respondents understood about their characteristics, motivation, organizational commitment, and productivity. Their perception on the factors provides valuable insight to employers in providing appropriate organizational supports and better working environment. They are substantial in elevating better performance and promote business profitability.

Empowering human potential and fostering values: A vision for private higher education in Malaysia

The purpose of this study is to investigate the empowerment of human potential and how it fosters values in Private Higher Education in Malaysia. Due to the high demand for postsecondary education, the private higher education sector is experiencing fierce competition, making strategic communication more crucial. The study employs a quantitative approach with a sample size of 24 respondents, namely academic and non-academic staff from private higher education institutions in Malaysia, where a statistical analysis was performed using SMART-PLS. The study employed a random sampling method to gather samples from private higher education institutions in Malaysia. The results of the analysis indicated that talent does not influence strategic communication positively. The β value result of this variable is 0.767, the t value is 1.730, and the p-value of 0.084 did not meet the benchmark where the t value is less than 1.96 and the p-value is less than 0.05. The results of human values also do not influence strategic communication positively. The β value is 0.007, the t value is 0.021, and the p-value of 0.983 again did not meet the benchmark for the t value and the p-value. The findings of this study pave the way for future research on strategic communication in private higher education institutions and provide practitioners with actionable mechanisms to enhance this area of practice. This research concludes that strategic communication plays a crucial role in the private higher education sector and that talent and human values are crucial to achieving successful communication strategies.

Pengaruh Iklim Etika terhadap Kinerja Karyawan

Purpose: This study aims to determine the effect of the ethical climate, which consists of collective moral sensitivity (moral awareness and empathic concern), collective moral judgment (self-focused and focus on others), and collective moral motivation on employee performance in private tertiary institutions in Bandar Lampung. Methodology/approach: This study uses primary data from the results of a questionnaire with a Likert scale. This quantitative research distributed questionnaires to 245 respondents from private universities in Bandar Lampung. The data analysis tool used was linear regression analysis with SPSS 25. Results/findings: The study's results show that collective moral sensitivity (moral awareness and empathic concern) does not affect performance, while collective moral judgment (focus on oneself and focus on others) and collective moral motivation affect performance. Conclusion: Based on the findings of this study, it is hoped that the leaders of private higher education can provide leadership and ethics training, build organizational member trust, build a culture of inclusiveness and proactivity, and improve a sense of belonging among organizational members.

Organizational Commitment Among Employees: A Case Study of Private Higher Education Administrative Staff

Organizational Commitment is considered as one of the most important factors that emotionally attach employees into organization. Such commitment is needed to reach organizational goals. This study aims at exploring and analyzing the Organizational Commitment among administrative staff at private higher education in Jakarta, one of the biggest cities in Indonesia, that consists of thousands of higher education Institutions. The mothod used in this study is descriptive qualitative. The data was gathered using questionnaire that consist statements represent three types of Organizational Commitment, which are affective, continuance and normative. The results of this research reveal several facts about the organizational commitment of administrative employees. The first fact shows that the organizational commitment of employees who have worked at private higher education for a long time is higher compared to employees who have worked for less. This shows that emotional bonding between employees and the organization are formed over time. This fact is also supported by data that employees who have a longer work period have stronger emotional bonding than employees who have a shorter work period. However, another fact has been revealed is that the work period doesn’t prevent employees to move to other organizations that provide better opportunities and advantages for them.

Scrutinizing the Awareness of Hidden Curriculum: Connecting Lecturers to Themselves, Students, and Non-Engineering Study Programs

The hidden curriculum plays a crucial role in the entire teaching process, and there is no doubt about that. It possesses the irreplaceable value and function of explicit curriculum. Therefore, teaching at a college should pay attention to utilizing hidden curriculum. On the basis of fully understanding the characteristics and functions of the hidden curriculum, this study analyze the understanding of the hidden curriculum, interviewed selected lecturers to probe deeper regarding how they use the hidden curriculum and made observations notes on classroom environments and interactions. A mixed-method approach is used in this study. Purposive sampling was used to select 100 non-engineering lecturers in State Polytechnic of Sriwijaya for the statistical society. To collect information, survey, interview, and observation were applied. The findings showed that the majority of lecturers had knowledge of the hidden curriculum and utilized it to improve their classroom through body language, tone of voice, physical classroom changes, setting and maintaining expectations and norms, and reflecting upon their teaching. It was also found that all departments brought their mission statements and ethos to life.. A further contribution of the study is to provide a deeper understanding of the hidden curriculum enacted in private higher education, as well as what lecturers experience the hidden curriculum to be like. A better understanding of hidden curriculum is necessary to improve its use in higher education.

The Perception of UTAR Ed & El Undergraduates on the Impacts of Facebook in Enhancing their ESL Writing Skills

The advancement of information, communications, and technology (ICT) has made social media an indispensable tool for language learning, especially second language learning. This study aims to analyze the perception of undergraduates on the positive impacts of social media particularly Facebook by utilizing Facebook in improving ESL writing skills. Using TAM as the theoretical lens, this quantitative-method research involved questionnaire survey. The sample consisted of 50 undergraduates. The questionnaires were distributed in a Google form to the 30 English Education undergraduates. By doing this, the researcher was able to gather and analyse their perception on the impacts of Facebook in enhancing ESL writing skills. Results of the analysis showed that the perception of participants towards the usage of Facebook that significantly influenced their ESL writing skills. The positive impacts of Facebook concerning ESL writing skills were also depicted via the statistical analysis. The findings provide an insight to stakeholders in suggesting ways to encourage the use of Facebook in language learning specifically writing skills. Similar research can be done in the future by involving a larger number of participants from different private higher education institutions.

Unlocking the potential of technology usage in fostering education quality and students' satisfaction: a case of Pakistani higher education

PurposeThis research aims to determine the levels of education quality (EQ), technology usage (TU), students' satisfaction (SS) and the impact of EQ on SS. Also, it seeks to find out how TU as a moderator affects EQ and SS in Pakistani private higher education institutions (HEIs).Design/methodology/approachA total of 440 postgraduate students at eleven private universities in Lahore, Punjab Province, Pakistan, participated in empirical research and data were obtained through the use of an online questionnaire. Simple random sampling was used to choose participants and partial least square structural equation modeling was employed to analyze the data.FindingsThe findings revealed that Pakistani private HEIs have a medium level of EQ, TU and SS. Furthermore, the data reveal the existence of a significant positive relationship between EQ and SS, whereas TU as a moderator was found to negatively affect EQ and SS.Research limitations/implicationsPostgraduate students of private HEIs in Pakistan were considered for this investigation and this study was limited to testing only in Punjab province. Another limitation of this study is that it was based on a research framework from previous research and literature. This study employed questionnaire surveys to conduct evaluations of teachers' teaching quality by university students. Furthermore, the questionnaire employed student self-evaluations to assess the quality of teaching. The research data would be more detailed if it were possible to include teachers' self-evaluations of their teaching quality.Practical implicationsThe current study provides key insights for policymakers, higher education commission and HEIs. The results suggest leveraging the identified medium levels of EQ, TU and student satisfaction in Pakistani private HEIs. In an effort to boost the medium levels, policymakers are encouraged to enhance the teaching and learning experience by robustly integrating Web 4.0 technologies. Institutions can intervene strategically by investing in infrastructure and innovative tools aligned with students' technological needs. Likewise, policymakers and institutions can optimize learning management systems (LMS) by developing and implementing policies that encourage their adoption and optimization across HEIs. This may contribute to the accomplishment of the United Nations' sustainable development goal of providing quality education. Moreover, with the help of this research HEIs can establish minimum quality standards regarding academic teaching and learning materials. Implementing the above-mentioned practical implications might boost student satisfaction in HEIs which would benefit not only students but also the institutions.Originality/valueThe novelty of the article lies in the fact that it addresses the gap in the existing literature by exploring the levels of EQ, TU and student satisfaction in the context of private higher education in Pakistan. Furthermore, this study investigated whether TU served as a moderator in the relationship between student satisfaction and UNESCO-recommended EQ. This study elaborates on EQ indicators recommended by UNESCO in Pakistan’s private higher education sector.

Machine Learning Clustering Analysis Towards Educator’s Readiness to Adopt Augmented Reality as a Teaching Tool

The advanced digital revolution has shifted conventional teaching and learning into digital education. In consistency with digital education, Augmented Reality (AR) applications started to shine in the education industry for their ability to create conducive teaching and learning environments, especially in remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. Movement Control Order (MCO) implemented in the year 2020 has led to emergency remote teaching and learning without much preparation for all educators and learners. Throughout these few years, most educators got familiar with digital teaching tools and online teaching platforms. Hence, this study aims to explore educators’ readiness to adopt AR as a teaching tool in their teaching during the endemic period. A quantitative approach via questionnaire has been distributed to the Private Higher Education Institutions (PHEIs) in the states of Selangor and Kuala Lumpur. Machine learning using a clustering technique was used to find patterns between the demographics of educators towards the AR perception of educators. The results revealed that educators' perceptions of AR technology are influenced by their familiarity with it, their personal beliefs, and their attitudes toward technology. This study provides an insightful overview of the benefits of AR applications in education and the implications of the adoption of AR in Malaysian schools and educational institutions. It also highlights the importance of motivating educators and students to embrace AR as an enhancement learning tool, providing a valuable discussion for the government, learning institutions, and educators on the implementation of AR in Malaysia.

Online learning effectiveness in private higher education institutions: the mediating roles of emotions and students’ learning behaviour

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to investigate students’ attitudes, self-efficacy and emotional behaviour associated with online learning and the effectiveness of online learning.Design/methodology/approachA research model was formulated and analysed with the structural equation modelling technique. The respondents consist of 843 students pursuing their studies at a private university’s foundation, undergraduate and postgraduate levels. A two-step systematic approach was used using the SmartPLS version 3 software to conduct statistical analysis and draw meaningful insights.FindingsThe study’s findings have demonstrated that students’ attitudes and self-efficacy exhibit a positive relationship with online learning behaviour (OLB). It is observed that the students’ emotions are related to online learning effectiveness (OLE) and mediate the relationship between OLB and OLE. Furthermore, OLB partially mediates the relationship between attitude and OLE and between self-efficacy and OLE.Research limitations/implicationsThe operational instructions and digital resources have proven to be highly effective in providing valuable learning experiences to the students. As a result, the students are now expanding and applying their new encounters to a broader range of learning opportunities. This study has provided valuable insights for stakeholders, including scholars, higher education institutions and the Ministry of Higher Education, in providing the ideas of online learning or Web-based education.Originality/valueThe originality of this study sheds light on the role of OLB as a mediator. It was underlined that emotion is critical in improving students’ OLE. Thus, students’ attitudes and self-efficacy have been essential in reassuring OLB and enhancing OLE.

UNIVERSAL VALUES SKILLS AND PRACTICES AMONG STATE PRIVATE UNIVERSITY GRADUATES

Nowadays graduate’s success is frequently attributed to high-profile careers. Concurrently, graduates are also required to be re-dedicated on their success to the community and the country. However, without identity and mastery of universal values, their steps may slip and the desire to see them contribute to society may not be fulfilled. The objective of this study is to assess graduate’s competency in mastering universal values. Data collection based on questionnaire adapted from OECD PISA Global Competence Framework 2018. Respondents comprised of 436 first year students from an established state-owned private university. Most respondents are pursuing diploma and bachelor's studies. The ratio of their field of study is almost equal between social and physical sciences. Data analysis shown that respondents have the skills to practice universal values. This is demonstrated by the high scores recorded for all nine dimensions of universal skills which are awareness of global issues, self-efficacy regarding global issues, perspective-taking, adaptability, awareness of intercultural communication, interest in learning about other cultures, respect for people from other cultural backgrounds, global mindedness, and attitudes towards immigrants. The results of the study provide implications for policies development and operational strategies for private higher education institutions. This institution is suggested to engage in internationalization agenda through curriculum enrichment, cross-border research, and sponsorship, recruiting students and teaching staff and so on.

Analisis Link Aggregated Group Interface Pada Switch Untuk Sistem Link Redudancy Di Universitas Widyatama

Widyatama University is a Legal Entity Private Higher Education Institution under the main institution of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology (Kemendikbudristek). Providing superior private universities is one of the results of performance, management and maintaining service quality. Link Redundancy is one of the technologies in the network that is used to maintain the stability of a network connection by using several physical network paths simultaneously. Link Redundancy is needed for performance and services to run well. Link Aggregation Group (LAG) is one of the link redundancy models whose way of working is to combine several physical interfaces into a single interface at the Layer 2 network layer (Data Link Layer). Implementation of Link Aggregation Group (LAG) makes network connections more secure by increasing bandwidth, dividing bandwidth loads, increasing network path availability, and having a minimal risk of data duplication of data errors.

An Investigation of Practical Skills Competencies of Early Childhood Care and Education Programmes

Childhood Development training does not guarantee quality provisioning in ECD centres for several reasons: a lack of proficient instruction during training; a lack of support to help assist the students with work; a lack of knowledge; and a lack of follow-up support after the training is complete to ensure constant implementation. That is why it is necessary to educate practitioners and to continuously supervise their progress to ensure that they implement the appropriate activities relevant to their daily programmes for children to reach their full potential. This study considers the perceptions of five ECCE practitioners based in Gauteng who completed a Higher Certificate in Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme at a Private Higher Education Institution (PHEI) in South Africa. The study will focus on Health, Safety and Nutrition, which forms part of the ECCE programme. A qualitative research approach was utilized. Semi-structured interviews, observations, and document analysis through triangulation for this study were developed according to the criteria of the Experiential Learning Theory for the assessment of the themes from the study. A case study of narrative approach was used to explore reflections and authentic experiences the practitioners endure. This was executed to consider if the hands-on activities integrated into early learning programmes are sufficient for real-world applications. Furthermore, to ascertain the transition difficulty of newly graduated practitioners into ECD centres and to establish if the insights and skills training has equipped these practitioners for an ECD centre. The hands-on practical skills training competencies in early learning before entering an ECD centre as a practitioner will inform the development of future programmes as well as policy.

The Effects of Power Abuse on Educational Processes in Private Universities in Nangarhar, Afghanistan

Abuse of Power harms the actions and effects of organizations, especially if the abuse occurs in educational institutions, the damage will be greater. In developing countries like Afghanistan, the possibility of abuse of power in private universities is high. This article focuses on the effects of power abuse in private universities in Nangarhar Afghanistan. The purpose of this study is to reveal examples of power abuse in private universities in the Nangarhar province of Afghanistan and to investigate its impact on the educational process. Novelty: In previous studies, only one type of abuse of power was mentioned in private universities in Nangarhar, while this study mentioned two types of abuse of power in private universities in Nangarhar1) abuse of power by lecturers 2) abuse of power by senior management staff. Also, another improvement of this research to the previous research is that the researcher tried to interview the affected students and university staff about the topic and clarify the topic based on these interviews. For this research, the authors use a qualitative approach with case-study methods. This study presents cases of power abuse in private higher education institutions in Nangarhar, Afghanistan. The researcher conducted interviews with students, administrative staff, and lecturers of private universities in eastern Afghanistan. As a result, the study found that there are two types of power abuse in private universities in Nangarhar, abuse of power by lecturers and abuse of power by senior management staff.

OUTILS DE MANAGEMENT DES ETABLISSEMENTS DENSEIGNEMENT SUPERIEUR PRIVE AU BENIN: DIAGNOSTIC ET PROPOSITION

Business management has mainly developed within private establishments, higher education financial literature. In addition, the uncertainty of the environment and the complex nature of the strategic decisions that organizational leaders must make often prevent them from relying on a logical process to decide. This is how private higher education establishments in Benin are regularly shaken by crises in terms of academic delays that are difficult to catch up on and which are not likely to help matters. This research attempts to identify the characteristics of the management of private higher education establishments in Benin. Materials and Methods: We adopted a mixed methodological approach. In the empirical phase of this research, this approach allowed us to provide additional insight into the analysis of the results, thus strengthening their validity. The study sample consists of 175 actors from Private Higher Education Establishments (EPES). Results:The results of this research work show that the principal component factor analysis with Varimax rotation made it possible to highlight for the measurement scale of management tools, five (5) dimensions those involved. The dimensions of the tools of management highlighted respectively reflect the method of recruiting students, method of recruiting teachers, quality of the training given, course attendance rate and educational technology.

Prevalence of Low Back Pain and Quality of Life in Healthcare Students

Low back pain is a health problem that can harm several factors related to daily life and work for the entire population. The objective was to evaluate the prevalence of low back pain and quality of life in health students. Descriptive study with a cross-sectional method composed of 74 students enrolled in nine courses related to the health area at a private higher education institution. They were assessed using the participants' general characteristics questionnaire, the Oswestry 2.0 questionnaire and the SF-36 Quality of Life Questionnaire. The majority of participants were female, aged between 20 and 30 years old, single, full-time and evening students and studying Physiotherapy and Medicine. 68.9% reported remaining in a sitting position throughout the day, 81.1% had already had attacks of low back pain during the graduation period and 10.8% were already using analgesic medication due to the presence of low back pain. The SF-36 questionnaire presented domain values ​​between 45 and 63 points. 87.8% of students were classified by the Oswestry 2.0 index as having minimal lumbar disability, 10.9% with moderate disability and 1.3% with severe disability. Most health students have a history of low back pain, but with limitations considered low

Measuring Alternative Research Impact of Private Higher Education Institutions of India Through Data Carpentry

This research aims to measure the research impact of 27 private Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) in India through the lens of citations and social media. It applies data carpentry tools and techniques for gathering and formatting data from different databases. The primary bibliographic data was collected from Scopus, and the secondary data from four different databases (Dimensions.ai, Altmetric.com, Mendeley.com, and Unpaywall.org). The data is analysed in terms of coverage, associations between variables (citations vs. altmetrics), and open access advantages of altmetric. The result indicates that 18.51 % of publications from private HEIs are covered in altmetric, while 95.77 % of publications are in Mendeley. Twitter event has the most extensive coverage among altmetric data, and Dr D.Y. Patil Vidyapeeth registered with the broadest coverage in altmetric. The coverage level of altmetric data is higher for institutions focused on multidisciplinary research than medical, technical, and management institutions. The correlation results showed an almost positive between citations and altmetric mentions. Moreover, the coverage of open access publications in altmetric is considerably higher than those of non-OA articles. The Open Access Altmetric Advantages (OAAA) and Categorical Open Access Altmetric Advantages (COAAA) confirmed the open access advantages of selected institutions across altmetric events. The overall research result suggests that discipline- and institute-specific considerations are pivotal when evaluating institutions’ productivity using altmetric.

Bridging Theory and Practice in Private Higher Education: Pedagogical Innovations for the Digital Age

With the application of big data in the information age, the popularization of artificial intelligence and the coming of the network society, the traditional university education model has been severely impacted and challenged. It is an inevitable trend for higher education to adapt to the new social development reality and make corresponding adjustment and reform. Traditional university education pays attention to the imparts of theoretical knowledge and the cultivation of practical ability, but in the information age, students can get rich information and knowledge through the Internet, thus weakening the monopoly of traditional education. In addition, the popularity of artificial intelligence technology also means that some traditional teaching activities can be replaced by automation and intelligence, and the value chain of traditional education has been reshaped. The rise of the network society has also posed new challenges to the traditional university education model. The network society is characterized by a high degree of information sharing and exchange, and students can access various online educational resources and learning opportunities through the network platform. Therefore, traditional university education needs to find a new positioning and role, pay more attention to cultivating innovative ability, practical ability and teamwork ability, and provide students with more competitive comprehensive ability. Faced with these challenges, higher education must make corresponding adjustments and changes. The article carries out relevant research and puts forward specific countermeasures, mainly to update the educational concept, change the educational mode, and focus on cultivating students’ innovative thinking and problem-solving ability. It is necessary to develop diversified educational resources, meet social needs, strengthen cooperation with industries and enterprises, and provide professional education that matches market demand. At the same time, it is also necessary to actively develop online and distance education, make full use of online platforms and technological means, and provide flexible and diverse learning opportunities.