Ian has a point - I said I would respond in more detail when I had time.
Currently writing the annual strategic plan to feed the SHEFC maw, sorting
out budget model and playing at University Secretary, so just a couple of
points:
I take all the points about the technicalities made by Mike et al - of
course you can design a model that follows students - we have had one for
six years (at least). There are however a lot of behavioural implications
to this sort of model when you have a more or less steady state funded
number.
If dept x knows it will get resources by putting on a superficially
attractive module that pulls in credulous punters they will do it, suck in
students and demand the money (NOW). Meanwhile in dept y their students
have all gone somewhere else and they stand to lose money unless there is a
dampening effect. If they lose money that means they lose staff. Hello
human resources issues.
Dept x is now on the moral high ground - we are doing what the customer
wants (unlike those wasters in dept y). We haven't got the resources to do
the job properly (dept y is over resourced), our SSR is going through the
roof (look at the incredibly favourable SSR in dept y). Quality Assessment
is just around the corner. You wouldn't want us to get hammered because we
are so understaffed. We will scream and scream until we are sick. And so
on.
What is your policy at the institutional level in terms of balancing your
medium to long term academic strategy against the short term fluctuations?
What if you have a large investment in research in dept y which cannot be
sustained in the face of a sharp decline in student numbers?
Models that reflect too faithfully the vagaries of student choice are
potentially very destabilising in an organisation which has a lot of its
income tied up in staff on permanent contracts.
This is probably worth exploring properly - if it is still a hot topic in a
couple of weeks I would be very happy to expand (at great and tedious
length).
______________________________
David George
Acting Secretary
University of Dundee
Tel +1382 344018
Fax +1382 201604
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