Degree Name

EdD (Doctor of Education)

Program

Educational Leadership

Date of Award

August 1999

Abstract

In recent years, the challenges facing college admissions professionals have increased, and turnover in the field has become an area of concern. A review of the literature indicated that surprisingly little research had been done in the area of job satisfaction for college admissions professionals and, in particular, Christian college admissions professionals. No direct application of professional (cosmopolitan-local) orientation to the admissions profession could be found in the literature. As a result, the primary purpose of this study was to examine both the level of job satisfaction and the cosmopolitan-local orientation of Christian college admissions professionals, and to determine if any relationship existed between the level of job satisfaction and the cosmopolitan-local orientation of Christian college admissions professionals. All members of the National Association of Christian College Admissions Personnel (NACCAP), the major professional organization for Christian college admissions professionals, were surveyed to gather data for the study. The survey consisted of the 72-item Job Descriptive Index (JDI), the 18-item Job in General scale (JIG), a 19-item cosmopolitan-local instrument, and six demographic items. Of the 723 surveys mailed out, 490 were completed and returned for a 68% return rate. Two research questions and 36 hypotheses were created. Descriptive statistics, multiple regression, and Pearsons correlation were used in analyzing data. All hypothesis testing was conducted at the .05 level of significance. Twenty-five null hypotheses were rejected, and 11 null hypotheses were not rejected. The mean age of survey respondents was 30.2 years, and the mean years of admissions experience for the group was 4.7. At the admissions counselor (entry) level, the mean age was 26.1 years and the mean years of experience was 2.3. Median job satisfaction scores for admissions professionals fell into the "satisfied" range in all areas but two: "satisfaction with pay," with a median score in the "neutral or ambivalent" range, and "satisfaction with opportunities for promotion," with a median score in the "dissatisfied" range. On the cosmopolitan-local items, the group scored particularly high on the "concern with organizational goals" and "organizational immobility" variables. Significant relationships were found to exist between each of the six job satisfaction variables and the set of cosmopolitan-local variables. Additionally, significant relationships were found to exist in 19 of the 30 possible pairings of the job satisfaction and cosmopolitan-local variables.

Document Type

Dissertation - unrestricted

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