UCEA Report Explores the Highs and Lows of Working in HE

An illustration of a group of professionals working together.

A recent report, commissioned by UCEA via People Insight, explores what it’s really like to work in HE for professional services staff.

UK universities are globally renowned and respected for their high standards, their results and their ability to prepare students for their chosen careers. It’s easy to see why Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are such a draw to so many people. While academics are free to delve into their chosen specialisms and passions, professional services staff provide crucial support that keeps universities operating efficiently. Work-life in HE is about far more than research and lecturing. HE offers a variety of roles, including developing and implementing policy, project management and administrative support. But what’s it really like to work in HE for those within professional services?

A recent report, commissioned by UCEA via People Insight, set out to explore just this — how engaged are people within HE? What are our HEIs doing right and where could they stand to improve? Importantly — how is work-life different for academics vs those in professional services?

With insights and extensive data extracted from employee surveys specific to Higher Education, the report offers a nuanced perspective when benchmarked against the private and non-for-profit sectors. This article delves into and analyses data from this report, as well as results of an upcoming midyear HE report by People Insight, which looks at the five key disparities between academic staff and professional services staff at HEIs.

Are Employees in HE Engaged?

Employee engagement measures how emotionally committed an employee is to their place of work, their role and the company's goals. Many factors impact an employee’s engagement level, and how engaged an employee is tends to vary over time. If you have an HEI with a high engagement score, this indicates that they are creating an environment where their employees feel safe, valued and able to fulfil their potential.

People Insight’s UCEA report shows that on the whole, engagement levels are lower in the HE sector (74%) compared to the private (78%) and public (76%) sectors. To address this, we need to understand the key drivers of engagement within HE, which are shared below.

The Highs of Working in HE

The findings of the report show that HEIs excel in the following ways:

Employees in HE Enjoy Purpose-Driven Work

The report highlighted the fact that, for both academics and professional services staff, purpose-driven work is a real benefit of working within an HEI. Generally, employees in HE are more passionate about their work than elsewhere, with 80% finding their work interesting and challenging. While academics cite the direct opportunity to engage and teach diverse and passionate students, professional services staff discuss the sense of making a positive impact through their work

Teamwork and Camaraderie are a Real Highlight in HE

More than 9 in ten employees within HE say that they have good relationships with their colleagues, and three-quarters are confident that those around them will help and support them when needed. The report made clear that employees found their teams to be the most positive part of working within the sector, claiming their colleagues are friendly, supportive and kind.

The Overall Working Environment

Our working environment plays a huge role when it comes to employee engagement. 9-5 employees in darkly lit, grey cubicles will generally be much less content than those who are lucky enough to enjoy a positive, well-designed work environment with a lot of space. Employees within HE claim that the campus environment is something they highly value. Most campuses are within wide green spaces and attractive landscapes, which helps to support and enhance overall well-being. Access to recreational and cultural resources on campus also helps to enrich the employee experience.

When it comes to other aspects of the working environment, such as ready access to equipment and resources, it's worth noting that professional services staff (65%) are even more satisfied than their academic counterparts (48%). This is reflected in the fact that more professional services staff (65%) than academics (55%) are likely to recommend their HEI as a good place to work.

Overall, employees appreciate the investment that is put into their HE environment, and it is something that helps to keep them loyal to their HEI.

Where HEIs Can (and Should) Improve

To improve the employee experience further, the report has highlighted the following areas for improvement:

There is a Lack of Connection to Senior Leadership

While there appears to be good levels of communication and interaction with direct line managers, relationships with senior leadership appear to be more strained within HE than elsewhere. In fact, only 48% of employees within HE say they have confidence in their senior leadership team, compared to 63% in the private sector — a notable difference.

Confidence of employees in senior management team

This disconnect with senior leadership may be down to a multitude of factors, but many seem to have highlighted top-down, authoritative decision-making as the prime reason. Leaders in HE generally take more of a ‘command and control’ approach to leadership, with under half of HE employees saying they believe their senior leaders make an effort to listen to employees. This contrasts to 61% in the private sector. What’s more, within HEIs, it appears that senior leaders are seen as less approachable. Only 46% say that their leaders are open and approachable, compared to 64% across other sectors.

Confidence of employees think senior leaders are open and approachable

Workload Remains Unreasonably High

Anyone who has worked in HE will be unsurprised to hear that one cause for contention and stress is that of excessive workload. When compared to people in other sectors, people in HE are more likely to think that their workload is unreasonable. In fact, only 55% of HE employees say their workload is unreasonable, compared to 64% across other sectors. Academics tend to be more vocal about the strains of workload than professional services staff (see diagram below), but these pressures are not limited to academics. Talk of high workload comes from across the sector, many saying that such issues have negatively impacted their work-life balance, with many HE employees finding it hard to cope with the demands of the job without succumbing to excessive hours. Only 59% say they can strike a healthy balance between work and home.

Academic staff vs professional services staff

Not Everyone in HE Feels Valued

A sense of feeling valued by those around us is a significant driver of engagement, and employees within HE indicate that they don't generally feel sufficiently valued by their HEI. This is felt particularly by those wishing to develop within their careers. Just over half of employees in HE feel that all employees have an equal opportunity to develop, compared to two-thirds of employees in other sectors. There is also an indication that promotion criteria is too rigid within HE, with external candidates being favoured. This often leads to a lack of career development and pathways within professional services.

Related is the issue of recognition. Just under 60% of HE employees say they feel recognised and valued for the work they do, with many claiming that those who go above and beyond are not always noticed or appreciated.

As with any sector, work-life within HE has a lot of pros and cons. While it’s the ideal career path for anyone with a real thirst for knowledge, there are clear areas that require attention and remedy, if we want to keep our HEIs thriving. Needless to say, each HEI is unique in its own way, so what is driving employee engagement in one institution may be markedly different from another. The important thing is to keep listening, asking questions and checking in with employees to ensure we are continually striving to offer a better, more nurturing, employee experience.

Kate Pritchard, Head of Consulting at People Insight and qualified leadership coach, is an employee experience expert and leadership coach with over 20 years of experience in the field of employee research. People Insight exists to help organisations create workplaces where employees can thrive.