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Higher Education Researcher

Higher Education Researcher

By CHERE@LU

This is a podcast by the Centre for Higher Education Research and Evaluation at Lancaster University. Higher Education Researcher features short interviews with current and past doctoral students, staff, and guest scholars to talk about their current interests, research, and thinking.
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25 years of the Doctoral Programme in Educational Research - Higher Education

Higher Education ResearcherAug 26, 2020

00:00
47:12
From Uta Hagen to Higher Education: Challenging privilege and exclusion in acting and academia with Onur Orkut

From Uta Hagen to Higher Education: Challenging privilege and exclusion in acting and academia with Onur Orkut

In this episode, Felipe Sánchez interviews Onur Orkut, a doctoral researcher in higher education at Lancaster University. Onur discusses his research piece published as a working paper by CHERE@LU, where he engages in a fictional conversation with Uta Hagen, inspired by her book "Respect for Acting." They delve into the themes of acting, capital, and exclusion, exploring how acting techniques can be exclusive and how to make them more accessible. Onur also highlights the parallels between the acting world and academia, emphasizing the importance of looking behind the curtain and embracing authenticity.

Find out more about Onur on Twitter and Instagram @onurorkut, take a look at his research site, or explore his personal artistic site.


Jul 18, 202331:06
A new relational employability approach for universities with Elizabeth J. Cook

A new relational employability approach for universities with Elizabeth J. Cook

In this episode, Janja Komljenovic talks with Elizabeth J. Cook, who is a Senior Analyst, Strategy and Performance at Edith Cowan University and a doctoral researcher in the PhD in Higher Education, Evaluation and Enhancement at Lancaster University. Elizabeth talks about her doctoral research, which developed and implemented a new relational employability approach for universities. She describes her conceptualisation of relational employability as a broader, holistic and interconnected understanding of employability that incorporates three equally important elements: (1) basic individualistic career development, career management and careers (getting into the workforce and having a successful career to benefit oneself); (2) humanistic interactions and contributions throughout careers; and (3) more-than-human interactions and contributions throughout careers. Elizabeth explains how she conducted this research, using design research methodology and mixed methods, and describes her publishing adventures while being a student at Lancaster, with some publishing tips that may benefit other doctoral researchers.


Elizabeth’s ORCID Profile: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8406-4049

Elizabeth’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/ejcook4

Publications discussed in this episode:

  • Cook, E. J. (2022). A narrative review of graduate employability models: their paradigms, and relationships to teaching and curricula. Journal of Teaching and Learning for Graduate Employability, 13(1), 37–64. https://doi.org/10.21153/jtlge2022vol13no1art1483
  • Lacković, N., & Olteanu, A. (In Press). Graduate Employment Futures and Relational Employability: In Conversation with Elizabeth J. Cook. In Relational and multimodal higher education. Routledge.
Mar 29, 202333:18
Bridging the cultural gap among English Speaking International students in UK Higher Education with Amon Ezike

Bridging the cultural gap among English Speaking International students in UK Higher Education with Amon Ezike

Amon Ezike is a PhD researcher in the Department of Educational Research at Lancaster University. In this episode, Amon talks about bridging the cultural gaps among English Speaking International students in UK Higher Education. She talks about the cultural challenges faced by these students and how these challenges could be mitigated through the use of technology. In addition, she talks about the need for UK institutions and policymakers to understand and address such challenges faced by International during their educational journey to enhance their educational experience or capacity.

Talking to Amon is Dr Janja Komljenovic, a Senior Lecturer at Lancaster University and the Director of CHERE@LU.

Visit our website to read Amon's working paper.

Mar 08, 202321:36
Transforming University Education: A manifesto with Paul Ashwin

Transforming University Education: A manifesto with Paul Ashwin

Paul Ashwin is a Professor of Higher Education, Head of the Educational Research Department at Lancaster University and Deputy Director of the Centre for Global Higher Education. His research is focused on the educational role of higher education. He is interested in how higher education curricula can be designed to help transform students' understanding of themselves and the world. He is also interested in the role of policies in shaping the education offered by higher education institutions. In this episode, Paul Ashwin discusses the arguments in his recent book.


Talking to Paul is Onur Orkut, a PhD researcher at the Department of Educational Research at Lancaster University and a member of CHERE@LU. Follow Onur on social media: @onurorkut

Jun 27, 202230:09
Innovation and continuous technological development with Don Passey

Innovation and continuous technological development with Don Passey

Don Passey is a Professor in the Department of Educational Research at Lancaster University. Don’s research interests include, but are not limited to the implementation and management of leading-edge technologies, teaching and learning outcomes that arise from them, and how technologies support different groups of learners. In this podcast, Don talks about his project on developing ongoing uses of technologies in post-compulsory education in the UK and Malaysia. In this study, Don and his colleague examined the use of technology for teaching and learning in times of continuous technological development. They revealed that innovation is an essential approach in this process. As a result of the project, Don and his colleague proposed a model for the implementation of educational technologies. 

Talking to Don is Olga Rotar, an alumna at the Department of Educational Research at Lancaster University and a member of CHERE@LU.


May 25, 202227:50
EdTech and the construction of legitimacy with Dan Clark

EdTech and the construction of legitimacy with Dan Clark

Daniel Clark is the Head of Technology Enhanced Learning at the University of Kent and a PhD researcher at Lancaster University. In this talk, Daniel draws upon his professional experiences and applies a critical lens to the emergent rhetoric of EdTech in post-pandemic HE. Daniel discusses his recent paper; a critical discourse analysis of sector-orientated literature published in response to the pandemic. Daniel argues that whilst technology may have been the ‘saviour’ of HE from the immediate challenges of the pandemic, the opportunistic dialogue that emerged has problematically imbued debate with notions of the pandemic as a catalyst for transformation, opening the door to unprecedented levels of investment into a pervasive and data-driven paradigm of EdTech.  Daniel argues that the rhetoric of EdTech is mediatory of neoliberal, libertarian, and consumerist ideologies, and that the portrayal of technology as a wholly beneficial enterprise obscures issues of privacy, ethics, and structural inequality.   


Talking to Daniel, is Dr Janja Komljenovic, a Senior Lecturer at Lancaster University and the Director of CHERE@LU.

Apr 30, 202229:10
Continuity, adaptation, change: the roles and workings of the OECD in global education governance with Tore Bernt Sørensen

Continuity, adaptation, change: the roles and workings of the OECD in global education governance with Tore Bernt Sørensen

In the podcast, Dr Tore Bernt Sørensen talks about the roles, ideas, workings and influence of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in global education governance, historically and currently. The podcast draws especially on the special issue Re-reading the OECD and education: the emergence of a global governing complex, of which Tore was a guest editor together with Christian Ydesen (Aalborg University) and Susan L. Robertson (University of Cambridge). The special issue was published in Globalisation, Societies and Education in March 2021. 

Talking to Tore, is Dr Janja Komljenovic, a Lecturer of Higher Education at Lancaster University and the Director of CHERE@LU.

Jun 01, 202135:02
On Users, disrupters and how edtech aims to reshape education with Hemy Ramiel

On Users, disrupters and how edtech aims to reshape education with Hemy Ramiel

Dr Hemy Ramiel is a postdoctoral researcher in the sociology, communication and political sciences department in the Open University in Israel. In this episode, Hemy talks about his research of an Israeli edtech R&D unit and a startup incubator. He discusses his choice of studying the edtech field through this organisation and the notion of disruption as the primary logic for the units’ activities. Also, the logic of disruption can be understood as a perspective for understanding the edtech industry agenda for educational change. Hemy presents his analysis on how students are framed as digital users in the edtech production; and the implications of this “userisation” framework on the education sector. Finally, Hemy touches on some fundamental traits of the edtech field, such as its technological solutionism and its universal cross-cultural ideas. The episode concludes with the ways we need to think critically about edtech products and policy agendas.

The two articles discussed in the episode are: “Edtech disruption logic and policy work: the case of an Israeli edtech unit” published in Learning, Media and Technology; and “User or student: constructing the subject in Edtech incubator” published in Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education.

Talking to Hemy, is Dr Janja Komljenovic, a Lecturer of Higher Education at Lancaster University and the Director of CHERE@LU.

May 17, 202125:02
Student’s University Experiences in ‘3-D’ with Richard Budd

Student’s University Experiences in ‘3-D’ with Richard Budd

Dr Richard Budd is a Lecturer in Higher Education at Lancaster University. In this episode, Richard talks about his 3DHEI project. This research explores how a university’s different dimensions – social composition, organisation culture, and the physical campus itself – mediate students’ experiences. Richard spoke to a diverse group of over 40 students at a UK university about how those elements are perceived by them, and how they impact how it ‘feels’ to be a student there. It became clear in this study that all of those dimensions matter, that they are interrelated, and this suggests that incorporating a broader sense of the local into higher education research could tell us more about how universities compare. 

Talking to Richard, is Dr Janja Komljenovic, a Lecturer of Higher Education at Lancaster University and the Director of CHERE@LU.

Apr 26, 202127:45
University Rankings and Internationalisation of Higher Education with Miguel Antonio Lim

University Rankings and Internationalisation of Higher Education with Miguel Antonio Lim

Dr Miguel Antonio Lim is a Senior Lecturer in Education at the School of Environment, Education, and  Development (SEED) at the University of Manchester. Miguel's research interests include internationalization of higher education, East Asian and transnational higher education, university rankings and performance metrics. He critically studies the institutional strategies of East Asian and Chinese Universities to build ‘World-Class’ Universities, establish transnational partnerships, and improve their reputation and rankings.

Talking to Miguel is Olga Rotar, a doctoral researcher and a member of CHERE@LU.

Feb 15, 202129:41
Wicked Problems with Velda McCune

Wicked Problems with Velda McCune

In this episode, Professor Velda McCune talks about the wicked problems project. This project is about how teachers in higher education prepare students for wicked problems. Wicked problems are messy real-world problems that lack obvious solutions and often involve stakeholders with contrasting world views. Examples of wicked problems include the climate emergency, conflict and pandemics. Vel and her colleagues interviewed teachers who taught about these problems, asking them what they did in their teaching and what sort of learning they hoped would happen.


Wicked problems project website link: http://www.wickedproblems.ed.ac.uk/


Talking to Sylvie is Olga Rotar, a doctoral researcher and a member of CHERE@LU.

Jan 20, 202112:16
International pedagogies with Sylvie Lomer

International pedagogies with Sylvie Lomer

Sylvie Lomer is a Lecturer in Education at the Manchester Institute for Education, University of Manchester. In this episode, Sylvie talks about her programme of research building on her critical study of UK policy on international student recruitment. Two linked projects are currently running with colleagues from UoM, one focusing on pedagogy (with Dr Jenna Mittelmeier),and one focusing on institutional policies (with Dr Steve Courtney and Dr Jenna Mittelmeier). Both projects look to examine how dominant narratives about international students shape academic environments, from the classroom to the university as a whole.

Twitter handle: @SE_Lomer

Project website link: https://internationalpedagogies.home.blog/

Talking to Sylvie is Olga Rotar, a doctoral researcher and a member of CHERE@LU.

Dec 16, 202021:52
Academic Freedom, Social Responsibility, and the Need to Exercise Them with Sina Westa

Academic Freedom, Social Responsibility, and the Need to Exercise Them with Sina Westa

Sina Westa is a research associate at the Catholic University Eichstätt-Ingolstadt. In this episode, Sina talks about her research on academic freedom, conducted during her PhD at the University of Ljubljana within the Marie Curie ITN framework (Universities in the Knowledge Economy). Sina highlights that academic freedom is a highly political concept that is dependent on time and space. On the one hand, exercising this right is connected to a high degree of social responsibility; and on the other hand, it needs to be exercised continuously to be safeguarded. Especially in times of the current COVID pandemic and the connected impetus of science and research, more attention needs to be given to an open discussion of academic freedom and individual freedoms in more broadly.

Talking to Sina is Dr Janja Komljenovic from CHERE@LU.

Nov 27, 202030:00
Making the most of supervised PhD research with Lynn McAlpine

Making the most of supervised PhD research with Lynn McAlpine

Lynn McAlpine is Visiting Professor in the Department of Educational Research at Lancaster University. Lynn has a long and distinguished career as a higher education researcher and academic teacher. Her recent research looks into various aspects of early career researchers, issues of identities and the PhD process generally. In this episode, she addresses this question: What are the key messages from the literature for those embarking on their supervised PhD research? In doing this, she draws on what is known from research about successful PhD completion and how doctoral researchers can have a fruitful, even enjoyable PhD journey. The episode is introduced by Professor Paul Trowler; there is a brief discussion between them of Lynn’s comments towards the end of the episode. Lynn’s advice will be of interest and benefit to anyone on the traditional route PhD or entering or in thesis research of a structured PhD programme.

Professor Paul Trowler is the Director of the PhD in Higher Education: Research, Evaluation and Enhancement, and a member of CHERE@LU.


Oct 13, 202014:54
Assessment for social justice with Jan McArthur

Assessment for social justice with Jan McArthur

Jan McArthur is a Senior Lecturer at the Educational Research Department at Lancaster University and an Editor of Arts and Humanities in Higher Education. Informed by critical theory, her work “Assessment for Social Justice: achievement, uncertainty and recognition” advocates a philosophical re-interpretation of the role of higher education assessment in furthering social justice. Jan argues that assessment is a powerful force in shaping how and what students learn. Because of this, assessment is therefore also key to the social justice mission of the university.

Talking to Jan is Olga Rotar, a doctoral researcher and a member of CHERE@LU


Oct 07, 202018:22
Teaching Excellence Policy with Adam Matthews

Teaching Excellence Policy with Adam Matthews

Adam Matthews is a researcher at the University of Birmingham. In this episode, Adam talks about his paper co-authored with Dr Ben Kotzee: The rhetoric of the UK higher education Teaching Excellence Framework: a corpus-assisted discourse analysis of TEF2 provider statements. A key methodology in this work is discourse analysis using the methods of corpus and computational linguistics. The paper concludes that employment, employability and outcomes are the key themes of successful Teaching Excellence Framework submissions, made by UK universities in 2017. Adam expands on some of the issues and contradictions at play when we conceptualise employment as the primary identifier of teaching excellence.  

Talking to Adam is is Olga Rotar, doctoral researcher and a member of CHERE@LU.

Sep 22, 202032:60
Online learning with Olga Rotar

Online learning with Olga Rotar

Olga Rotar is a doctoral researcher at the Department of Educational Research. In this episode, Olga talks about the results of her PhD project. She explains alternative ways of experiencing online learning by the adult student population and suggests that online educators should promote high-level learning experiences that lead to high-level learning outcomes. Olga argues that there is a need to expand a definition of “success” in online higher education. 

Talking to Olga, is Dr Janja Komljenovic, a Lecturer of Higher Education at Lancaster University and the Director of CHERE@LU


Sep 14, 202016:37
25 years of DPER #PhDinHE - Kick-off panel on the state of higher education research

25 years of DPER #PhDinHE - Kick-off panel on the state of higher education research

In 2020, we are celebrating 25 years of the Doctoral Programme in Educational Research - Higher Education (DPER).  Throughout this time, the programme has offered students an opportunity  to become higher education researchers. It was one of the first  doctoral programmes in the field of higher education research.

We organised the celebrations through a webinar series. The kick-off panel was held on 2 September. It was focused on higher education as a research field more  broadly, and how it has developed in time. The speakers also reflected on the role  of doctoral programmes and research centres in establishing higher  education as a research field. The speakers were:

  • Dr Jelena Brankovic (Bielefeld University, Germany). She is the coordinator of the Early Career Higher Education Researchers (ECHER) network, and a member of the Board of Governors of CHER (Consortium of Higher Education Researchers).
  • Prof Paul Ashwin (Lancaster University). Paul is Head of the Educational Research Department. Paul is a co-ordinating editor of Higher Education, and co-editor of the Bloomsbury book series 'Understanding Student Experiences of Higher Education'. He is in the management committee of the Centre for Global Higher Education (CGHE).
  • Prof Malcolm Tight (Lancaster University). Malcolm is past Director of DPER of many years, and researcher of the higher education field. Malcolm is the editor of the book series International Perspectives on Higher Education Research, the editorial advisory board member of the Journal of Education and Work, and past editor of Studies in Higher Education. 

The panel was chaired by Dr Janja Komljenovic (Lancaster University). Janja is Director of DPER, and of the CHERE@LU. 

This episode is the recording of the panel. 

Sep 07, 202001:02:11
Online learning, social justice, and critical pedagogy with Murat Öztok

Online learning, social justice, and critical pedagogy with Murat Öztok

Murat Öztok is a Lecturer at the Social Justice and TEL Doctoral Programmes at Lancaster University. In his episode, Murat talks about his book, The Hidden Curriculum of Online Learning: Understanding Social Justice through Critical Pedagogy, which challenges the current understandings of social justice in the field of online higher education. Murat explains his perspective on equity, provides examples of how cultural hegemony creates unfair learning experiences, and argues that while online learning spaces are frequently promoted as inclusive and democratic, these clams are not necessarily true.

Talking to Paul is is Olga Rotar, doctoral researcher and a member of CHERE@LU.


Sep 03, 202020:45
25 years of the Doctoral Programme in Educational Research - Higher Education

25 years of the Doctoral Programme in Educational Research - Higher Education

This is a special episode serving as an introduction to the webinar series celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Doctoral Programme in Educational Research - Higher Education (DPER). A series of webinars is organised throughout September 2020 starting with the kick-off panel on 2 September. In this episode, Dr Janja Komljenovic, the Director of the programme, is joined by Dr Jan McArthur and Dr Ann-Marie Houghton, who are both teaching staff, as well as alumni of the programme. They are in a unique position to share their experience, thoughts, and views. 

DPER is one of the first doctoral programmes in the field of higher education research and is designed so that doctoral researchers remain employed in their work environment and travel to Lancaster for regular residential sessions. This supports students to undertake rigorous research into the higher education contexts in which they work. The Educational Research Department and Lancaster University are incredibly proud of the programme and the achievements of its alumni.

To join our celebratory webinar series focused on the field of higher education research, the experience of students and staff of the programme, its impact on careers and personal lives, and research of its members, please see our webpages: https://bit.ly/3hxupCv 


Aug 26, 202047:12
Accomplishing change in teaching and learning regimes with Paul Trowler

Accomplishing change in teaching and learning regimes with Paul Trowler

Paul Trowler is Professor of Higher Education in the Department of Educational Research and is Director of the fully online PhD in Higher Education: Research, Evaluation and Enhancement at Lancaster University. In this episode, Paul talks about his new book “Accomplishing Change in Teaching and Learning Regimes: Higher Education and the Practice Sensibility” which offers a new way of seeing the professional world in higher education through conceptually informed Teaching and Learning regimes framework.

Talking to Paul is is Olga Rotar, doctoral researcher and a member of CHERE@LU.

Jul 01, 202034:59
International student recruitment and strategies with Melissa James

International student recruitment and strategies with Melissa James

Melissa James is an alumna of the programme PhD in Higher Education: Research, Evaluation and Enhancement at Lancaster University, and a Director of the Undergraduate Programs of the Faculty of Business, University of Prince Edward Island.

Her research explores how practitioners (or staff) of international student recruitment at higher education institutions perceive their institutional strategic plans. It examines their perceptions of strategic plans on their practice and how it shapes their work. It is an international comparison of three institutions - one in Hong Kong, one in the UK and one in Canada. This international comparison helps to understand similarities and differences in international student recruitment, and the study shows that institutional culture is critically important to understanding how strategic plans influence the practice of international student recruitment. 

Melissa can be contacted about her research via mjames@upei.ca.

Talking to her is Olga Rotar, doctoral researcher and a member of CHERE@LU.

Jun 24, 202015:38
Students in external quality assurance with Matthew Kitching

Students in external quality assurance with Matthew Kitching

Matthew is a doctoral researcher on the programme PhD in Higher Education: Research, Evaluation and Enhancement at Lancaster University, and Deputy Chief Executive in the Students' Union at Buckinghamshire New University. 

Matthew talks about his recent research, which explores quality assurance agencies' use of students in external review and accreditation panels. Matthew outlines the context, methodology, findings, and implications for the practice of his qualitative study. In particular, he discusses his use of Sabri's theory of Assumptive Worlds and his attempt to produce a new typology of involvement that may be used by policymakers. 

Matthew can be contacted about his research via m.kitching1@lancaster.ac.uk or https://www.linkedin.com/in/heresearchermk/. 

Talking to him is Olga Rotar, doctoral researcher and a member of CHERE@LU.

Jun 05, 202014:56
Australian Higher Education Data Collection with Elizabeth Cook

Australian Higher Education Data Collection with Elizabeth Cook

Elizabeth Cook is a doctoral researcher on the programme PhD in Higher Education: Research, Evaluation and Enhancement at Lancaster University, and a Senior Analyst at Edith Cowan University in Perth, Australia. 

Having begun her PhD in October 2019, Elizabeth talks about her early experiences in the PhD programme and provides tips for students in the programme. Elizabeth discusses her recently completed research – a critical discourse study that explored the effectiveness of collaboration between higher education providers and the Australian’s Department of Education, Skills and Employment during a current reform project aimed at redeveloping the Australian Higher Education Data Collection. Elizabeth focuses on her topic; research goals, design and methodology; challenges faced and overcome; and how her research findings can contribute to higher education policy development and reform. 

Elizabeth can be contacted about her research via e.cook2@lancaster.ac.uk or https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizcook/. Talking to her is Olga Rotar, doctoral researcher and a member of CHERE@LU.

May 17, 202017:19
Student consumers and value for money in higher education with Kate Wicklow

Student consumers and value for money in higher education with Kate Wicklow

Kate is a doctoral researcher on the programme PhD in Higher Education: Research, Evaluation and Enhancement at Lancaster University.

In this episode, Kate presents her research exploring students' perceptions of value for money in English Universities. Using Callon’s notion of performativity, she is investigating the extent to which students are cognizant of the market dynamics of English HE including the students as consumers narrative and how the national policies of value for money such as the TEF and LEO impact on their perceptions of value. Her study focuses on those who are first in their family to go to university as a distinctive student group with different expectations, motivations, and experiences to more traditional university students. 

Kate can be contacted about her research at kate.wicklow@gmail.com  Talking to her is a doctoral researcher Olga Rotar from CHERE@LU.

May 10, 202019:07
Humanistic management in higher education with Madi Ruby

Humanistic management in higher education with Madi Ruby

Madi Ruby is a doctoral researcher on the programme PhD in Higher Education: Research, Evaluation and Enhancement at Lancaster University.

In this episode, Madi presents the notion of humanistic management and how it can be applied in higher education. Contemporary management at universities is most typically conceptualised in line with the new public management, or neoliberal managerialism. These are seen as causing increased bureaucratisation of work, ever-rising workload, and staff alienation. Madi presents why this should not be the only view, and how we can focus on human dignity in management practices.  

In light of the Covid-19 pandemic, universities are presented with an opportunity to consider humanistic management in how they navigate the challenges created for the higher education (and many other sectors) that the situation causes. Everything is changing, which provides an opportunity for leaders to reflect on how their structures impact on their academic and professional services staff, and opt for a more humanistic model of managing academic work. 

Madi can be contacted about humanistic management and her research at m.ruby@lancaster.ac.uk. Talking to her is Dr Janja Komljenovic from CHERE@LU.

Apr 28, 202016:49
Online teaching with Kyungmee Lee

Online teaching with Kyungmee Lee

In this inaugural episode, we are hosting Dr Kyungmee Lee. Kyungmee is a scholar of technology-enhanced learning at Lancaster University, and she has recently written two pieces for The Conversation sharing her tips with academics about online teaching. In these unprecedented times of the pandemic, most universities around the world shut their campuses and buildings, and moved their teaching and learning online. However, this is not so easy to do, and designing a proper online course normally takes a year, as well as huge investments in the academic and support teams, as well as in the infrastructure. For a quality teaching and learning experience, it is not possible to simply move the content from a face-to-face environment onto an online space. But many academics were asked to do just that. Kyungmee shares her tips and views on how to cope with such challenges. Kyugnmee is also a co-Director of the Centre for Technology Enhanced Learning. Talking to her is Dr Janja Komljenovic from CHERE@LU.

Apr 10, 202023:34
April 9, 2020

April 9, 2020

Apr 09, 202000:38