Career and Job Awareness of New Types of Specialists in University: Results of the Interview Survey

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to describe the career and job awareness of new types of specialists in university by conducting interview research with faculty developers, career consultants, institutional researchers, university research administrators, and technology licensing managers.

The common characteristics of these specialists in university are as follows. They do not always achieve their goals or develop professional ability, because they tend to be hired on limited-term or special appointment contracts. Owing to the broad knowledge and skill acquisition required, tasks of non-specialty areas, and ambiguous work goals, they have difficulty understanding what is being evaluated and may become confused. Accordingly, their sense of professional identity is shaken. On the other hand, they have broad discretion in their tasks and find them rewarding.