Bordere, Carter and Others Investigate Determinants of Student Evaluations of Teaching

Clinical academic positions and other non-tenure track positions are becoming more prevalent in U.S. economics departments. In fact, research indicates that the average economics department currently employs almost the same number of tenure-track assistant professors as non-tenure track professors. The teaching focus and contingent character of clinical faculty positions are clearly stated in their job descriptions, and they are typically employed to allow traditional tenure-track faculty to concentrate more on academic research. Student evaluations of teaching are a standard component of the way colleges and universities assess the quality of an instructor’s teaching for purposes of promotion and tenure, merit raise allocations, and reappointment. This fact motivated Turner College accounting faculty Jasmine Bordere and Fonda Carter to explore how clinical faculty in economics, which are considered teaching specialists, stack up against traditional economics faculty in terms of student evaluations of teaching?

     The research team, which includes Turner College economist Frank Mixon and Steven Caudill of Florida Atlantic University, examined student evaluation of teaching (SET) data for 947 economics faculty who are affiliated with 90 U.S. colleges and universities to determine whether or not a teaching quality rating premium for clinical faculty relative to traditional tenure-track faculty exists. Results using standard estimation approaches uncovered a difference, favoring clinical faculty, ranging from 3.9% to 4.8%, holding constant a number of factors.  Additionally, the average treatment effect from a propensity score weighting approach suggests that the difference ranges between 5.8% and 6.1%, again favoring clinical faculty in economics.  Lastly, the researchers leveraged their analysis to produce a ranking of economics departments based on quality of instruction (i.e., teaching ethos).  The results indicate that 40% of the top-ranked economics departments are affiliated with private universities, and among these are institutions where research plays a major role (e.g., Northwestern University) as well as institutions where teaching is the primary focus (e.g., Seattle University). A similar mix of public universities is also found at the top of the rankings. Rutgers University-Camden, for example, represents a public university where teaching is prominent, while the University of Texas provides a good example of a public university where high-quality research is expected. Overall, the findings of the study, which appears in the current issue of Education Sciences, are encouraging signs for the hiring and retention of clinical faculty in economics departments.