Did the market force Subject Review?

Abstract

This study sought to discover if staff in a university department believed the 1998 Subject Review to be a valid Quality Assurance process and if its findings could benefit the department. Fifteen academic staff members took part in semi-structured interviews and the content of their responses was analysed qualitatively. Respondents described how Subject Review arose from an emerging ethos of accountability in public services and the demand for performance indicators from stakeholders. By considering their own viewpoints, as non-academics, they identified with these pressures and accepted the need for Subject Review. The methodology of Subject Review was well understood by staff and they explained how it was unnecessarily bureaucratic for its aims. Respondents suspected that the outcome of Subject Review would have an effect on the Department’s place in the education marketplace and described why its impact would be minor. In explaining their views of Subject Review staff largely predicted the basis of the future quality assurance process.