Mad as hell and not taking it any more?: Job satisfaction amongst engineering educators in Australian universities

BACKGROUND Engineering education is emerging as an academic career path in Australia - there is a growing opportunity to build an academic career on based on teaching and educational research. However, there have been significant changes in the sector over the last decade, including increasing student numbers and increasing competition for research funding in the area. At the same time, universities are increasing pressure on academics to produce ‘rated’ research publications and attract external funding. It seems timely to ask: What are the implications of choosing engineering education research as a career? What do people find rewarding about it and what do they struggle with? Are there sectorwide patterns of job satisfaction that give an indication about how best to plan for and manage a career in engineering education? With increasing numbers of PhDs in engineering education, there is a growing cohort of early career academics who will benefit from the answers to such questions. The answers could also ensure that engineering programs in Australia continue to be improved and developed through the presence of well-supported and satisfied, and thus retained, teaching-focussed academics. PURPOSE The paper seeks to open debate about the viability of a career in engineering education in Australia, and what might be done within AAEE and the professional community to support this emerging sector. DESIGN/METHOD This preliminary study draws on instruments developed by the longitudinal study “Professions in Australia” (Malinowska-Tabaka 1987) which compared many aspects of professional life across Teaching, Law, Engineering and Medicine. The questionnaire developed in this research has been adapted and 45 responses from around Australia, including the Group of Eight (Go8), the Australian Technology Network (ATN), and regional universities, are analysed. The questionnaire data was augmented with interviews and diary studies with a smaller sample of respondents. Textual data was analysed thematically and compared with survey results using the constant comparative method. RESULTS Our respondents report that the intrinsic rewards of teaching and working with students is highly influential in their job satisfaction and their decision to stay in their positions. This is despite some acknowledgement that teaching and research on teaching will never be as highly valued by their institutions as technical research. All report themselves to be time-poor. Finally, a classic understanding of job satisfaction (Hackman and Oldham 1976; Karasek 1979) relates job contentment to the amount of autonomy and control the employee has over their work. This appears to hold true for engineering educators also and they report that using this autonomy to “pick your battles” is a significant strategy in negotiating an acceptable working life. CONCLUSIONS Our respondents are remarkably optimistic about the prospects for those just entering the world of engineering education. They offer a variety of advice about how best to manage that career but all agree it is a “job worth doing”. There is however a sense that our commitment and the instrinsic rewards of the job leave us open to exploitation; it is time for the institutions that rely on us to develop systems that recognise, promote and reward our contributions.