The Administrative Lattice and the New Research I Universities

Introduction Rising administrative costs at colleges and universities around the U.S. have received significant attention because of the perception that costs incurred for central administrators' salaries necessarily reduce the amount of monies available for instruction and student services. In fact, there are numerous reports that document the significant rise in central administrators' salaries and the share of institutional expenditures being devoted This research paper examines the administrative expenditures of a particular group of universities, namely Research I Universities (RU1s). 1 These institutions have been chosen for several reasons. First, they represent the most comprehensive and research-intensive group of postsecondary institutions in the U.S. Therefore, we might expect these institutions to be more likely than others to suffer the true costs of conducting research. Second, this group of institutions includes most of the prestigious public and private universities in the U.S. and are likely viewed as the model for aspirational institutions. Finally – and related to the second point – this group of institutions was enlarged sigificantly as a result of the 1994 Carnegie re-classification. The 1994 re-classification showed, for example, that the number of RU1s increased from 70 to 88 since 1987. This increase is the largest (in both number and percentage terms) since the Carnegie Classification model was adopted in 1970. The increase in the number of RU1s may be the product of several trends, including increased competition for federal funds as a means 1 We recognize and acknowledge that the 2000 Carnegie re-classification eliminated the RU1 category in favor of a broader " doctoral extensive " classification with a much broader definition and, as a result, a Morphew & Baker – AERA 2001 3 of counteracting reduced state appropriations for higher education (see e.g., Winston & Zimmerman, 2000) or the increased use of technology transfer by universities eager to engage in this sometimes lucrative practice. Or, perhaps as likely, the increase in the number of RU1s is symptomatic of universities' continued attempts to emulate the most This study explores the expenditure patterns of those universities new to the RU1 classification as of 1994. First, the study analyzes whether these new RU1s spent significantly more on institutional support – as a share of their expenditures – in 1996 than they did in 1988. Second, the study assesses whether the spending patterns of the new RU1s became more similar to those of the continuing RU1s between 1988 and 1996. We …