Journal Title/Source

International Journal of Higher Education Management

Publication Date

2-2026

Volume

12

Issue (if applicable)

1

Page Numbers

1-13

DOI (if applicable)

https://doi.org/10.24052/IJHEM/V12N01/ART-1

Document Type

Journal Article

Department

Biology

Abstract

Strategic planning has become a virtual requirement in higher education management. Huge amounts of time, energy, and money are committed to the process by individuals representing every level in a university’s hierarchy. Despite widespread adoption and commitment, researchers have frequently questioned whether the content of these plans varies significantly among institutions, or if they are essentially interchangeable compendiums of buzzwords and cliches. Our study quantified the presence of various ideas, or themes, in strategic plans from 150 public higher education institutions in the United States. Our analyses provide evidence of what is important to strategic planners in higher education, where in the plans these themes tend to be discussed, and how patterns of usage vary across Carnegie classifications and geographic settings. Such information can be useful to planners in identifying concepts that should be present in their strategic plans, as well as those that can distinguish an institution from its peers.

Comments

This article is originally published in IJHE at the following location: https://doi.org/10.24052/IJHEM/V12N01/ART-1. IJHE is published by the Centre for Business & Economic Research

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