Influence of Academics’ Designation and Experience on their Job Satisfaction in Universities in Rift Valley Region of Kenya

Abstract

Institutions of higher learning, universities in particular recognise staffing as a vital part of the management process to ensure the success of universities and the education sector as a whole. The education sector is responsible for developing a sustainable pool of highly trained, skilled and competent human resource capital, and universities are charged with the provision of relevant quality education and ought to foster national cohesion and integration. In fulfilling this mandate however, it is important to have job satisfaction guarantees through correct placements for academics which will ensure committed and stable workforce. It is the aim of this paper to find out the influence that designation and experience of academics’ has on their job satisfaction. The study targeted chartered public and private universities in the Rift Valley Region (RVR), Kenya. The study population consisted of university management, deans and lecturers from the selected universities. The study employed convergent parallel mixed methods design with random and systematic sampling techniques to select the respondents. Purposive sampling was also used to select information-rich cases. Data collection instruments were questionnaires, interview guides and document analysis guide. Analysis was done using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation coefficient and t-test, One-way Analysis of Variance and regression coefficients.  It was established that the dons with the most experience were highly satisfied in their job. Job designation was a significant determinant on perceived job satisfaction levels among the academic staff with the professors demonstrating the highest job satisfaction.