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Nicola Spurling

Thesis Working Title

'External Goods' and the Practice of Sociology

Research Interests

PhD

How have reforms in UK universities driven by the conservative and new labour governments since 1979 had implications for what academic sociologists do? What are the consequences of these changes for academics, the discipline of sociology, the university, and society? How can these changes be evaluated? Who benefits and who loses, how and why?

My PhD investigates these questions by exploring the relationship between changes in the everyday practices of academic sociologists and changing institutional, social, political and economic contexts.

Educational reform over the past 29 years has signified a 'new cultural epoch' in higher education, with policy discourses dominated by ideas of neo-liberalism, new public management and audit culture. There has been notable concern amongst academics regarding the long-term implications of these changes as evidenced in the numerous critiques published across the period. At the same time (and in contrast to this) several authors have suggested that changes have remained unchallenged, possibly due to a lack of 'critical consciousness' on the part of academics, or because HE has 'no theory of itself'.

The premise of my research is that academics are critically aware of the changing contexts of their work, however the gradual process by which such changes become part of practice, as well as the necessity to continue 'being an academic' in the everyday, means that links between new discourses of higher education and practices of individuals are complex and difficult to recognise. My focus on practice-change seeks to move beyond the rhetoric of policy discourse and its critique. If we understand how practice has changed it is possible to evaluate its consequences and understand who benefits, who loses, how and why.

My empirical work uses in depth interviews with sociology academics at four case study institutions; an exploration of 'artefacts' of past and present practices (e.g. prospectuses, cvs, diaries) and the mapping of policy and institutional changes across the period of my study. Through exploring relationships between these sources I seek to understand how changes in broader contexts are related to the practices of individuals at precise times and places within their careers.

Journal Articles

Spurling, N.J. (2007) Exploring Adjustment: The Social Situation of Chinese Students in UK HE, Learning and Teaching in the Social Sciences, v.3, n.2.

Published Report

Caruana, V. and Spurling, N.J. (2007) The Internationalisation of UK HE: A Review of Selected Material, Higher Education Academy, http://www.heacademy.ac.uk

Invited Presentations

Exploring Adjustment: The Social Situation of Chinese Students in UK HE, HE Academy Internationalisation Forum, 5th Dec '05, Woburn House, Tavistock Square, London

Conference Presentations

Spurling, N.J. (2007) External Goods and the Practice of Sociology: Developing a Methodology to Investigate Changes in Everyday Academic Practice, SRHE Newer Researchers' Conference, 10th December 2007, University of Sussex.

Spurling, N.J. (2007) Understanding the 'Practice' of Sociology, Lancaster Sociology Summer Conference, July 6th-7th 2007.

Etherington, S. and Spurling, N.J. (2007) Learning the differences: International students' exploration of educational cultures in UK HE, BALEAP 2007, 15-17 April, University of Durham.

Spurling, N.J. (2006) Constructed Situations, Constructed Boundaries?: The social situation of Chinese students in England, SRHE Annual Conference, December 2006

Research Awards & Funding

2006-2009, ESRC PhD Studentship.February 2006,

SRHE Newer Researcher Award, £1000, Project Title: The Social Situation of Chinese Students in Higher Education: Student experiences across EnglandFebruary

2006, Commissioned by HE Academy for a literature review: Internationalisation of the curriculum and the support of international students, Nicola Spurling & Viv Caruana

2004-2005, Won a place on the ESRC seminar series 'Exploring the Case in Qualitative and Quantitative Research', Prof David Byrne, University of Durham and Dr. Wendy Olsen, University of Manchester

Other Activities

2008Co-convener of the SRHE Newer Researcher's Network and Newer Researcher's Conference with Dr Arwen Raddon and Romulo Pinheiro.

2007-present, Member of Research and Development Committee, SRHE.

2006-present, Member of the Conference Committee for Lancaster Sociology Summer Conference2006-present, Student representative for Lancaster Sociology Postgraduates