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Article
Publication date: 7 August 2019

Oscar Espinoza, Luis González, Luis Sandoval, Noel McGinn, Javier Loyola and Dante Castillo

The purpose of this paper is to improve future teacher training by assessment of university graduates’ satisfaction with their preparation in Basic Education teaching.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to improve future teacher training by assessment of university graduates’ satisfaction with their preparation in Basic Education teaching.

Design/methodology/approach

This descriptive study employed a self-administered survey questionnaire to a representative sample of 235 graduates between 2014 and 2016 from three universities in Chile. The questionnaire generated information about the graduates’ background (age, gender, parents’ education and prestige of secondary school attended); an evaluation of three dimensions of their degree program (instructional quality, infrastructure and employability), and experiences in the labor market (including salary). Analysis of variance was used to assess relationships between satisfaction, and other variables.

Findings

In general, graduates were satisfied with all aspects of their training. Satisfaction levels were higher from those assumed to have lower expectations. Contrary to this hypothesis, university prestige is not directly related to satisfaction. Instead, expectations and employability moderate the effect of prestige.

Research limitations/implications

The sample is not representative of the 59 universities in Chile nor of the many other degree programs offered in those universities.

Practical implications

Program directors concerned about improving the public reputation or prestige of their program will benefit from efforts to improve the quality of the program and its infrastructure, and relevance for entrance into the world of work.

Originality/value

This study provides information not previously available about graduate satisfaction in teaching degree programs in Chile.

Details

Higher Education, Skills and Work-Based Learning, vol. 10 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2042-3896

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 26 April 2024

Oscar Espinoza, Luis Gonzalez, Luis Sandoval, Bruno Corradi, Yahira Larrondo and Noel McGinn

This study analyzed the impact on the persistence of Chilean university students who had received a government-guaranteed loan (CAE).

Abstract

Purpose

This study analyzed the impact on the persistence of Chilean university students who had received a government-guaranteed loan (CAE).

Design/methodology/approach

Using academic and administrative data from 2016 to 2019, provided by 11 Chilean universities, a discrete-time survival model was constructed. The model was based on data of 5,276 students in the 2016 cohort and included sociodemographic variables, academic background prior to entering university and academic performance once in university. As a robustness check of our results to observable confounding, the analysis was repeated using a control group constructed using propensity score matching (PSM).

Findings

The results reveal that students who receive a bank loan (CAE) were more likely to remain in undergraduate studies for at least the first two years of university, as opposed to their peers who did not receive financial aid. In addition, they show the importance of academic performance in retention.

Originality/value

The article advances in the identification of the impact of bank loans on permanence. Although previous research has evaluated the impact of the CAE, it has been conducted on small samples of students. These studies also lacked student records associated with their academic performance at the university. The present research overcomes both weaknesses, allowing us to estimate the impact of the CAE on a larger population of students that is representative of the system.

Details

International Journal of Educational Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-354X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 26 March 2024

Oscar Espinoza, Luis González, Catalina Miranda, Luis Sandoval, Bruno Corradi, Noel McGinn and Yahira Larrondo

The job satisfaction of university graduates can serve as an indicator of success in their professional development. At the same time, it can be a measure of higher education…

Abstract

Purpose

The job satisfaction of university graduates can serve as an indicator of success in their professional development. At the same time, it can be a measure of higher education systems’ effectiveness. The purpose is to assess the relationship of university graduates’ socio-demographic characteristics, aspects of their degree program, experiences in the labor market and current working conditions and their job satisfaction.

Design/methodology/approach

The data were collected from a survey conducted at 11 Chilean universities with 534 graduates. An ordinal logistic regression model was fit to calculate job satisfaction probabilities for different graduate profiles.

Findings

The results show that sex, field of study, gross salary and horizontal match are related to graduates’ job satisfaction. Men and graduates in education and humanities are more likely to report being satisfied with their current job. Those graduates receiving higher salaries and those who are horizontally well-matched report higher levels of job satisfaction.

Originality/value

This study contributes to expanding knowledge about the job satisfaction of university graduates. Specifically, based on the results obtained, it introduces the idea of aspiration fulfillment as a possible determinant of job satisfaction in different fields of study. This can serve as a starting point for research that delves into differentiated expectations for graduates from different disciplines.

Details

Higher Education, Skills and Work-Based Learning, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2042-3896

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 26 March 2019

Oscar Espinoza, Noel McGinn, Luis González, Luis Sandoval and Dante Castillo

The purpose of this paper is to determine which of the two variables would be a more reliable proxy for quality of university training: graduates’ satisfaction with their degree…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to determine which of the two variables would be a more reliable proxy for quality of university training: graduates’ satisfaction with their degree program, or institutional prestige.

Design/methodology/approach

Graduates of professional psychology and teaching programs from three Chilean universities responded to a questionnaire asking their perception of different aspects of their degree program and experiences in their first employment. The three universities differ significantly in the proportion of applicants admitted, and in their prestige.

Findings

Salary levels are highly related to profession, but unrelated to graduates’ ratings of quality of curriculum or teaching methods. Overall satisfaction with the university experience is not linked to job satisfaction. Job satisfaction, on the other hand, is highly influenced by salary and secondarily by instructional practices and perceived work relevance of the degree program.

Research limitations/implications

This study is based on data from 3 of Chile’s 60 universities, and graduates of two programs. Most employment in the two professions is regulated by labor agreements. Generalizability of results is limited. Graduates may not have been employed enough to demonstrate their capacities.

Practical implications

The findings offer more evidence that prestige ratings are an unreliable indicator of the quality of formation offered by universities. If the government seeks to reduce income inequality, public subsidies of higher education should be based on program quality rather than on institutional prestige.

Originality/value

The findings are directly relevant to the current debate in Chile about what might and what might not help to reduce severe economic inequality.

Details

Education + Training, vol. 61 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0040-0912

Keywords

Expert briefing
Publication date: 4 November 2022

The moves broadly coincide with the publication in August of a report alleging military failings in the handling of the 2014 Ayotzinapa student disappearances, and the October…

Details

DOI: 10.1108/OXAN-DB273819

ISSN: 2633-304X

Keywords

Geographic
Topical
Article
Publication date: 6 November 2009

Fernando García‐Hernandez, Luis Hernández‐Sandoval, Carlos Regalado‐González, José Mojica‐Gómez, Yunny Meas‐Vong, Guillermo Espinosa‐Acosta, Miriam Estévez and Victor Castaño

The purpose of this paper is to study the corrosion of carbon steel without coating and when protected using three different hybrid coatings, i.e. a bi‐component polyurethane with…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to study the corrosion of carbon steel without coating and when protected using three different hybrid coatings, i.e. a bi‐component polyurethane with nano‐particles of SiO2 with and without sacrificial anode particles, and a mono‐component polyurethane with SiO2 particles.

Design/methodology/approach

In this investigation three different nano‐structured coatings are developed and applied to steel substrates and then tested for their corrosion resistance (defined as “Rn”), under a very aggressive medium (pH=1.5) in a dynamic system (loop reactor). Their performance is evaluated using an electrochemical noise (EN) resistance technique. The electrodes are connected to a potentiostat and measurements are recorded as per the EN technique over a 2,048 s duration at 0, 24, and 48 h intervals. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) are obtained before and after the corrosion trials to characterize the control and the different coating systems.

Findings

The results show that a bicomponent coating, made up of alkyd resin and silica nanoparticles demonstrated the best performance, whereas the coating formed by SiO2 nanoparticles and polyurethane resin showed relatively low corrosion resistance. The inclusion of zinc nanoparticles in a third coating as sacrificial nano‐anodes led to segregation and resulted in moderate corrosion resistance. These results are confirmed by SEM observations.

Originality/value

The results obtained in this paper provide an insight to the understanding of the anticorrosion properties of three different hybrid coatings in a dynamic system (loop reactor).

Details

Anti-Corrosion Methods and Materials, vol. 56 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0003-5599

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 6 January 2012

Fernando Garcia, Ana Leonor Rivera Lopez, Juan Campos Guillén, Luis Hernández Sandoval, Carlos Regalado González and Victor Castaño

The purpose of this paper is to report a study of microbiological influenced corrosion (MIC) of copper due to bacteria strains isolated from potable water pipes and oxidation…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to report a study of microbiological influenced corrosion (MIC) of copper due to bacteria strains isolated from potable water pipes and oxidation lagoons using electrochemical noise (EN) analysis and scanning electron microscopy (SEM).

Design/methodology/approach

Bacteria strains isolated from copper surfaces of potable water pipes and from oxidation lagoons were identified, based on the 16S rDNA gene sequence analysis. Corrosion studies were undertaken over a period of six weeks, placing copper electrodes inside an LB culture media with and without bacteria. The corrosion resistance was obtained using EN analysis. In all the cases, the corrosion type was identified. SEM images of the copper electrodes were taken to evaluate the surface condition.

Findings

The bacteria strains identified were: Pantoea agglomerans, Alcaligenes faecalis, Bacillus cereus, Brucellaceae bacterium, Enterobacter cloacae, Delftia tsuruhatensis, and Pseudochrobactrum asaccharolyticum. EN analysis gave noise resistance values in the range 1,036‐5,040 Ωcm2 for the control samples and in the range of 2,336‐22,573 Ωcm2 for samples that had been inoculated with bacteria. It was found that a decrease in the rate of corrosion took place due to the development of a biofilm by the microorganisms on the copper surface. SEM images corroborated the presence of the biofilm on the copper electrodes.

Practical implications

The isolated bacteria strain reduced the rate of corrosion on the copper electrodes, as shown by the SEM images and EN analysis results, due to the formation of a biofilm that can act as an anticorrosive coating.

Originality/value

Even though MIC is a known phenomenon, it has not been reported that isolated bacteria strains can reduce corrosion on the surface of copper potable water pipes and in oxidation lagoons.

Details

Anti-Corrosion Methods and Materials, vol. 59 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0003-5599

Keywords

Executive summary
Publication date: 25 June 2019

MEXICO: Security drive will endanger migrants

Expert briefing
Publication date: 28 September 2020

Police believe the cargo, worth some USD18.6mn, belonged to Mexico’s New Generation Jalisco Cartel (CJNG), a group that has expanded rapidly in the last decade to become one of…

Details

DOI: 10.1108/OXAN-DB255106

ISSN: 2633-304X

Keywords

Geographic
Topical
Executive summary
Publication date: 11 August 2023

MEXICO: Mexicana deal will divide opinion

Details

DOI: 10.1108/OXAN-ES281188

ISSN: 2633-304X

Keywords

Geographic
Topical
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