CUPA-HR Releases 2018 Student Affairs Report

Title: Focus on Student Affairs, 2018

Authors: Adam Pritchard and Jasper McChesney

Source: College and University Professional Association for Human Resources

The College and University Professional Association for Human Resources (CUPA-HR) recently released their annual research brief that takes a close look at student affairs professionals and the challenges they face in their high-touch roles on campus.

When comparing the profile of student affairs professionals to that of undergraduate students, the data show that both Hispanics and Asians were underrepresented among student affairs professionals relative to their share among undergraduate students.

Results also revealed that the student affairs workforce is predominantly female (71 percent). While white males were slightly underrepresented among all student affairs professionals, in leadership positions, both white males and black males were overrepresented compared to student populations (33 percent to 24 percent and 8 percent to 5 percent, respectively).

The report’s authors also found that equity in pay among student affairs was better than that of other positions within higher education. With minor differences for certain combinations of sex and race, there was equitable pay overall for females and minorities.

With a relatively more youthful workforce than many other areas in higher education, CUPA-HR’s analysis suggests the pipeline and advancement opportunities for student affairs leadership are strong. Often called on to be the first responders to rapid-response expectations of student populations, it is no surprise that 71 percent of all student affairs employees fall into frontline categories of coordinator, standard, or counselor positions. The fastest growing category was that of mental health counselors, indicating the critical importance of mental health work on campus.

To learn more and view the CUPA-HR data, please see the full report.