TOPIC

The following appeared in a letter from the faculty committee to the president of Seatown University:

A study conducted at nearby Oceania University showed that faculty retention is higher when professors are offered free tuition at the university for their own college-aged children. Therefore, Seatown should institute a free-tuition policy for its professors for the purpose of enhancing morale among the faculty and luring new professors.

Write a response in which you discuss what specific evidence is needed to evaluate the argument and explain how the evidence would weaken or strengthen the argument.

ESSAY

The faculty committee's argument that "Seatown should institute a free-tuition policy for its professors" needs to be evaluated on multiple dimensions. I will be judging the veracity of three distinct assumptions which, if true, will bolster the faculty's recommendation. Additionally, I will highlight the specific evidence needed to either strengthen or undercut the committee's primary assertions.

The first premise up for examination revolves around Oceania University. The study was conducted at a nearby university which begs the question: Is Oceania reflective of Seatown University? If the demographics and overall faculty sentiments are similar, then it may be safe to make the correlation around faculty retention. However if a significantly smaller percentage of faculty at Seatown have college-aged children, the importance of free tuition is diminished.

The second assumption made in the committee's letter claims that instituting free tuition will enhance morale among faculty. In order to bolster this assertion, I need to see evidence indicating there is a statistically significant difference in morale before and after free tuition was instituted. Having this evidence will remove any doubts concerning confounding variables that could have caused upticks in positive feelings towards the university. If there is a statistically significant difference, then the committee has solid metrics to back up their claim.

The final, and perhaps most important, piece of evidence ties to proving which factors lure new professors and retain existing ones. Surveys should be sent out to professors at Seatown University to determine their prioritized list of indicators leading to professional satisfaction. If free tuition for college-aged children is at the top of this list, then the argument is strengthened. If not, then other variables could prove more important thereby undercutting the letter's primary recommendation.

Overall, the faculty committee's argument and rationale for free tuition needs to be examined under a microscope. Additional evidence around Oceania's similarity to Seatown University, impacts on morale, and, \drivers of faculty retention and capture should be provided.