ED7855: Higher Education Administration

ED7855 at Capella University asks students to analyze the theories, policies and procedures involved in administering higher education institutions. The catalog says they distinguish between leadership and management and examine the knowledge and skills needed to address administrative challenges.

The course is tricky because higher education is organized unlike most businesses. Faculty expect a voice in decisions, goals are often ambiguous, and authority is spread across boards, administrators and academic units, so theories from other settings need careful adaptation.

What ED7855 Covers

Key Concepts Explained

Organizational Models

Several lenses are widely used to describe colleges. The bureaucratic model stresses hierarchy and rules, the collegial model stresses faculty consensus, the political model stresses competing interests and bargaining, and the "organized anarchy" or garbage can model describes unclear goals and fluid participation.

Leadership and Management

Management keeps systems running through planning, budgeting and control. Leadership sets direction and builds commitment for change. Administrators usually have to do both, and good analyses show when each is needed.

Shared Governance

Many institutions share authority among boards, administrators and faculty. Understanding who decides what, and who must be consulted, is part of administrative skill.

Typical Assignments and How to Approach Them

Matching Models to Situations

Writing a Theory Application Paper

Theory papers go wrong when the theory and the case sit in separate halves of the essay. Weave them together so that each paragraph uses a theoretical idea to explain something in the case.

1. Open with the situation and the question it raises.
2. Introduce the model briefly, with a citation.
3. Use the model to explain specific events or decisions in the case.
4. Show what a second model would highlight instead.
5. Conclude with what the administrator should do, and what each model suggests about risks.

Be careful with claims about "how colleges work". Qualify them with sources and say when practice differs across institution types, such as research universities, community colleges and for-profit providers.

Shared Governance in Practice

Shared governance rarely means equal votes. Boards usually hold fiduciary and strategic authority, administrators manage operations, and faculty lead on curriculum and academic standards. Analyses are stronger when they say which group has primary responsibility for the decision in question, and what happens when groups disagree.

Checking Your Draft Before Submission

• Have you defined leadership and management before using them?
• Did you apply at least two models to the same case?
• Do examples come from identifiable institution types?
• Does the conclusion tell an administrator what to do?

Where Students Get Stuck

• Copying business ideas. Explain how the college context changes the theory.
• One model only. Use two or more lenses to show depth.
• Blurring leadership and management. Define both before you apply them.
• No evidence. Support examples with sources or documented cases.

Study Tips for ED7855

• Make a one-page summary of each model with an example.
• Collect real examples from your own institution, protecting names.
• Ask what the model predicts, then check whether it happened.
• Keep your writing in APA 7th edition style from the first draft.

How We Help with ED7855

Send the prompt, rubric, readings and feedback. A writer can prepare a custom analysis, explain how the theories differ, or edit your draft. See our education assignment help guide for general support.

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