Designing Student Affairs Organizational Structures: Perceptions of Senior Student Affairs Officers

Student affairs organizations have become complex entities and serve as a critical link to student success and the quality of the overall educational experience in collegiate institutions. Over time, new programs and services have been added to the array of existing programs and services with little attention focused on how these organizations might be designed to effectively meet the institution’s mission or address student needs. This research study was designed, in part, to investigate student affairs organizational structures within colleges and universities across the United States. The focus of this study was on the design and structure of student affairs organizations, but it also investigated where in the institution the senior student affairs officer reported. It explored questions related to what changes were made in student affairs organizations and why. The findings indicated that some change has occurred in student affairs organizations, but these changes have been modest. While student affairs organizations have retained their functional structures they also appeared to be generally organized by institutional type, and as a result somewhat reflective of institutional mission. The influences of revenue source and availability of resources appeared to remain the dominant influences in the current functional structures of student affairs organizations. While some of the desired reasons for organizational redesign appeared to be strategic and environmentally oriented, the actual changes and redesigns that were reported were not directly focused on these issues. These findings have implications for student affairs organizational effectiveness in the future.