An international team of researchers, including specialists from HSE University, has investigated how the size of a university’s non-academic workforce shapes its overall performance. Their study shows that the effect is far from uniform: in research-focused universities, increasing the share of administrative and support staff appears to have no meaningful impact on efficiency, whereas in teaching-oriented institutions, a larger administrative presence is associated with better results. These findings, published in Applied Economics, add nuance to ongoing debates about staffing structures in higher education.
Across the global university sector, administrative and support personnel now constitute a steadily growing share of the workforce, with academic staff making up less than half on average. International trends illustrate the scale of this shift. Australia saw a 53% rise in non-academic employees between 1997 and 2017, and Denmark experienced a 93% increase over a comparable period. To determine whether similar developments in Russia influence institutional performance, researchers from the HSE Institute of Education collaborated with colleagues in Italy, the UK and Germany to analyse extensive national data.
Their work drew on information from 252 public universities between 2012 and 2021—institutions that together educate roughly 67% of all students in Russia. For the study, universities were separated into two categories: research universities and teaching-oriented universities. The dividing line was the share of income derived from R&D; universities earning at least 10% of their revenue from such activity were classified as research-oriented. Efficiency measures included student numbers across all institutions, supplemented by publication output and R&D income for research universities.
The results reveal a marked contrast between institutional types. Among research-intensive universities, there is no identifiable link between the percentage of non-academic staff and overall efficiency. In teaching-oriented universities, however, the correlation is clearly positive. Institutions with a higher proportion of administrative and support personnel tend to function more effectively, and further analysis indicates that administrative roles specifically are the key drivers of this improvement.
According to Pavel Serebrennikov, one of the study’s authors and a Junior Research Fellow at the HSE Laboratory for University Development, these results highlight the risks of applying the same staffing policies across all institutions. Teaching-focused universities may benefit from expanding their non-academic workforce, as greater administrative capacity can ease bureaucratic pressure on academics and strengthen support for the learning environment. By contrast, research universities depend less on staff numbers and more on the expertise, functions and specialisation of their administrative teams.
The researchers used the modern conditional efficiency method, which does not establish cause-and-effect relationships but excels at identifying robust patterns in complex organisational settings. While the authors caution that their conclusions should not be interpreted as strict prescriptions, they believe the insights can help policymakers make more informed decisions about resource allocation and incentive structures. Recognising the diverse missions and operational needs of universities may lead to more effective strategies for enhancing performance across different types of institutions.
The team now plans to examine the distinct roles within non-academic staffing categories to determine how specific administrative and support functions contribute to institutional efficiency. This next phase aims to refine the understanding of the internal dynamics that underpin successful university management.
More information: Tommaso Agasisti et al, Non-academic staff and technical efficiency of Russian universities 2012–2021, Applied Economics. DOI: 10.1080/00036846.2025.2547114
Journal information: Applied Economics Provided by National Research University Higher School of Economics