Marketing the university: The subjective perceptions of Israeli academics of their role in attracting new students to their institution

The aim of this qualitative study was to explore Israeli academics' perceptions of the introduction of educational markets and, particularly, their attitudes towards academics' roles and responsibilities in the new marketing-led university, as well as to obtain a greater understanding of their actual patterns of involvement in the marketing of their institutions. Based on open-structured interviews with 15 academics, the study revealed that academics display contradictory standpoints: several believe academics should play some role in open days and related promotion activities, while others resist any kind of academics' involvement. Most, however, consider quality teaching and fruitful research as an academic's major contribution to the marketing of the higher education institution.