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As with every other field, higher education in America faces faculty challenges in the form of retirement and turnover. It is an uphill task for institutions to replace those moving out with equally qualified and competent faculty equipped with the same level of abilities, knowledge and skills. In order to achieve this, it is highly necessary for organizations to have appropriate procedures and policies to hire competent staff.

With more number of baby boomers ready to retire shortly, organizations need to have the ability to recruit and retain staff after training them for the job. Incoming faculty will expect highly competitive benefits and salaries, compounding the problems for institutions especially during these tough economic times. However, faculty have to be enticed with quality working conditions, research resources and support as well as excellent salary packages in order to offer quality education to students. Retention of faculty after recruitment and training must therefore be the top priority, especially for the reputed, high level institutions.

The current situation is highly challenging due to the severe State and Federal budget cuts for institutions. Institutions are trying to cut cost in different ways including cutting down on number of faculty members. Student population is one the rise both in diversity as well as size. The steep rise in enrolment in almost all universities and colleges has increased the demand for diverse and qualified professors in different disciplines. A lot of institutions face the problem of reduced effectiveness if they are unable to offer courses and unable to complete projects due to reduced faculty support.

Reduction in faculty numbers can also adversely impact the morale of the teaching staff and interaction with students. With recruitment, training and retaining faculty costing a lot, educational institutions are in a dilemma and their performance is at stake. Vacancies can be effectively filled only with doctoral graduates opting for a faculty position. However, recent trends indicate that doctoral graduates are not too keen on taking up teaching and prefer other career options. To change this situation, it is highly essential offering attractive benefits and competitive salaries.

There has been a steep increase in the health insurance cost, which is yet another challenge faced by the academic world. This adversely affects the budget of institutions as they have to provide health insurance for retirees and the cost may be quite overwhelming. A sustained and serious strategic planning is required on an urgent basis to combat pressure of more number of retiring faculty.

As academic institutions recruit new faculty, it is necessary to analyze and see which particular areas have a demand and also analyze the available funding. More institutions may also opt for part time staffing options. Last but not the least it is vital acknowledging the importance of quality staff recruitment. One effective method of combating the aging academic workforce challenge is to offer higher salaries and attractive benefits to existing high quality faculty and retain them to enhance and add value to the performance of the institution. Retaining faculty also requires fine tuning and revamping strategic policies by understanding their preferences and attitude. This will help combat the problem of retiring and aging faculty to a great extent.