Changes in Departmental Leadership

[elias514]

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Generally speaking, what effect does a change in the departmental chair have on recruitment of students? I'm just curious as to whether or not top students tend to stay away from programs undergoing a shift in leadership.

 

[johnd]

I think it has a lot to do with the particular situation. If a great chair is retiring after many years, a program may take a small temporary hit. If the previous chair wasn't well-liked and a new hotshot is coming in, it might help. If the chair gets pushed out in some type of hospital political battle and half of the faculty decide to resign in protest then that might spell big trouble for a program.