Abstracts - Earli

tests. School grades were obtained from student files. Vocational interests, the perceived demandsof university study, and criterion measures were assessed two years after participants had finishedhigh school. Results revealed that all measures were related to success at university, but todifferent facets thereof. Cognitive ability and school grades predicted students’ achievement,whereas interest congruence was the best predictor of individual satisfaction and drop-outintentions. Additional analyses by field of study revealed that the role of interest congruence waslargely invariant across fields; the same held for grades and cognitive abilities. However, subjectspecificabilities only appeared to play a role in some fields of study. Implications of thesefindings for the selection and counseling of university applicants are discussed.The Missing I(dentity) Principle: The 8th principle of teacher educationShlomo Back, Kaye Academic College of Education, IsraelJudith Barak, Kaye Academic College of Education, IsraelAriela Gidron, Kaye Academic College of Education, IsraelRuth Mansur, Kaye Academic College of Education, IsraelSmadar Tuval, Laye Academic College of Education, IsraelRecent innovative approaches to teacher education, suggest 7 principles for the structure andprocesses of Teacher education programs. In this work we would like to add an 8th principlewhich is the "I"(dentity) principle. The essence of professional identity is a discussed theme in theliterature of the last decade. The recognition of the role of identity in constructing professionalknowledge and skills calls for reconsideration of the question "what should the teacher be"‘ inregard to teaching and teacher education. From this point of view we suggest the introduction ofthe "I" principle, which relates to the personal and professional identity, as a guiding theme withinthe new spirits of the field. Our presentation provides insights revealed through a teachereducation program in which identity is a salient principle. This is an interpretive study thatportraits ongoing activities and written assignments in which student teachers’ stories of practiceare interpreted and identities are negotiated. Through these variant sources we offer a multifacetedpicture in regard to the role and the meaning of professional identity, as a fundamental principlewithin the teacher education program. Being a part of almost all learning experiences within theprogram, the "I" principle induces a sense of ownership on the chosen ways of action, and afeeling of freedom to decide which way to take.Managing the shortening of time to completion for doctoral candidatesMargaret Kiley, The Australian National University, AustraliaThis study aims to examine the effect, in three different types of universities, of the AustralianGovernment’s Research Training Policy regarding funding on programs and strategies to supportresearch student development and supervision. Publicly available documents and conferencepresentations are analysed to determine the programs and strategies adopted by those universitiesin response to the new Government requirements. The study identifies substantial development byuniversities regarding the support and scaffolding provided to their candidates with the expectationthat this support will meet three requirements: . Decreased attrition . Decreased length ofcandidature . Increased quality of the research education experience The findings suggest thatthere are ways in which Australian universities can/have developed university-wide support andscaffolding for their research students and these will be reported. Of particular interest are issuesthat some universities experience in encouraging supervisors to understand the impact of the newsystem and what it means for the ways they supervise.– 573 –