[Nursing college organizational functions. Nursing college management and director evaluated by its faculty]

The aim of this research was to eludicate functioning of a nursing college according to perspective of teachers. The teachers were asked to evaluate the procedures of the institute and personnel and goals of functioning. The aim was to eludicate the existing basic principles and the bodies of knowledge among the teachers. The research was made as a case study in a average-sized nursing college during autumn 1992. A questions blank was sent to all the teachers (N = 68) and the questions were non-structured. The blank was returned by 39 teachers. Their answers were analyzed by using qualitative methods. The results of this research refer that a nursing college resembles Mintzberg's (1979) description of professional bureaucracy. The teachers way of thinking is typical among well-educated experts, who work quite independently (and alone) in relation to their colleagues. Despite of this they work very closely with their clients, who are students. The teachers thought that they are experts in pedagogics, but not in the knowledge of science of nursing. Their opinions about the position of students and the function of the institute were controversial. The students were seen either as self-directing gatherers or passive receivers of information. Most of the teachers were dissatisfied with leadership and cooperation of the organization.