According to Prof Stanz, the quality of any university is directly related to the institution's standing and success. “When a faculty are active in governance and embrace activities that improve teaching and learning, the entire institution’s reputation and quality will improve, resulting in an increase in student retention and success, says Prof Stanz. “Continued faculty development activities must be seen as mandatory to recuperating institutional excellence. “Though a substantial number of faculty development strategies exist, one of the most underestimated strategies in South Africa is sabbatical leave. It is not a new strategy and sabbaticals should also be used as a unique talent retention strategy in academia to combat salaries that are increasingly not competitive enough with the private sector. If we want to be at the frontier of cutting edge intellectual work, we need to grasp such opportunities” he says.

McGill University is placed among the top 25 universities globally for the seventh consecutive year in the QS World University Rankings.and is recognized consistently as one of the world’s leading universities. It is important to note that McGill has managed to maintain its standing despite a growing funding gap between them and the universities around the world with which they compete. McGill University, attracts students from more than 150 countries around the world of which almost half claim a first language other than English with international students making up almost 20% of the student body.
 

 Desautels Faculty of Management, McGill University.