Beyond internal promotions: The case for professionalizing school principal recruitment 

Schools thrive under the guidance of qualified, experienced school leaders. Fair and inclusive selection and recruitment are essential to find them. Yet less than two thirds of countries run competitive selection processes for principals.

As with any sector or business, sound hiring practices avoid bias, stereotypes and favouritism. While internal promotion helps grow talent from within, open recruitment can bring fresh ideas and renewed vision.

This blog unpacks a core recommendation of the 2024/5 GEM report on leadership in education: school principalship should be professionalized, with clear, transparent and merit-based recruitment rules.

Recruitment and selection are the gateways to ensuring strong aspiring principals enter leadership roles.

In theory, systems should match candidates to schools’ needs and objectives. In practice, the degree of autonomy granted to schools and the weight placed on professionalization and managerial trajectories often decide who ends up where.

Regardless of context, objective, fair, inclusive, transparent and clearly defined criteria are needed. Such clarity enhances the credibility and legitimacy of the principal’s role and contributes to build trust and respect within the school community.

The  problem, seen in many countries, is inconsistency. Some prioritize teaching experience or, less frequently, leadership qualifications. Others rely on  vague selection standards risking the loss of the best candidates.

An analysis of PEER country profiles for the 2024/5 GEM Report, for example, found that 42% of countries select principals at the central level, 23% at  local government level, 13% at the school level, and the remaining 22% at mixed levels.

After selection, appointments are usually validated either at central or local. Australia, for instance, has a mix of centralized and decentralized elements in school principal selection. In the state of Victoria, school councils – or, in their absence, community committees – recommend candidates to the Secretary of the Department of Education. In Slovenia, in contrast, school councils can both hire and dismiss principals outright.

Closed and inequitable processes deter talent. Although alternative pathways to becoming a school leader exist, it is highly unlikely for someone outside of the pool of current teachers to be appointed. This makes it urgent to weave leadership training into initial teacher education.

Talent-spotting and succession planning should be integral components of recruitment strategies. Where feasible systems should flag and prepare future leaders early. In the United States, for example, some teachers are preselected  (or ‘tapped’) by their principals for pre-service leadership preparation, for instance.   This approach can reduce costs and boost retention.

However, any such system must be free of bias, stereotypes and favouritism  avoiding hierarchical structures, partisanship or patronage. Selection criteria should be clearly defined, objective and transparent ensuring that qualified candidates,  of any background or gender, have equal opportunities to showcase their diverse leadership skills. Politics should not play a role (although it sometimes still does).

Lack of diversity in leadership positions is a problem for education decision making at all levels. Currently, 8 in 10 countries  still have no measures to ensure balanced representation.  Open selection can help, but temporary quotas may still be needed where gaps persist.

As the gender version of the global GEM Report showed, a stark gap remains:  women hold 20 percentage point fewer secondary school -leadership positions across 70 countries with data despite being the majority of teachers.  In Chile, for example, it is claimed that the influence of mayors in final decisions disadvantages female applicants in selection processes, and leadership training programmes have not adequately addressed gender equity.  In Francophone Africa, only 16% of primary school principals are women.

The best teachers do not automatically make the best principals. 

This is a delicate balance to get right. Excellence in teaching is fundamental, butit doesn’t automatically guarantee success in leadership and should not be seen as a mere reward for top teachers. The review of selection processes for this report shows 76% of countries require principals to be fully qualified teachers; 3 in 10 demand management experience.

Teaching experience still dominates selection, but assessments of other skills, competences and experience are gaining ground.  In addition to other requirements, France and Italy use competitive examinations and eligibility tests;  Qatar and the UAE combine competitive examinations and adherence to professional standards.

Ultimately, good schools begin with good school leaders. Governments have to reform hiring practices, prioritizing the professional development of principals and  recruit top talent through transparent, competitive recruitment processes.