Generic Structure and Modal Verbs in Managerial Position Job Advertisements of Tertiary Institutions in Ghana

Abstract

In recent times, job advertisements have become one of the effective platforms through which many institutions market themselves to the outside world. Although there have been some studies on such advertisements, much attention has not been given to the rhetoric of managerial position job advertisements of tertiary educational institutions in Ghana, where these institutions have increased in number at an exponential rate. The present study, therefore, explores the generic structure and modal verbs in tertiary institutions’ managerial position job advertisements (MPJAs). Focusing on the qualitative method approach, 30 texts were studied. The study, first, revealed that MPJAs of tertiary institutions placed in the newspaper Daily Graphic adopted a five-move pattern (institution identification, vacancy declaration, job details, application details, and authority signing); a linear move pattern from the first move to the last; and the largest textual space given to Move 3 (Job Details). The study further showed that the most frequent use of ‘must’, which enabled advertisers of MPJAs to place obligation on the potential applicants, revealed the authority of the advertisers over the potential applicants. Again, the use of the strong modal ‘must’ was very excessive and so it can be concluded that MPJAs resonate the authority or power of the advertisers over the potential applicants. These findings suggest that tertiary educational institutions in Ghana construct their MPJAs in a similar fashion. The study, therefore, has implications for similar MPJA texts construction pedagogy and further research