Being measured and judged alongside friends and colleagues was too much

And you left Goldsmiths for Glasgow to experience more of the same in HE...?

Sorry you have decided to leave academia, but you are largely correct. You are a cost on the profit and loss account. Students are revenue, the aim is to maximse the difference with revenue exceeding cost. You are for all intents working in a factory awarding degrees with pleanty of firsts and 2.1 to keep the customers happy. The managers and bureaucrats want to make sure they get their unhealthy slice of the action and will not hesitate to try and work you harder and cut your real pay until the pips squeak.

Reality Rules. Universities are now market and customer lead. If the customer no longer wants your subject at your institution you need to adapt. Either learn to teach a new subject, with stronger customer demand, where you are, or go to a new institution where demand for your subject is higher (and / or they have a vacancy) - Glasgow. Shop around for what suits you. Academics need to make their own choices of where to teach in the same way as students must decide on the subject they want to learn and the location they want to attend.

Hello Les, On holidays and immensely enjoying Academic Diary, between kids and waves. The Diary unintentionally shines a spotlight on your care for students, intellectual reflexivity and warmth, imprints to support, remind and challenge us at Goldsmiths. A priority is to engage with Albertswright's (No. 3 reply above) views. We need to argue that Higher Education is a Public Good helping students to think critically about discursive formations such as the strengths and limitations of free market economics as well as where we want to be on the society-no society continuum and why. Your presence in south-east London will be hugely missed. Thank you, Mx