Academic life

Departmental hierarchies, job precarity and institutions’ need to protect their star professors enables bullies to thrive in Britain’s top universities, says Wyn Evans

‘Narrow-mindedness’ over China in US universities driven by fear of losing government funding, says Denis Simon

Possibility of tensions flaring again on first anniversary of Mahsa Amini’s death sparks attempts to keep students away from campuses

Jobs forum popular with economists accuses researchers of ‘hacking’ after locations of users exposed

As students in many countries receive their final degree marks amid perennial concerns about grade inflation, three scholars reflect on their experiences of being pressured to mark more leniently, while one considers how to enhance the fairness of marking outcomes

I want my research to fuel change and make a positive impact on the world, and I do not want to suffer in the process, says Heidi Green

When faced with a real, full-bore crisis, this generation of supposed snowflakes just got on with it and coped better than I did, says Joe Moran

Some incidents are inevitable, but, as all security guards know, de-escalation is a lot less painful than the alternative, says George Bass

As world’s most famous archaeologist makes his last big-screen outing, real-life researchers reflect on how the character and his famous hat and whip have influenced their discipline

The ‘Presidential Platitude’ and the ‘Forty-Minute Conference Paper’ are among German historian Philipp Stelzel’s concoctions

Sector leaders and academics from across the UK are recognised in the first King’s Birthday Honours list

Unions and management should strike ‘grand bargain’ to resolve issue that ‘casts a shadow’ over the sector, says outgoing leader

Historian vice-chancellor Evelyn Welch has faced criticism for marking final-year dissertations personally

When she was BBC Newsnight’s top booker, Sam McAlister persuaded Prince Andrew to give his infamous interview about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. She tells Jack Grove how academics can avoid shooting themselves in the foot and what TV producers want from expert guests

University ‘reviewing’ fair work umpire’s decision to reject clarification that ‘contemporaneous consultation’ means ‘within a week’

Universities may well accept a 1 per cent funding penalty as a cheaper option, compared with paying money owed to lecturers

Janina Ramirez, one of the UK’s best-known historians, reflects on gender fluidity throughout history, transphobia and Twitter trolls

Faculty groups say ‘we are already seeing staff and faculty leaving the state’ in response to proposed legislation

Reaching out to a trusted community reminded Karen Spierling why she values academia enough to defend it in the public arena

Restructure proposal follows enrolment crash and sub-inflation boost to teaching subsidies

Analysis finds those working in higher education often enjoy better benefits than elsewhere but precarity leaves many excluded

As hopes of reaching agreement fade, department heads are under pressure to pass all those who took classes taught by graduate workers before they walked out in March

Bill to enforce two-year participation ‘meant to target critics at home rather than defend country’, scholars warn

Case prompts renewed concern over plight of lecturers on temporary contracts

Former minister says major reforms to governance and disciplinary rules needed after exit of ex-dean Martyn Percy

Buildings and academic positions endowed by the US family linked to US opioid crisis will be renamed

Outsourcing firm used by UK’s largest academic pensions scheme targeted in cyberattack

As dozens of student-athletes come under investigation, expert predicts major harms on campus from national embrace of sports betting

‘Infinite’ research budgets have allowed industry to surge ahead of academia, but scholars will be essential for steering new technologies towards common good, say experts

Cost-of-living crisis has driven many more to find paid work alongside studies, with universities reassessing practices as a result

Good people who fail to put themselves forward are in no position to carp about their ‘overlords’, says Bruce Macfarlane

Universities have focused on impact on assessments, but internet pioneer tells THE conference changes must extend to teaching and research

Government policy is ‘a lot of hot air’ given lack of support for female faculty, says scholar

‘Creeping authoritarianism’ and university expansion behind Ryan Craig’s play, after academia largely absent from UK stage since 1980s

But academics express scepticism, saying policy does not tackle ‘root’ of problem behaviour

Just as deans and provosts start to realise their visions, they are often gone, leaving everyone else to pick up the pieces, says Elizabeth Lehfeldt

Amid rising tensions between West and Western-educated Chinese elite, experts counter claim that universities ‘fail to instil Western values’

In ongoing awakening, several large universities act on evidence that marginalised students fare better with greater feelings of community

Alliances with university colleagues can be inspiring and life-affirming but may also be grounded in little more than ambition or survival instinct. Six writers reflect on the joys and challenges of having friends in academia

The Dutch scientist on the physics of surfing, his re-entry into additive manufacturing and how he’s ‘drinking from the firehose’ as dean of sport

Doing admin is a poor use of your time as an expert. Make sure you invoice for it at your highest rate, says Andy Farnell

Purdue University accused of trying to force maths academic to retire after concerns about his Covid-era teaching

Disciplinary pay gaps prompt large protests by arts and humanities scholars

Academics’ belief in merit-based promotion at odds with their experiences of discrimination, study finds

Protests target wealthy campuses over housing policies and lack of action on crime and community well-being

New chair of global guards’ association on being the first port of call for emergencies, helping students with their mental health and planning for terrorist attacks

Experts tell THE and Leeds event that institutions are facing risks they don’t understand

University says attempts to retrospectively change a years-old agreement are about ‘resolving ambiguities’ around how staff are paid for student consultations

The rector of Stockholm’s Karolinska Institute takes charge of the world-leading medical school after the disruptions of a pandemic and an ethics scandal

Huge hike in costs plunges institutions into dire situation as academics call on government to urgently raise higher education spending

Susanne Täuber accuses Groningen of ‘making a farce out of the academic way of working’

‘Ideological capture’ of research and clampdowns on dissent are spreading, argues Peter Boghossian

Ministry decision to allow universities to deny services to women without headscarves ‘will only reinforce people’s anger’, says scholar

Academic council says safety of teachers and students a top concern after Kremlin puts institution on blacklist

Academics inside and outside the country describe fluctuations faced by Iraqi universities over past two decades

Literature scholar talks about life in Japan and being an academic single mother

Jason Wingard agrees to leave after less than two years in charge

An image of massed ranks of anatomy faculty giving the Nazi salute is a reminder that academics are not immune to extremism, says Jonathan Leo 

Council for At-Risk Academics is fundraising to help displaced academics continue teaching

Senior faculty are trying to prove their worth by making the lives of others so unpleasant that they agree to leave. It is time to call them out, says Aymen Idris