An ever-present and increasing problem for today’s universities is the use of essay mills by the student body. Essay mills have emerged in recent years as large-scale businesses offering paid-for writing services including essays, dissertations, PhDs and other forms of assessment, all tailored to specific degrees and courses, and often…>
Academic Careers
Work-integrated Learning in the University of the Future
Work-integrated Learning (WIL) is a new conceptual framework to help universities build on their current employability work to create forward-thinking, future-driven strategies for offering practice-orientated learning across the curriculum. Employability has long been a key part of universities’ mission to produce graduates who can transition smoothly into the workplace. Under…>
How To Beat ‘Imposter Syndrome’
How do you know that you have imposter syndrome? The imposter syndrome is a state of mind, a psychological phenomenon. It is when you have accomplished something huge but don’t permit yourself to recognise it. Remember you are not alone. The highest achievers often feel it too. Some even say…>
Unconditional Offers and the Visit Day
As outlined in my previous article Managing the (new) Admissions Cycle there have been great changes in the last year or so to the number of unconditional offers made by universities to applicants, with unintended consequences for the overall pattern of admissions across the academic year, as well as with larger, still…>
Managing the (new) Admissions Cycle
Changes are afoot in university admissions. In 2017-2018 the number of unconditional offers made to applicants shot up seventeen-fold, or 40%, from a mere 2,985 students in 2013-2014, to last year’s record of 51,615 (see UCAS’s 2017 End of Cycle Report on Offer-Making). This increase has been the subject of debates in…>
Examination Boards
Examination Boards in the UK are the official bodies that set and mark exams for qualifications such as GCSEs, A levels and BTEC vocational qualifications. Jobs with examination boards are well suited towards candidates with teaching or lecturing experience, as well as a degree or postgraduate qualifications. Careers with Exam…>
Impact and Your Research
If you’re an early-career researcher or lecturer the forthcoming Research Excellence Framework (REF2021) may be your first REF round, but it probably won’t be your last. The main way in which the REF will affect early-career academics is in its requirement for outputs (between two and four published outputs for…>
Making the Most of Research Leave
Research leave can be a blessing, but like other aspects of academic life, needs to be managed carefully in order to get the most out of it. Here are a few tips on how to make the best use of your time if you’re fortunate enough to be awarded leave…>
The Importance Of Social Media To Your Academic Visibility
As a tool of academic networking, social media has become an almost indispensable feature of academic life. It is possible that its importance varies according to your standing within the profession. For older and more established scholars, some remain reluctant to experiment with social media, believing that their status within…>