“for a Labour government whose base is incredibly graduate heavy & a lot of whose MPs represent university seats, it’s sort of almost the antithesis of what you’d expect them to do,” said Jonathan Simons... perhaps due to the party’s strategy of chasing non-graduate, right-wing leaning voters.' 2/2

Needless to say, in the parts of my kids' secondary school where air conditioning exists at all, it is mostly (they tell me) broken.

Who and what is to blame for the UK's redundancy crisis? We surveyed the views of almost 1,100 university staff - and the results don't make pleasant reading for managers... www.timeshighereducation.com/depth/he-has... @timeshighered.bsky.social

See: www.timeshighereducation.com/depth/he-has... @timeshighered.bsky.social

UK University Redundancy Survey from @timeshighered.bsky.social out today - part one, focusing on experience of leavers. Plenty of data - with respondents torn on whether they want to stay in HE - but personal stories hit hardest www.timeshighereducation.com/depth/i-dont... via @pauljump.bsky.social

Survey of 1K+ UK university staff by @timeshighered.bsky.social: 93% say redundancies have affected morale, 77% strongly; 88% report increased workload, 64% strongly; 59% fear losing jobs in next 12 months, 26% strongly www.timeshighereducation.com/depth/he-has... via @pauljump.bsky.social

30000 university jobs gone in the UK in 3 years. These are people who were working in all job types, at all levels from most junior to most senior.

The results of Times Higher Education’s UK University Redundancy Survey bring home the deep human impact of the redundancy crisis on those who have lost their jobs. Read Part 1 of our analysis here: https://ow.ly/4bIx50YP8V2 #jobcuts #highered #edusky

After winning a huge legal claim against a Harvard University cancer centre, Eugenie Reich tells @jgro-the.bsky.social about the impact of the case, how universities ‘stonewall’ fraud allegations and why she quit journalism to help whistleblowers in science #research #fraud https://ow.ly/rYoy50YKuN2

Excellent article from @jgro-the.bsky.social on the current "carnage" that theoretical physics and PPAN science in general are facing. #UKRI must react and propose a solution. If not, the government and the SITC must step in.

The year I won an ERC grant, I expected years of uncertainty finally to crystallise into something solid. A lab. Independence to pursue ideas. A future that can be planned in more than 12-month increments. Instead, I learned how fragile a scientific career really is." @timeshighered.bsky.social

UK university staff: have you feared for your job at any point during the past two years? How confident are you that redundancies are less likely this year than they were last year? This is your last chance to let us know in our UK Redundancy Survey. @timeshighered.bsky.social

Have any of your colleagues been made redundant by a UK university? Have you? Do you fear losing your job? Whether you are an academic or professional services staff member, employed or unemployed, we are keen to hear your views in our UK University Redundancy Survey https://ow.ly/b6BF50Yl6B3

Do you work at a UK university? If so, have there been any recent redundancies of colleagues within or beyond your department or division? Do you agree that they were unavoidable? And whose fault were they? Please let us know in our UK Redundancy Survey. @timeshighered.bsky.social

That this even has to exist...

UK university staff: if your department/division has lost staff recently, how much has it increased your workload, damaged morale and worsened the student experience? Please let us know your views in our UK Redundancy Survey. @timeshighered.bsky.social

Authoritarian regimes perceive many humanities and social sciences as useless and dangerous. But while their truths might be inconvenient, they are vital to preventing technological developments from tearing already frayed social fabrics, says Saikat Majumdar #AcademicSky https://ow.ly/2YMB50YiIJn

Who or what is to blame for the waves of redundancies at UK universities? Whether you are academic or professional staff, still employed or unemployed, we are anxious to hear your perspectives in our UK Redundancy Survey #AcademicSky #HigherEd https://timeshighered.survey.fm/uk-redundancy-survey

Have any of your colleagues recently been made redundant by a UK university? Have you? Do you fear losing your job? What has been the effect of redundancies on departmental morale? We are keen to hear your views

"As I watched him leave the grounds, I realised I was staring and that I couldn’t get my teeth apart. I spent the rest of the shift trying to work out whether I was high or whether I’d accidentally pressed “double shot” on the coffee machine." @timeshighered.bsky.social

India, too, is in uproar over if/when diversity politicies tip into reverse discrimination. www.timeshighereducation.com/opinion/indi...

“Bizarre” linguistics paper claiming ancient Greeks forbade reference to water as “H₂O” retracted by Springer Nature journal amid disbelief “rambling” and “methodologically weak” article was ever published www.timeshighereducation.com/news/bizarre... via @jgro-the.bsky.social

Breaking: REF 2029 downgrades research culture weighting, reinstates five outputs per academic limit www.timeshighereducation.com/news/ref-202... via @jgro-the.bsky.social #REF2029

We're hiring at @timeshighered.bsky.social! A great opportunity to join us as a reporter and to lead our coverage of European higher education. Closing date 23 November careers.timeshighereducation.com/jobs/6737419... #journalistjob #journojob

An article from a year ago but still extremely relevant www.timeshighereducation.com/depth/it-tim...

"At the recent Labour Party conference, we were told to expect “clarity and coherence”. It is only a slight exaggeration to say, when it comes to the provision of skills, that the White Paper is more likely to create confusion and complexity," says Nick Hillman @timeshighered.bsky.social

"The OfS will now have greater authority to intervene where courses are deemed to offer poor value – raising questions about whether the regulator is truly equipped to make such judgements, especially after recent criticisms of its own poor performance", says Diana Beech. @timeshighered.bsky.social

Will superuniversities save UK HE? Six experts share their views www.timeshighereducation.com/depth/will-s...

Where now for the REF? Five very different views on how radical the changes should be www.timeshighereducation.com/depth/where-...

Opinion: The three-month pause in the Research Excellence Framework to re-examine the assessment of ‘people, culture and environment’ could prelude a welcome reversal, says Alice Sullivan #academicsky #REF

Another bombshell REF announcement: radical change of direction at UKRI re research funding seems on the cards www.timeshighereducation.com/news/univers...

At UUK conference Patrick Vallance announces 3-month pause in REF process to make sure it is ‘properly aligned’ to national priorities. Still on for 2029 but want to avoid it measuring the wrong things. Story soon at @timeshighered.bsky.social

IoT also a great advert for academia. See this 2017 interview we did with Melvyn Bragg: "I just wanted to talk to academics on one subject and see what happens”. www.timeshighereducation.com/features/nev...

Academic Rachael Gunn one year on from the Olympics: “Things settle down and then some other crazy thing happens. I’m the number two Halloween costume in the world, or everyone’s wearing a T-shirt with my face on it. I live in a totally different reality” www.timeshighereducation.com/depth/raygun...

"The HO’s behaviour and policies make it obvious that the UK no longer wants even legal skilled migrants. And the constant recalibration required to stay compliant with shifting regulations leads to perpetual uncertainty and fatigue." @timeshighered.bsky.social

I am pretty sure those are the lyrics of a Talking Heads song.

Where would ‪@retractionwatch.com‬ be without the late Tom Lehrer's advice for academics? Plagiarize! Let no one else's work evade your eyes Remember why the good Lord made your eyes So don't shade your eyes But plagiarize, plagiarize, plagiarize Only be sure always to call it please "research"

But is that focus inevitable when the research budget is defended by sector lobbyists on the basis of its industrial upshots?

How can a research grant proposal get an A grade from the ERC, but get marked down by a local funder? European researchers are left confused www.timeshighereducation.com/news/researc...

In light of Grok's latest far-right outbursts, see this recent piece on its previous failings - and how academics should be empowered to help ensure there are no repeats www.timeshighereducation.com/opinion/huma... @timeshighered.bsky.social

"We have heard that ECRs or redundant staff should be protected or have portability, however while this is attractive, it is just not possible where there is no reliable indicator or way of knowing who these individuals are.”

Universities in England and NI lost £5.4bn on research last year, and £1.7bn on teaching domestic students - but made a £3.2bn surplus on teaching international students, official analysis shows www.timeshighereducation.com/news/univers... via @patrickjack.bsky.social

"At last, a thoughtful and nuanced assessment of the use of AI." @timeshighered.bsky.social

Interesting take

Could generative AI improve the Research Excellence Framework? Writers including @oldnorthroad.bsky.social @heroicendeavour.bsky.social offer their views (with some brilliant illustrations, too, which AI has been nowhere near) www.timeshighereducation.com/depth/could-...

Opinion: The effort of staying compliant with fluctuating regulations diminishes the mental space for teaching, research and building belonging ✍️ Zahra Sharifonnasabi, Fleura Bardhi and Laetitia Mimoun #AcademicSky #EduSky

Could AI ease the burden of reading and rating the thousands of outputs submitted to the UK’s Research Excellence Framework – or would its use undermine the whole point of REF panels? As @jisc.bsky.social consults on that question, four writers offer their views #AcademicSky #EduSky

Opinion: US society must reject the false dichotomy between supporting American interests and welcoming international contributors, says Fernando Reimers #AcademicSky #EduSky

America cannot long remain free, nor first among nations, if it becomes the kind of place where universities are dismantled because they don't align politically with the current head of the government.

A federal judge has halted the Trump administration's ban on Harvard's ability to enroll international students