Genuinely hard to say who’s done more damage to UK universities Russell Group or UniversitiesUK Impressive work, either way😉 www.ft.com/content/bc2d...

Vice Chancellors

Mother of God. We've reached peak UK HE.

The same system that WonkHE had worked to uphold, you mean.

Comment: Research funding cuts threaten a whole generation of scientists UK will suffer lasting consequences from disrupted talent pipeline, say Mike Lockwood and James Wild, president and president-elect of @royalastrosoc.bsky.social www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-v...

I have a 'History Department in UKHE' joke but it's been reduced from 250 characters to 50 and is now merged with jokes from across ten other largely-unrelated disciplines while still being expected to be Just As Funny.

Besides some superficial "free speech" stuff; there will be a doubling down on employability, which will of course further reduce employability. Meanwhile Reform will try to shut down most unis regardless, speed running the same "university isn't worth it, learn a trade" trend already taking hold.

Goodwin always loses, but never goes away.

Populists want to destroy universities, so one could argue UK HE management is in fact doing this preemptively.

Compulsory redundancies, 400 job losses, a campus closed. The justification has always been: we have 2612 staff. This is the number the VC has used repeatedly to justify this unprecedented attack on our jobs. But the latest financial figures from the uni say that we actually only have 2273...?

The only real difference between a cynical immoral VC and a 'good' one is whether they feel bad about the consequences of their actions. They both face the same overwhelming structural incentives, which create a trajectory toward financial instability and academic mediocrity.

What is a 'number' anyway? If you think abour it... 🤔 Point is we're firing a bunch of you and forcing the rest to seriously consider resigning in disgust over our corruption and incompetence.

'The surging number of redundancies in UK higher education could undermine entire research fields as networks of collaborators disappear, according to an academic whose project fell through when a colleague’s job at another institution was put at risk.' 1/2

Jesus. We knew we weren't exactly sending our best when our Faculty Dean moved to become your VC, but even we are astonished at the levels of incompetence.

How universities are increasingly viewed in a country that still has a substantial graduate premium. www.facebook.com/share/r/1B84...

"consultation" has become void of meaning in #UKHE. If you're not actually engaging with the content it isn't really input, it's just a number in an inbox. Like this slide exactly shows. Absurd how @universityofessex.bsky.social thinks this is justifying not damning.

Strathclyde University has a ~£35m deficit Over 100 staff earn > £100k. Vice Chancellor gets package > £400k 6-figure salary group alone represents ~ 40% of deficit Strathclyde's answer isn’t trimming at the top, it’s cutting jobs lower down news.stv.tv/west-central...

We've heard from @bayoalaba.bsky.social that VC Frances Bowen is *still* not communicating with the Southend MPs or Southend Council. We continue to be incredibly disappointed by this - especially as she seems to be able to find time to speak to the BBC to justify the cuts!

In yet more shocking news: the University forgot to give us our pay uplift for this year (which they had already unilaterally deferred to February). Hundreds of staff have applied for voluntary redundancy, and had their redundancy pay confirmed based on their salary. What does this mean for them?

There needs to be a review of UUK

UniversitiesUK is lobbying group for Vice-Chancellors, not staff or students It's consistently lobbied for higher tuition fees & marketisation It's supported bureaucratic corporatisation & excessive VC pay -- but never staff It's grown fat on University money universitiesuk.ac.uk/about-us/peo...

HE contractors are corrupt across the board, just like HE senior managers. Their 'shadow economy' is rapidly falling apart but they all are walking away with vast amounts of Ill-gotten wealth and zero consequences.

Oh they are concerned about the research talent pipeline?

@georgeclarke.bsky.social @andylong6.bsky.social @timeshighered.bsky.social @theguardian.com @danhollandnews.bsky.social @ucu.org.uk @moneyontheleft.bsky.social @financialtimes.com @ukhenews.bsky.social @tuc.org.uk @unison.org.uk

The budget always has room for private contractors.

Wow, Essex is getting some big news coverage! Promote that marketing team!

Oh goody!

a university manager who actually resigns after staff & students make clear they have no confidence in them. What a notion. (how many #UKHE Votes of No Confidence have we got by now? And how much have those VCs & the trustees shown a complete disinterest in staff & student experience?)

The REF, in every aspect, is a joke. It will only get more so as the research reputation of UK HE crashes.

Transparency in decision making isn't just a buzzword. It is needed to stave off arbitrariness and all the harmful decisions that come from that. The bare minimum step @qmul.bsky.social could do is to be less belligerent in its FOI responses.

The 'Freedom of Information' releases by #UKHE institutions really are the most fascinating pieces of abstract art. Here's @qmul.bsky.social's about a Deputy Principal we may or may not have (not knowing how deputisation is agreed feels like a big deal? 🤷) www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/docu...

A UK university has addressed a staff complaint on senior misconduct by gagging complainant & prohibiting communication with large sections of university community This is a violation of freedom of speech Matter has been referred to MPs and Office for Students

Senior University administration recruits mainly from two populations Those who did not succeed in academia Those who made it all the way to professor, found nothing left to think about & sought fulfilment in meetings & money This explains present condition of UK universities

The managerial career path in UK HE is a factory of corruption and incompetence.

Ultimately the real power of universities, whether in resisting their own corrupt management in the UK or a corrupt government in the US, depends on the reputation they have cultivated. Abandoning respect for commercialisation led to deteriorating public support, and thus powerlessness.

Which formerly research institution in UK HE will adopt year round teaching first?

Management do not see any downsides here.

This will definitely happen.

If you work in UK HE and don't hate your senior management, then you are not paying attention.

Many are asking why the media and government do not care about the destruction of universities. Ultimately this is a function of the sector's reputation with the public. Uni management -- and UUK collectively -- has been in a position to manage that reputation. What did they do?

A central part of maintaining corruption at UK universities is the installation of cronies with inflated salaries. Most senior posts at universities are occupied by incompetent people who could NEVER make 150-250k in any other post. So, they will never question policies that destroy the uni.

Really, vice chancellors (including recently departed ones) should donate all of their ill-gotten wealth to the universities they destroyed.

A central part of maintaining corruption at UK universities is the installation of cronies with inflated salaries. Most senior posts at universities are occupied by incompetent people who could NEVER make 150-250k in any other post. So, they will never question policies that destroy the uni.

If you work in UK HE and don't hate your senior management, then you are not paying attention.

This is going to get much worse soon.

Really, vice chancellors (including recently departed ones) should donate all of their ill-gotten wealth to the universities they destroyed.

Many are asking why the media and government do not care about the destruction of universities. Ultimately this is a function of the sector's reputation with the public. Uni management -- and UUK collectively -- has been in a position to manage that reputation. What did they do?

The Anglosphere in general has collectively decided to give up on leading the world in anything in the future.

Remember when the 'relevant' strategy was to orient universities around future-proof skills like learning to code? Well, those people are still in charge.

What is happening at those UK HE inner-circle senior management meetings where they keep no records and where they discuss the real motivations behind their actions? Whatever cynical private takes you might imagine from these corrupt charlatans, the reality is certainly far worse.