Academic career advice

Tips and resources to help you build a successful career in academia. From skills development during your PhD to securing tenure and preparing for a role in university leadership, all academic career steps are covered here. You will find advice on promoting your work, growing your professional reputation and developing collegiate networks to support your academic career progression - or to help you move into industry.

Where the Nile’s waters meet: creating value through interdisciplinarity and collaboration

Effective interdisciplinary collaboration hinges on four principles: focusing on the problem, understanding how disciplines interact, fostering relationships and recognising power dynamics, writes Ben Kei Daniel

Ben Kei Daniel

University of Northern British Columbia

Man pushing pound coin up a hill in Sisyphys metaphor for research funding

The Sisyphus trap: surviving plummeting funding success rates

Building a research programme absolutely depends on winning grants, but early career researchers also need to be able to distinguish which opportunities are worth pursuing and where their finite time is best spent

Meysam Qadrdan

Cardiff University

Success in academia is more than a citation count

Academic communities have long relied on citations, publication counts, the journal impact factor and the h-index as indicators of scholarly achievement. These metrics capture only part of the story, as Rachel Miles explains

Rachel Miles

Virginia Tech

An academic surrounded by books looks stressed

Does your university workload allocation model support gender equality?

Workload allocation models can fail to reflect the reality of female academics’ workloads and unintentionally compound gender inequality. Find advice for making the process more transparent

Noreen O’Leary , Hannah Christie, Ioana Tistea

RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences

Four engineers considering an automotive problem

Great teachers simplify before they complicate

Students often overcomplicate challenging concepts, so educators should break complexities into parts, use real-world examples and introduce uncertainty to simulate industry environments

Jeff Warfford

Virginia Tech

It’s time to stop celebrating resilience

When universities ask their staff to do more with less, is it really a test of individual fortitude? Rachelle McKay explains why we should stop praising endurance

Rachelle McKay

Dalhousie University

Female teacher doing chemistry demonstration

Training tomorrow’s citizen scientists in introductory science courses

Faculty who teach large introductory STEM courses often experience burnout, writes Michael Evans. Thinking of yourself as a trainer of citizen scientists and seeing your field in the world around you can help keep teaching fresh

Michael Evans

Georgia Tech’s Center for 21st Century Universities

Birds-eye view of a forest with multiple paths leading through it

Scholarship is not a linear journey: how to encourage students to ‘drift’

The structured nature of academic writing obscures the messiness of scholarship. Meandering is an important part of the research process, says Lauren B. Clark

Lauren B. Clark

UCL

A university teacher answering a student's question

Multilingualism is a strength in teaching

Language proficiency does not equal professional competence. Here’s how to use linguistic skills to teach and rethink what makes a good teacher

Yanyan Li

The University of Warwick

Harriet Dunbar-Morris talks about academic careers on the Campus Talks podcast

Campus Talks: Academic career advice from a university leader, ‘Be curious, be useful, bring evidence’

Learn about the career-building secrets of a university leader who has taken a less conventional path through academia

Harriet Dunbar-Morris, Miranda Prynne

South East Technological University (SETU)

A professor explaining course structure to a class full of students, some of whom have their hands raised

You only get one first class of term – make it count

How to create a positive first impression and transform the first class from a passive briefing to an interactive launchpad for learning

Svetoslav G. Georgiev

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

female mature-age online student working at laptop

‘What I learned from being a university student again’

If educators want to understand student confidence, inclusivity, belonging and engagement, they could consider returning to the classroom as a learner

Marianne Savory, Beka Kimberley, Laura Oxley, Afua Kudom

University of Leeds, Graduate Futures Institute

Spotlight guide: Redefining success in academia

Redefining success in academia

Advice for looking beyond the traditional academic career trajectory and forging your own path to success in higher education

Campus contributors, Eliza Compton

Campus

Female architect looking at plans on site

‘Success in academia needs a metric for how scholarship improves lives’

If we want universities to address society’s greatest challenges, we should ask ourselves how our work makes the world better in tangible, measurable ways. Bobby Vance explains how this question has shaped his career

Bobby Vance

Virginia Tech

Academics discussing a collaborative project around a table

Common challenges in academic collaboration and how to overcome them

Academic collaboration requires more than goodwill and good communication. These strategies can help collaborators navigate tensions around critique, hierarchy, incentives and AI-assisted research

Yan Jin, Ye Bai, Jie Zhang

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

How part-time lecturers can protect their professional identity

You can teach hundreds of students, design learning activities, mark assessments and support academic success – yet still feel like a visitor in your own institution. Find out how to establish a sense of belonging as a part-time visiting lecturer

Katherine Mansfield, Yaz Osho

University of Westminster

How to apply for promotion in higher education

In seeking a more senior role in academia, you will need to communicate a strong, positive story about yourself that emphasises performance and impact as well as contribution to the institution and its reputation

David Waller

University of Technology Sydney

Black university teacher calling on a student in class

Teaching is a verb: what sets good teachers apart

Reflection is what moves teaching beyond performance and towards continuous improvement, writes William Owen

William J. Owen

University of Northern British Columbia

Why the ‘lone wolf’ principal investigator no longer works in modern academia

Teams that integrate clinical insight and academic enquiry result in better academic outputs, increased researcher well-being and a sense of community and shared ownership

Zoë Walters, Tim Underwood

University of Southampton

Campus webinar: Lessons in academic profile building from those who know how

Hear four academics from Campus+ partner institutions in the UK, Morocco and Kazakhstan discuss how to build a reputation as an expert in your scholarly field

Thomas Gift, Lakshmi Goel, Colin Harvey, Riccardo Pelizzo

UCL, Al Akhawayn University, Queen’s University Belfast, Nazarbayev University

Robot hand holding magnifying glass up to computer screen

How to make your academic work visible to AI

If you want the robots and LLMs to find your scholarly publications, you need to make your outputs legible, connected and repeatedly encountered

Darshan Vigneswaran

University of Amsterdam

Beyond checkbox training: how to build university faculty’s digital fluency

How can institutions align digital training with the realities of academic work, professional identity and institutional culture? Here, five academics suggest design principles for effective skills development

Multiple authors

University of Chester, Kate Lindsay Consulting Ltd, University of Plymouth, University of Greenwich , Buckinghamshire New University

The secrets of successful university outreach

Learn how to create and deliver effective university outreach programmes that get more people interested in and engaged with higher education

Campus contributors, Eliza Compton

Campus

Five ways academics can protect their annual leave

Organisation and communication will ease the way for university staff to book guilt-free time off and prevent burnout

Emily Nordmann

University of Glasgow

How to reclaim your identity after academic job loss

When a university role ends abruptly, through redundancy, restructuring or a contract that isn’t renewed, the loss can feel like grief. Victoria Gibbon shares a structured journaling exercise that helped her rebuild a professional identity

Victoria E. Gibbon

Independent academic

A ‘buffet’ model of faculty development to support evolving use of AI

A flexible, agile approach to AI skills development allows faculty and students to choose the guidance, resources and learning opportunities that best fit their roles and contexts

Ben Kei Daniel

University of Northern British Columbia

When teacher training mirrors the classroom we want to build

How to deliver large-cohort teaching development programmes that help postgraduate students see educating as a professional practice, rather than an imposed obligation

Ka Yan So

Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

Colleagues strategise around a whiteboard

Intent: the key to effective and efficient interdisciplinary collaboration

How to make your collaborative projects run smoothly? Plan for it, writes Alina Zare

Alina Zare

University of Florida

A professor guiding students through a task

Developing a narrative, evidence-based teaching philosophy statement

By grounding your values in concrete examples, writing with clarity and tailoring your statement to its audience, you can create a document that brings your classroom to life. Read about strategies

Daniella Sieukaran

Dalhousie University

A young woman holds a megaphone at a protest

Why we should teach students about academic freedom

Empower students with both a theoretical understanding of academic freedom and hands-on experience in advocating for those stripped of it. Here’s how

Kate Murphy, Tony Williams, Suzy Killmister

Monash University

A teacher presenting to a class full of students

How to craft an authentic and impactful teaching philosophy statement

Whether using it for career development or writing a statement as a reflective exercise, learn how to identify and showcase the values, beliefs and goals that govern your teaching approach through real examples

Daniella Sieukaran

Dalhousie University

Two people looking at code on a computer screen

Collaboration is a skill – here’s how to master it

With practical tools, early career researchers can build productive partnerships that advance their work and withstand the pressures of shrinking budgets and shifting priorities

Rodrigo Pena

Florida Atlantic University

How a five-year plan can help realise your research career goals

Early- and mid-career academics can find their long-term goals undermined with day-to-day demands. These steps can help define a pathway, set milestones and prioritise where time is best spent

Multiple authors

Macquarie University, University of Technology Sydney

How to divorce your academic discipline

When you fall out of love with your scholarly subject, leaving the silo can mean a painful separation. But with a break-up can also come a chance to rekindle academic passion. Here’s how to get out and move on

Darshan Vigneswaran

University of Amsterdam

A green liquid is dispensed into a petri dish

Take action to make sustainable labs a reality

Eliminate waste, reap the benefits of a circular economy and aim for ambitious targets for greener laboratories, with these tips

Jenna Lowe

University of Liverpool

A disco ball suspended from the ceiling of a dimly lit room

What a disco ball teaches us about learning and leadership

By acknowledging that perspectives are evolving and relational, educators and leaders can encourage contribution and connection without sacrificing what makes people distinct

Lauren Flannery

The University of East Anglia

Look beyond commercialisation to a wider landscape of impact

Instead of seeing commercialisation as an entrepreneurial activity, let’s look at it as part of a broader picture of the value research creates

Andy Phippen, Louise Rutt

Bournemouth University, University of Plymouth

A woman stands at the crossroads of two diverging paths

Two ways to think about your promotion and tenure file

How to build evidence of your academic career successes when the expectations keep changing? Here are two approaches

Kate Vacek

Independent academic

What bush turkeys can teach us about adaptability at work

When ‘wildlife relocation’ became an unexpected part of her role, Liisa Partanen found the experience came with insight into workplace resilience and problem-solving

Liisa Partanen

The University of Queensland

How LinkedIn helped me create research collaborations

LinkedIn can help researchers build international collaborations, but only when it is treated as a professional community, not just a digital CV. Follow these tips to grow your profile

Julian C. Pena-Bermudez

Universidad del Caribe (UNICARIBE)

Why faculty support should look more like a writing centre

Why do institutions invest in peer writing support for students but not for staff? Anne Brubaker makes the case for a more formalised approach to faculty writing support

Anne Brubaker

Wellesley College

How to get your research found on Google Scholar

If people can’t find or access your work, they won’t cite it. Here, Darshan Vigneswaran explains how to ensure your academic articles surface in search and contribute to building your profile

Darshan Vigneswaran

University of Amsterdam

A guide to academic presentations for first-timers and nervous novices

Even when a presentation doesn’t go to plan, the experience can offer lessons about content, preparation and reflections on effective ways to communicate your research to an audience

Praysgod Mhlongo

Cape Peninsula University of Technology

What new lecturers need to develop their teaching

Dialogic, developmental feedback can accelerate new lecturers’ confidence, pedagogic judgement and professional growth. Here’s how

Katherine Mansfield, Yaz Osho, Richard Paterson

University of Westminster

Bored students sit slumped in a lecture hall

Dear educators, Gen Z here. Could you please teach us like it’s 2026?

Learning has changed drastically in the past five years, but teaching practices haven’t caught up. From your students’ perspective, here’s how to adapt

Sara Brownell

Arizona State University

The hidden research power of librarians at small research-intensive universities

Early career librarians might not see how proximity to faculty, students and institutional decision-making creates opportunities to contribute meaningfully to research initiatives. Trina Fyfe offers critical reflections

Trina Fyfe

University of Northern British Columbia

Campus webinar: How to get your academic work published

Hear four experts from the UK and US discuss the academic publishing process, from how to find a publisher and approach a journal to writing proposals, open access and much more

Corinne Guimont, Lisa Yaszek, John Atkinson, Emily Sharp

Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech’s Center for 21st Century Universities, University of Westminster, The University of Edinburgh

Research supervision that supports and inspires

Discover the skills that underpin effective PhD supervision and how to develop them for personal and professional advancement

Campus contributors, Eliza Compton

Campus

A smiling university professor in a campus hallway

Look for research opportunities in everyday teaching

Low-effort ways to conduct pedagogical research that can transform teaching work from routine into discovery, inviting us to question longstanding assumptions, experiment with innovative approaches and contribute meaningful insights

Adrian Man-Ho Lam

The University of Hong Kong

Academics discuss around a meeting table

Build a teaching and learning research network from the ground up

Early career educators can find support in teaching and learning scholarship through a community of practice. Here’s how

Paul Chesterton

Teesside University

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