Researcher (junior)

Emma Dabiri’s research uncovers the ways that our immediate reactions to people are still underpinned by the ideologies of ‘scientific racism’

Philosopher calls on universities to take AI debate ‘out of the hands of the industry’ and end ‘ethics washing’

The relationship between PhD students and their supervisors is often said to be the most intense in the academy, with huge implications for student success. Yet most supervisors receive little if any training. Here, six academics give their take on how to approach it 

Current remedies are not enough. Publishers, editors and referees must do more to eliminate lurking biases, say Melinda Duer and Athene Donald

Deep partnerships with government, business and civil society leave a sweet taste for both academics and the public, says Mark Western

The UK’s research excellence framework is slow, expensive and disruptive. The time and technology is ripe for a better alternative, says James Tooley

After more than doubling its spending since the financial crisis, Germany’s long budget boom is set to come to an end

Bias would be reduced if grant applicants’ capabilities were considered only after assessment of their anonymised proposals, says David Sanders

Agreement that EU research funding should continue to be distributed according to quality is an important step forward, writes Jan Palmowski

But study authors stress that research environment at Chinese universities is quickly catching up with US

Work to encourage team science is gathering momentum, and a recent Academy of Medical Sciences report highlights key steps to be taken

But funders still need to create standardised data repositories for all fields, says Magdalena Skipper

A large world-class university may eclipse a less renowned neighbour, but an education ecosystem rich in diversity can benefit all in the area

For those reliant on EU funding, seeking appointments at continental universities is the only sensible course, says Peter Coveney

Debate sparked by criticism of growth of PhDs by publication, and allegations that corruption and nepotism are undermining the reliability of the academic doctorate

Ministers love talking about grand government-directed projects, but Philip Hammond must reaffirm tomorrow the UK’s support for open-ended research using quality-related funding, says Stephanie Smith

This growing but still unacknowledged phenomenon in higher education is badly in need of ethical oversight, says an anonymous academic

Protesters allegedly called researchers ‘dirty Jews’ and ‘traitors’ in latest intimidation of scholars who emphasise Polish role in the Holocaust

Negotiations on €100 billion Horizon Europe scheme delayed by East-West tensions and could be slowed further by European elections

John Ross examines the state of cross-study and collaboration between Australia and its neighbours in the East

Efforts to improve work-life balance must address the significant amounts of time that many scholars spend travelling, says Rachel Moss

The government’s new ‘national interest’ test for research proposals is another damaging symptom of short-termism, says Margaret Sheil

Simon Baker examines the rise of China as a research nation and the worries this provokes among some Westerners

Using the teaching excellence framework to drive up teaching standards is fundamentally misconceived, says Matt Waddup

Seeking special status will further antagonise non-members faced with curtailed access to EU research funding, says Jan Palmowski

As Brexit reaches fever pitch, who knows what damage the 2028 research excellence framework might reveal

Academics who want their findings to be used but not abused should bear eight things in mind, says Nick Hillman

The academy is not the military. Addressing fellow scholars by their surnames only is unnatural and disrespectful, says David Benatar 

Evidence of strong public demand for access to papers is scant. Might a sophisticated database of lay summaries be more valuable?

Book of the week: writers shine a light on the disturbing gap between human rights and realpolitik, finds Matthew Joseph

Even in tourism studies, reality often belies the bold, sunny pictures painted in the impact case study brochure, says Rhodri Thomas 

Universities may feel held to unachievable standards, but removing barriers for all manner of talented people will make institutions better and stronger

‘More objective’ news reporting has not necessarily yielded better politics, finds Suzanne Franks

With many doctoral candidates unhappy and reporting mental health problems, Emma Pierson suggests ways supervisors could reduce pressures

Forcing academics on to teaching-only contracts based on flawed assessments of their research is ruining careers, an anonymous academic says 

Encouraging academics to spend time with scholars from outside their own discipline will be vital to tackling today’s grand challenges, says Annette Rubery

The Canadian government’s excessive policing of privacy makes it intolerably onerous to access its datasets, says Karen Robson

Tokenistic and irrelevant assessments of research’s social value are holding back progress, say Clarence Tam and three others

Academics should not sneer at Simon Birmingham’s appeal to what ‘most Australians’ would think about projects, says Hannah Forsyth

The furore over Brian Wansink’s data handling overlooks the fact that science should above all be about explanation, argues Martin Cohen

Both the rationale and the mechanism for redistributing research activity around the regions are far from clear cut, say Sarah Chaytor and Graeme Reid   

Take-up of research by business is difficult to catalyse and record. Far better to focus on the impact central to universities’ missions, say Vince Mitchell and William Harvey

Female-only professorships will speed progress to gender equality in the academy, but the pushback shows how far there still is to go, says Clare Kelly

PhDs are becoming more programmatic in many countries, but the German one-on-one model retains considerable influence, says Glen Jones

As winter’s tunnel looms, academics would do well not to retreat into lonely silos, says Alison Newby

Jack Grove asks whether those who lead academic departments and universities can still realistically find the time to be effective researchers

Depositories of original sources were once bulging with academics, but few scholars seem to have time to visit them now, says Arnold Harvey

If those researching topics disliked by politicians can’t make a living in universities, scholarship will be impoverished, says Mark Steven

Dutch figures show just how little time professors get for their own research. It may be easier to pursue your intellectual interests outside the university system, says THE reporter David Matthews

Pioneer of the genetics of hearing talks about how her research interests have been shaped by wine and music – and how she would cope with deafness

If you want your manuscript to be accepted, pepper it with formulaic neologisms, irrelevant but impressive references and suitably indented vulgarity, advises Janelle Ward

If women in particular must watch what they say for fear of a social media mauling, public scholarly fora will be the poorer, warns Charlotte Galpin

Displays, debates, delights; Allied leaders’ letters; big questions answered; and a groundbreaking trial that never was

Simon Baker weighs the evidence for the transformation of the country’s higher education system

Nick Hillman disputes a narrative that assumes all would be well if ‘experts’ were put in charge

Authoritarian populist governments prevent bloc from taking action to protect academic freedom, say scholars

While widening access is high on universities’ agendas at undergraduate level, class barriers still prevail in the academy. Here, five working-class scholars describe their experiences of ‘otherness’

Early career academics on temporary contracts must put aside personal hopes of a better future and unite to improve their current lot, says Steven Parfitt

Tsinghua provost urges researchers to take the risks required to achieve major breakthroughs

Younger academics spending far less time on scholarship than in leading nations, analysis suggests