Brian Bloch

Articles by Brian Bloch

Disquiet over ‘PhDs by publication’ diminishes doctorate’s prestige

Misuse of ‘cumulative PhDs’ should prompt debate over whether stacking research papers is really equivalent to writing a dissertation, says Brian Bloch

28 November

A robot writing with a pencil, symbolising editing

AI won’t remove the need for human academic editing any time soon

Disciplinary nuance and optimum word usage are likely to remain beyond chatbots trained on the imperfect existing corpus, says Brian Bloch

30 December

Unproductive senior office worker sitting at desk and building a card castle instead of working

Having an academic midlife crisis? Don’t just coast to retirement

Too many academics who have lost their motivation mid-career abuse a system that is often unable or unwilling to confront them, says Brian Bloch

19 June

A woman reading a book in the park, symbolising neglect of teaching duties

Neglect of teaching may be common in Germany – but punishment less so

Despite a court’s endorsement of controversial virologist Alexander Kekulé’s suspension, suspicions linger that it is politically motivated, says Brian Bloch

10 February

Illustration: A brain containing a maze and a door, symbolising psychology admissions

Will an aptitude test make German psychology admissions fairer?

The test aims to flag potential that school-leaving exams miss. But not all applicants to the hugely oversubscribed courses are cheering, says Brian Bloch

25 November

Practising conference presentations is vital – even for native speakers

Overloaded slides, peculiar body language and speech that is too quick, slow, quiet or relentless are all easily fixed, says Brian Bloch

29 November

A bored academic leans her head on a book

When marking is such an ordeal, is it any wonder errors creep in?

The summer marking marathon is among the most dreary of academic duties. Thank goodness students can appeal, says Brian Bloch

9 July

Heidelberg University

German universities’ teaching in English is unavoidably flawed

Limited fluency and cultural concerns could lead to a backlash against German institutions’ pitch to the international market, says Brian Bloch

6 May

Reichstag building mirrored in glass as a metaphor to plagiarism scandals relating to politicians.

Plagiarism scandals are devaluing higher degrees in central Europe

Too much attention is paid to academic titles and too little to the substantial contribution they should indicate, says Brian Bloch

31 March

Person marking an error on a page with red marker

Journals’ English copy-editing services are inadequate and unethical

Editing is often assigned to doctoral students from very different fields – but substandard manuscripts may be accepted anyway, says Brian Bloch

4 October

Editing journal article

Five myths about academic editing

The quality of scholarly editing is ‘extremely uneven’, says Brian Bloch

30 October

From Where I Sit illustration (27 August 2015)

‘Professor hunters’ dig in on the digital battlefield

Brian Bloch considers the attacks against two Humboldt University scholars in the internet age

27 August

From Where I Sit illustration (9 July 2015)

Turbulent times at Zeppelin University

Campus leaders must apply academics’ theories in the boardroom, suggests Brian Bloch

9 July

From Where I Sit illustration (4 June 2015)

Open for business: language skills can make a world of difference

Learning to read foreign literature and communicate in a practical sense can be mutually reinforcing, says Brian Bloch

4 June