Visibility is a form of currency in academia. A rolling stone gathers moss as the proverb goes, and in my case moss = opportunities. Because of my profile, I get asked to keynote conferences, run workshops, contribute to books, be on grants and so on. Taking up these opportunities naturally leads to more conventional forms […] … learn more→

When the Roman poet, Juvenal, wrote the line “Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?” (Who will guard the guards?), it really meant, “Who will ensure that those who guard us do not overreach their authority?” But there is another sense of the question: Who will protect those who are meant to protect us? At higher education institutions […] … learn more→

A study published in September shows that one in five US college students has had suicidal thoughts within the past year. Research from 2009 suggests that more than half have had such thoughts at some point in their lives. Suicide is the second leading cause of death among college-age students, and there are roughly 1,000 […] … learn more→

Many people can vividly remember being 18 and tentatively opening that envelope containing crucial information about the future. On the surface, it’s strange to think that genes have anything to do with it – but our new study, published in Scientific Reports, reveals that genetic factors influence both university enrolment and achievement. How can inherited DNA […] … learn more→

New research on plagiarism at university has revealed students are surprisingly unconcerned about a practice known as “contract cheating”. The term “contract cheating” was coined in 2006, and describes students paying for completed assessments. At that time, concerns over the outsourcing of assessments were in their infancy, but today, contract cheating is big business. In 2017 alone, the […] … learn more→

It seems every school is loading up on Diversity Officers, filling up Diversity Palaces as they preach Diversity. It’s obnoxious, of course, all the more so because of the ridiculous, truly ridiculous, amounts of money poured into these Diversity Officers: Campus diversity czars frequently draw massive salaries. The University of Michigan’s chief diversity officer, for […] … learn more→

Earlier this year, I started a ‘Shut up and Wiki’ group at our university. It has been running now for over six months. Many universities, often with researchers working with the Library, are showing their Wiki-friendly faces with wonderful edit-a-thons, Wiki-bombs, Wiki masterclasses, etc. I wanted to get us in on that action. The initial idea with […] … learn more→

This is part three of my series on academic book publishing. The aim of this series is to take you through the process of turning your PhD into a book – or perhaps writing a new book in the early part of your career. Not all academic disciplines are interested in book publishing and look […] … learn more→

It’s no secret that the for-profit schools are doing the most harm to human beings via student loans…it’s such common knowledge that they are shedding students quickly, many have lost half or more of their students or shut down in the last five years. Now, the only reason these schools gained such infamy is our […] … learn more→

When we reflect on that grand philosophical question, what is the purpose of higher education, there are many answers we could offer. Part of the answer, however, must be that it is to prepare students for the world beyond university and the realities of the workplace. To its credit, the UK government recently announced a […] … learn more→