two countries, one sector
I'm doing some webinars on the academic job market in the US vs. the UK. They've made me think about cross-border solidarity.
Pardon the shameless self-promotional post: after some conversations with folks in my department, and after sitting through dozens of interviews in my first year and a half as an assistant prof (seriously, my department hires a lot), I decided to put on a webinar discussing differences between the academic job markets in the US and UK. I expected maybe 30 people to sign up. As of this writing, we’ve got 150. Now there are two webinars, demand for written resources on this topic, and calls for a similar webinar for professional/admin staff (which I’m not equipped to run, but someone should!).
There are some obvious takeaways here. First, there’s clearly demand to better understand both markets. Underlying that is a second—that it is increasingly necessary to apply in multiple countries (for those who are able) in order to stand a chance at an academic job. This in and of itself feels like a crisis. I did perhaps the simplest international move one can orchestrate—to a country where I speak the language fluently, without dependents, with the move itself reimbursed by my institution—and it has had long-term if not permanent impacts on my financial situation, to say nothing of my mental health (though I was not a shining example of that beforehand, tbf). If it’s a real choice, fair play, but this isn’t something anyone should have to do in order to obtain a job in their field.
Third is that, while there are real differences between how academia is set up in these two countries, they tend to be variations on the same underlying structural, exploitative themes. Did you know…
…that PhD students in the UK, who are part of the same union as staff (faculty in US parlance), have called out the most recent pay offer from universities as marginalizing the concerns of students and other precariously employed academics—much in the same way that mass grad student unionization in the US is a response to repeated ignorance of grad student concerns by more senior faculty?
…that about 1/3 of UK academic staff are casualized (on contingent contracts), about the same number as in the US, and that these figures are rising in both countries?
…that academics who critique Israel and/or speak in support of Palestine are hounded and decried in both countries, if a bit more (anecdotally) in the UK?
…that the University of Nottingham is building a truly inexplicable campus downtown but claims it can’t afford to pay staff a wage commensurate with inflation, mirroring massive neoliberal building projects on campuses across the US?
I could go on.
My point is that there really aren’t two sectors here (US vs. UK). There’s one sector, higher ed in former imperial powers, with variation across the two countries based on historical particularities but shared interests in the perpetuation of racial capitalist structures, more transparent than ever about its disinterest in teaching anyone or anything that is not hegemonic. And so, if we’re going to see more cross-pond pollination (since folks need jobs and I do not begrudge anyone looking for looking wherever they can find one), we might as well think about cross-pond organizing, which start with knowledge exchange—like this!
Do pardon the politics: though inevitable, I do want the webinars to be practically useful to job-hunters. But, of course, this all happens within the context of our intensely political sector. So, if you’re interested in learning about differences, but also similarities brought on by those politics, between the two markets, do sign up! (See also: the politics of using a personal newsletter more or less as an ad.) A good conversation might be hard with 100 people in each session, but I’m looking forward to one nevertheless.
Seemingly bored with its normal exploitation of staff, the University of Leeds has decided to join the ranks of Queen Mary and other union-busters by threatening to deduct 100% of pay if staff refuse to reschedule teaching canceled due to strikes. So, y’know, the exact opposite of how strikes work. Please sign the staff petition against this blatantly illegal action here.
Speaking of strikes, the latest developments: after several strike days this semester, the University and College Union has put two proposals to members for a formal vote, beginning next week. They’re the same proposals I covered here; the tl;dr is that the pensions proposal is pretty good and the pay proposal is Not. Indeed, the union’s Higher Education Committee has recommended members vote “no” on pay. That’s my position as well, FWIW.
Over in Germany, massive protests in-person and outcry online has led the Bundestag to (for now) reconsider its proposal to reduce the number of years new PhDs have to find a permanent academic job from 6 to 3. To reiterate that: German academics can be employed in postdoc and other precarious roles for no more than 6 years, at which point they must find a professorship or be kicked out of academia. The government wanted to reduce this to three years. We don’t know what will happen next, and it’s possible this policy could still go ahead, but no wonder Germans don’t want to stay in Germany to teach, research, or even to do a PhD in the first place. Here’s some coverage in English.
In the latest Dear Gods Do We Have To Keep Talking About This saga, there is now apparently AI software that reads in a PDF of journal articles and will answer your questions about them. Beyond the fact that there is some dicey intellectual property/copyright stuff going on with this, it also seems like a blatant attempt to avoid that most basic of academic tasks: reading. Honestly I’d respect folks more if they’d just admit they don’t like reading. (And I’d respect folks more if they acknowledged a lot of academic work is poorly written, and there’s nothing wrong with actually trying to be engaging and considering narrative when presenting research. I digress.)
In the latest My Research Area Is Extremely Problematic saga, The New Yorker did a deep dive on disinformation campaigns, power politics, and what happens when we apply the “terrorist” label to someone who fits our stereotypes. Predictably, a senior academic is implicated in a morally (not to mention legally) questionable international scandal, and I am once again asking why almost no one at the Program on Extremism working under this academic (with some exceptions) ever speaks out against his clear and unrepentant Islamophobia.
More shameless self-promotion: I did a report launch with Tech Against Terrorism last week regarding terrorist designation, online content moderation, the German example, and why all of this ignores actual vulnerable communities. There’s a recording if you’re curious.
And also: many moons ago, I started some work with APSA’s Committee on the Status of Graduate Students in the Profession on surveying grad students about working and living conditions. Now that work is out, compiled and published by a new team of excellent volunteers. Unsurprisingly for anyone who’s been a grad student recently, grad students are most concerned about three things: getting a job, the state of diversity and inclusion in higher ed, and making ends meet financially.
Opportunities
Every year, the PhD students in my department run a conference for other PhD students. It’s a fantastic, low-pressure opportunity to get some feedback on your work if you’re based in the UK. The deadline for abstracts is TODAY (sorry!) and you can read more about the conference theme here.
Friendly reminder that the 2023 Bridging the Gap New Era workshop for PhD students is accepting applications until April 30. Whatever your thoughts on “policy-relevant research,” this is a really formative experience and chance to meet truly good people.
The Advancing Research on Conflict (ARC) Consortium is offering a short summer school in London for ECRs prepping for fieldwork in conflict zones or otherwise volatile settings. Applications are due April 30. More info here.