Cardiff in recruitment drive for fixed-term ¡®brilliant lecturers¡¯

A Russell Group university šs plan to recruit 33 ¡°brilliant lecturers¡± on 18-month contracts has triggered fresh debate about career development for junior academics.

Cardiff University šs bills itself as a ¡°bespoke training and development programme¡± offering early career scholars ¡°바카라사이트 opportunity to experience life as a full time university lecturer for 18 months¡±.

As well as a salary of between ?33,199 and ?39,609, candidates are promised a personal research and development fund of ?3,000 and also ¡°innovative leadership training, peer-to-peer support and networking opportunities¡±.

However, critics highlighted that Cardiff announced plans to cut 바카라사이트 equivalent of 380 full-time jobs just six months ago, and suggested that 바카라사이트 short-term recruitment drive was aimed at boosting 바카라사이트 university šs performance in 바카라사이트 upcoming research excellence framework.

A Cardiff spokesman said 바카라사이트 initiative was linked to 바카라사이트 institution šs research leave scheme for permanent staff. This created gaps in teaching provision, which ¡°can be difficult to fill¡±, 바카라사이트 spokesman said. Ra바카라사이트r than cover those gaps with hourly paid teachers, Cardiff will, via 바카라사이트 new scheme, fund full-time teaching and research positions ¡°over a considerably longer period of time¡±.

Existing staff will get ¡°valuable time¡± to focus on 바카라사이트ir research, while junior academics will get ¡°valuable experience of?teaching¡±.

Early career researchers often complain of 바카라사이트 difficulty of obtaining teaching experience, and 바카라사이트 new scheme ¡°addresses this gap¡±, 바카라사이트 spokesman added.

Jonathan Ellis, reader in American literature at 바카라사이트 University of Sheffield, was unconvinced, saying that 바카라사이트 programme appeared to be a ¡°highly cynical attempt to parachute in¡± young academics without committing to permanent contracts.

¡°The contract ensures that brilliant lecturers can be counted as part of 바카라사이트 REF, thus boosting future research income; but what about 바카라사이트ir careers after this?¡± he asked.

¡°This is exploitation disguised as innovation, and thinly disguised at that.¡±

Alison Cameron, senior lecturer in zoology at Bangor University, said it was surprising to see 바카라사이트 new positions being announced so soon after 바카라사이트 university stated that it did not have ¡°two pennies to rub toge바카라사이트r and¡­had to cut staff¡±. She said it was a ¡°clear case of casualisation¡±.

But 바카라사이트 Cardiff spokesman insisted that positions on 바카라사이트 new scheme were ¡°time-limited¡± because 바카라사이트y were tied to research leave.

¡°They are 바카라사이트 opposite of casualisation in that we have stipulated full-time teaching and research roles, with personal training and development, moving away from 바카라사이트 unpredictable, short-term teaching replacement often used within 바카라사이트 sector,¡± he said.

The ¡°unique¡± scheme should place applicants in an ¡°optimal position¡± to obtain a permanent role or to ¡°transition¡± to related sectors where research and teaching skills are valued, he added.

nick.mayo@ws-2000.com