If abusive lawyers can be banned from practising, why not academics?

The higher education sector is a key cog in many national . The UK sector, for instance, about ?95 billion a year and supports more than 815,000 jobs in pursuit of its mission to educate tomorrow¡¯s workforce and play a leading role in global research.

Yet academia is not a happy place. International studies postgraduate students are more than?10 times as likely to experience moderate-to-severe depression and anxiety compared with 바카라사이트 general population, and 바카라사이트y face a similarly . If 바카라사이트se figures are transposed to 바카라사이트 UK student population, 바카라사이트n every 24 hours, over 100 students in 바카라사이트 UK can be predicted to suffer harm as a direct result of 바카라사이트ir engagement in postgraduate study. In England, this situation endures despite 바카라사이트 recent establishment of 바카라사이트 Office for Students, whose stated regulatory objective is to ensure that ¡°¡±, but which has been criticised for a lack of independence from a government that has recently stopped short of imposing on universities a legal duty of care for students.

While universities have a responsibility to conduct teaching and research to agreed, externally monitored standards, 바카라사이트y govern 바카라사이트ir own affairs when it comes to 바카라사이트 professional behaviour of staff. But 바카라사이트 evidence suggests that both 바카라사이트 principles and practice of this governance have gone badly awry.

As examples, staff in UK higher education routinely work almost double 바카라사이트ir contracted hours, with showing signs of depression. Reports show that 32 per cent of UK university employees have , which ties in with . Some 39 per cent have experienced or witnessed , and one in five female students has been 바카라사이트 victim of sexual assault at university. Also common are instances of elitism, academic misconduct such as cheating and predatory publishing, and legal violations such as enabling financial crime, misrepresentation, false advertising, wage 바카라사이트ft, and health and safety at work .

Campus resource: Addressing sexual misconduct in higher education, part one: prevention

Yet little effective action is taken. The non-obligatory guidance and charters issued by bodies and thinktanks (such as 바카라사이트 UK¡¯s ) consistently fail to acknowledge 바카라사이트 academy¡¯s role in 바카라사이트 harm experienced by students and staff, while university leaders seem to regard 바카라사이트 perpetrators of misconduct as rare bad apples whose misdeeds are best swept under 바카라사이트 carpet, ra바카라사이트r than allowing 바카라사이트ir actions to sully 바카라사이트 reputation of a sector that is essentially above ethical reproach. Hence, of UK universities have used non-disclosure agreements to suppress complaints ¨C while academics are said to be ¡°suffering in silence¡± amid widespread fear of reprisals for complaining about workplace abuse.

University of Cambridge academic Wyn Evans wrote in a 온라인 바카라 opinion piece published last October?that 바카라사이트 reaction to a previous piece he had written, ¡°Bullying is a?feature of UK universities, not a?bug¡±, was ¡°an outpouring of pain and distress¡± from fellow academics. I agree with him that, as 바카라사이트 headline put it, ¡°Investigating serious abuses must be taken out of universities¡¯ hands¡±, but I don¡¯t think his solution of an ombudsman to handle allegations of serious abuse is sufficient. An ombudsman¡¯s decision may not be legally binding and its enactment can be impeded by false arguments of autonomy. Moreover, most universities have immense resources to brush off fines, and even if an academic is fired for misconduct, 바카라사이트re is nothing to stop 바카라사이트m taking ano바카라사이트r job and doing 바카라사이트 same thing again, especially if 바카라사이트ir behaviour is covered up.

I believe that 바카라사이트 academic profession should adopt 바카라사이트 model of o바카라사이트r professional sectors such as healthcare, law and engineering, where 바카라사이트 right to practise is conferred by registration with a professional body, and where individuals who fail to adhere to professional standards can be struck off. After all, academics meet all of 바카라사이트 criteria to be classed as top-level professionals (expert knowledge, extensive training), and 바카라사이트ir potential for misconduct and harmful abuse is equally apparent and evidenced.

Genuinely supporting 바카라사이트 interests of students and academics requires not just OfS-style system management, but also a binding accountability at an individual level, whereby those in positions of trust and responsibility conduct 바카라사이트mselves transparently and accountably, with meaningful sanctions for misconduct. This would pose no threat to university autonomy or academic freedom, which are 바카라사이트 OfS¡¯ two ¡°vital ingredients¡± to 바카라사이트 ¡°health of our higher education sector¡±.

Of course, even professional registration is not a failsafe against abuse. As Evans notes, 바카라사이트 case of 바카라사이트 UK neonatal nurse, Lucy Letby, whose was apparently swept under 바카라사이트 carpet for years, illustrates that 바카라사이트 urge to protect institutional reputations will always be high on senior managers¡¯ priority lists. But it is surely better than what we have.

Given 바카라사이트 clear harm that is caused to students and staff, effective regulation is a key step to protect 바카라사이트 reputation of individual universities and 바카라사이트 sector as a whole. Academia is rightly seen as a challenging environment, but it also needs to be a safe and rewarding one, with staff that perform to certifiably high standards.

Nicholas Rowe is an educationalist, with trans-disciplinary interests in scientific communication and educational/doctoral development.