Questioning the academic hierarchy from contract researcher to tenured professor, Richard Watermeyer finds that the prospect of a harmonious interplay between the public and medical researchers is nothing but a chimera.
Just over a year ago I led a research project investigating the attitudes of medical researchers, as a particular, and in part, peculiar, constituency of the academic workforce, towards an emergent RCUK agenda of public engagement for higher education institutions (HEIs). An online survey returned (n=84) completed responses from a cross-section of staff who spanned the academic hierarchy from contract researcher to tenured professor. Continue reading
13,000 tweets, 430 photos and over 2,000 video views later, 
Sometimes the status quo is preferable, and academic research may play a part in preventing new and harmful proposed changes. But how will academics demonstrate the impact on their research if the results lead back to the status quo? 
Earlier this year, the National Centre for Research Methods released a research paper to waves of interest from academics and researchers alike on Twitter. 
Open access debates have long been fostered by science disciplines but to make open access work truly powerful, we must make the same push for quality research presented in an accessible manner, writes 
As citation counts, h-indexes, and impact become increasingly important to matters of funding and promotion, 
It’s understandable that academics whose research area does not lend itself to impact and those whose roles are mainly teaching will feel alienated by the impact agenda. 
Treat academic writing not as a set of inviolable rules but as a series of stylistic choices, writes 
The pressure of scoring highly in higher education rankings means that European universities are steadily moving from being national institutions providing public goods to global businesses delivering educational services to students and other stakeholders. Arnaud Vaganay notes that whilst individually the chapters of the book are very rich and even compelling, some important questions remain unanswered.
Learning to Compete in European Universities: From Social Institution to Knowledge Business. Maureen McKelvey and Magnus Holmén (eds). Edward Elgar. 
Women are much more likely than men to move out of the research-professor pipeline in order to have children. 
Podcasts present a chance to meet academics you admire and explore the thinking behind their publications all while building up your professional reputation. 
Books at last are going digital – bringing to an end the futile period of paper books losing out to digital journals. With prices falling and instant availability leading to the growth of people reading ebooks, 
The crisis in academic publishing raises fundamental questions about the nature of scholarly enquiry and highlights a lack of connection between the prized forms of scholarship and contemporary readers. 
Scientists never conducted research in isolation from the outside world, but learn edinstead how to ‘do impact’. 
James Hartley
Fluffed lines, muddled dates and forgotten names, it is surprising what academics will do and say when given 60 seconds to discuss their specialization. Yet, breaking a subject down to what is truly important is a great way to encourage public engagement and create impact, writes 
