02-08-2025
University criticised for ‘vanity project' Vogue staff photoshoot
The University of Warwick has come under fire for starting a 'luxury' makeover while making staff redundant because of financial pressures.
Academics accused the institution of indulging in a vanity project after it emerged the institution funded Vogue photoshoots for senior staff as part of a new global marketing strategy.
Ajay Teli, Warwick's chief communications officer, has featured in a series of paid magazine spreads in recent months to promote the university's 60th anniversary. It includes a fashion photoshoot for Vogue Singapore published in June, in which Mr Teli wore designer clothing and said he would use his experience in the 'premium and luxury sectors' to boost Warwick's reputation.
It comes after the university made 218 people redundant last year as financial pressures creep across the sector. The figure is more than double the previous year, and means the university has made over 900 redundancies in the past five years alone, according to Telegraph analysis.
Mr Teli told Vogue Singapore he was 'drawn to higher education as the next frontier of influence, a space where knowledge, identity and opportunity intersect'.
The University of Warwick confirmed to The Telegraph that it paid for the promotional pieces but refused to say how much they cost.
'This is University of Warwick. This is Beyond'
The adverts, first reported by Times Higher Education, were placed to coincide with a wider rebrand at the university which has faced ridicule from staff for being 'tone-deaf'.
The homepage of the Russell Group institution's website has been replaced since June with a lilac landing page unveiling its new tagline: 'This is University of Warwick. This is Beyond.'
Until last month, the main hyperlink on the webpage invited users to 'learn more about our Brand.' This has since been replaced by a button saying: 'Study here'.
A now-deleted page on Warwick's website also instructed staff on how to use the university's new 'Beyond' motto in marketing material.
It said: 'Using Beyond as an abstract noun captures the idea that 'Beyond' is a conceptual space where limits are exceeded.
'Good example: Beyond is harnessing linguistics in sport. Poor example: We go beyond to harness linguistics in sport.'
The revamp forms part of Warwick's new 'brand evolution project' to mark six decades since the university opened. It recently rejected a freedom of information request asking for details on how much this cost, citing 'commercial interests'.
One Warwick academic told The Telegraph: 'People are fuming. Many have likened it to the Jaguar campaign and feel embarrassed to be associated with it.'
Michael Merrifield, emeritus professor of astronomy at the University of Nottingham, wrote on X: 'How can people who work in university marketing be so totally tone-deaf to both the 'product' they are supposed to be selling, and to the front-line teaching and research staff who are expected to actually deliver it?'
A University and College Union source told The Telegraph: 'The University of Warwick's new brand has undoubtedly cost the institution a considerable amount of money, spent while staff contracts are not being renewed, essential roles are being eradicated, and students are struggling to pay their tuition and their bills.
'We have asked the university for information on how much this rebrand has cost and why these funds weren't used to support and improve teaching and learning activities. We eagerly await a response.'
Another academic pointed to other recent examples of 'wild spending' by the university. It included a YouTube collaboration last year with Aldo Zilli, a celebrity chef, to create a sardine and prawn dish to celebrate the 700th anniversary of Marco Polo's death.
Warwick confirmed to The Telegraph that it paid for the video partnership, which received fewer than 400 views on YouTube, but did not disclose the cost.
