Latest news with #academicstaff
News24
3 days ago
- General
- News24
Academic excellence through mentorship
Strategic Mentoring Programmes Drive Academic Excellence and Transformation Grow your own timber. This philosophy, rooted in the commitment to invest in 'home-grown' academic talent, has seen the University of the Free State (UFS) continue to make remarkable strides in transforming its academic landscape through innovative mentoring initiatives. Building on five years of success, the university's comprehensive Transformation of the Professoriate Mentoring Programme has significantly enhanced research output, leadership capabilities, and institutional cohesion. MENTORSHIP AS A CATALYST FOR TRANSFORMATION At the UFS, the strategic implementation of structured mentoring has proven to be a powerful tool in building a pipeline of accomplished scholars who are ready to excel at the highest academic levels. This approach recognises that true transformation requires more than just appointments – it demands sustained development and support. A PORTFOLIO OF SPECIALISED PROGRAMMES Since launching its Transformation of the Professoriate Mentoring Programme five years ago, the UFS has expanded its initiatives to address the specific needs of academics at different career stages. The current suite of programmes now supports 165 staff members across four tailored interventions: THE FUTURE PROFESSORIATE PROGRAMME Targeting academics five to eight years post-PhD, this flagship programme focuses on developing scholars who are poised to become professors and associate professors. The two-year fellowship emphasises building international profiles, increasing research impact through quality publications, and achieving recognition as established researchers through NRF ratings. In total, 41% of the 2025 cohort are black South Africans, 41% are white South Africans, and 18% are foreign-born African scholars. Supplied THE EMERGING SCHOLAR ACCELERATOR PROGRAMME (ESAP) This programme supports academics one to four years post-PhD, helping them increase research productivity, prepare for NRF Y-ratings, develop postgraduate supervision capabilities, and advance to senior lecturer positions. ESAP provides crucial early-career guidance that establishes foundations for long-term academic success. In the 2025 cohort, 54% are black South Africans, 32% white South Africans, and 14% foreign-born African scholars. THE WISE PROGRAMME (WOMEN INFLUENCING SCHOLARSHIP AND EDUCATION) Recognising the unique challenges that mid-career women academics face, WISE provides targeted support to female scholars. The programme emphasises strategic career planning and creating pathways for advancement. Among its 23 participants, 61% are black candidates, reflecting the university's commitment to intersectional representation. THE RESEARCHER EXCELLENCE ACCELERATOR PROGRAMME (REAP) REAP supports staff members who are completing their PhD qualifications or have recently graduated. With 54 participants (54% black and 69% women), the programme focuses on successful PhD completion, publishing research findings, and developing scholarship of engagement skills. ESTABLISHED PROGRAMMES – EXCELLENT RESULTS The Future Professoriate and ESAP programmes have had a significant impact on the career progression and research productivity of candidates. The results after five years of structured mentoring speak volumes about the programmes' effectiveness: EMERGING PROGRAMMES – PROMISING RESULTS The REAP and WISE programmes launched in 2024 are gaining momentum and continue to effectively support members in achieving their career goals. Beyond these quantifiable achievements, the mentorship initiatives have also fostered a culture of collaboration and excellence that permeates the institution. COMPREHENSIVE DEVELOPMENT APPROACH The UFS mentoring programmes implement a holistic approach to academic development: Intensive Writing Support: Regular writing retreats provide dedicated time and space for focused research output, with guidance from experienced mentors and editors. Expert Mentorship: Participants benefit from both internal mentoring and connections with external mentors from leading South African universities, many of whom are A- and B-rated researchers. Tailored Workshops: Programmes offer customised workshops on supervision, academic leadership, grant writing, time management, and presentation skills. Peer Learning Communities: Strategic retreats and group sessions foster collaborative networks across departments and faculties, breaking down institutional silos. Individual Guidance: Each participant receives personalised career planning and progress monitoring towards specific milestones. Supplied ADDRESSING CHALLENGES PROACTIVELY While celebrating its successes, the UFS recognises the challenges facing emerging academics, and the toll that high academic output can take on scholars' health and family life. By identifying systemic barriers and providing targeted support, an environment is created where talented academics choose to build their careers at the UFS rather than seeking opportunities elsewhere. This proactive approach has proven effective in retention and succeeded in cultivating a strong community of emerging scholars committed to the institution's future. BUILDING ON SUCCESS As the UFS mentoring initiatives enter their next phase, the focus is on sustainability and expanding impact. Alumni of the programmes now serve as mentors themselves, creating a virtuous cycle of development and support. The university's Vision 130 strategy emphasises continued transformation of the professoriate, with these mentoring programmes serving as cornerstone initiatives. Through strategic mentorship, the University of the Free State is not only transforming its professoriate but also redefining what academic success looks like in the South African context – ensuring that excellence and representation go hand in hand. Contact Us: Bloemfontein Campus: +27 51 401 9111 Qwaqwa Campus: +27 58 718 5000 South Campus: +27 51 401 9111 info@ More information: URL ________________________________________________________________ UFS social media Facebook:
National Post
3 days ago
- General
- National Post
Terry Newman: Profs call out their association for left-wing mayhem
Article content Some Canadian academics are accusing the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) of straying from its core mission of advocating for academic rights and fair working conditions to pursuing a politicized agenda that undermines its fundamental purpose. Specifically, they accuse CAUT of — issuing an unsubstantiated U.S. travel advisory, producing a likely skewed academic freedom report with soon-to-be added anti-Israel rhetoric, and encouraging administrative overreach into equity-based hiring that risks faculty autonomy — betraying its founding principles. Article content Article content Article content Addressed to CAUT's president Robin Whitaker as well as the association's Academic Freedom and Tenure Committee, the open letter, which began circulating on Monday, currently has 165 signatures from current and former academic staff from British Columbia to Newfoundland, working in diverse fields ranging from Film to Physics. What they all have in common is their opposition to the politicization of CAUT. Article content Article content And they appear to be correct. CAUT's scope has, indeed, gone far beyond its original purposes. Article content Founded in 1951, CAUT was envisioned as a national association that might help faculty members deal with 'salaries and pensions, sabbatical leave and academic freedom' issues — basic, bread and butter issues for its members who now total 75,000 teachers, librarians, researchers, and other academic staff in over 130 Canadian colleges and universities across the country. Over time, CAUT's role expanded to include other, non-controversial concerns, such as the protection of intellectual property, necessary for the digital age, advice on legal support and collective bargaining, and fair employment, which includes organizing against the increasingly precarious conditions of contract workers. Article content Article content Fast forward to 2025. CAUT's scope is now far more ambitious, political and global. Article content In its own words, CAUT sees itself as advancing 'equity and human rights for academic staff across Canada.' Its assumed responsibilities don't stop at our borders though. Despite originally being an organization concerned with the basic issues of labour for academic employees here at home, CAUT now sees its role as global, telling members, 'We partner with national and international allies to defend human rights.' Article content It appears CAUT wants to be an academic United Nations. Article content In addition to these, no doubt, well-meaning, yet, lofty goals, CAUT now sees organizing to push for equity hires as part of its purview. 'With our member associations and allies, we press for the Indigenization of our colleges and universities and justice for all,' it notes. Article content This is one of the complaints in the open letter. Article content While taking no issue with fairness in pay amongst genders, 'two individuals who have different genders but comparable positions, experience, accomplishments,' the letter argues that advocating for targeted equity hires goes beyond the scope of CAUT's mandate and actually promotes administrative control over hiring, conflicting with CAUT's role in preventing administrative overreach, as hires are typically decided amongst faculty members, not university administrators, because doing so would go against academic freedom.
BBC News
14-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Cash-strapped Keele University to cut 150 more jobs
A university is set to make another 150 job cuts amid what it described as "unprecedented financial challenges" within the higher education University plans to cut 100 more academic roles and about 50 professional services jobs as it faces a further £5m financial deficit in 2025-26, in addition to a previously announced £6m annual savings University and College Union (UCU) has condemned the job cuts as an "ill-conceived solution".However, Keele University leaders said the cuts were a "last resort" but necessary to secure its long-term future. UCU members recently carried out five days of strike action in a dispute over plans to merge the schools of humanities and social sciences, with 24 academic jobs being the announcement of further job cuts, the UCU called for an immediate halt to redundancies and the establishment of a joint working group to "properly diagnose Keele's financial problems"."We have consistently argued that the university's financial troubles are misdiagnosed, making staff cuts an ill-conceived solution," a spokesperson UCU added the the latest decision followed a "dangerous trend of benchmarking driven cuts across higher education" and that redundancies would "pile unsustainable workloads" on remaining staff and ultimately harm students."Keele's students understand this, which is why they have vocally supported UCU's industrial action. How can the university fulfil its mission of preparing students for their futures while dismantling the very foundation of their education?" it said.A spokesperson for the university said its financial challenges were a result of the value of tuition fees being eroded by inflation and uncertainty over the recruitment of international students."We have worked hard over several years to ensure Keele is able to withstand these pressures as much as possible, and job losses are always a last resort but are necessary to secure Keele's long-term future," they acknowledged that it was "unsettling news" for both staff and students, and said its priority was to support staff who were affected by the changes and to minimise the impact on students. This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations. Follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
