13 aprilie 2019
Universitatea Tehnică a terminat anul cu 12 milioane de lei necheltuiţi
Universitatea Tehnică „Gherorghe Asachi” din Iaşi va desfăşura diferit admiterea pentru studiile de licenţă şi masterat începând din această vară, urmând să apară modificări şi în ceea ce priveşte admiterea pentru studiile doctorale. Practic, faţă de anul trecut, admiterea la master va începe de pe data de 10 iulie, în aceeaşi perioadă în care se încheie şi examenul de finalizare a licenţei, cu o săptămână înaintea începerii admiterii la licenţă.
De asemenea, vor avea loc înscrieri pentru studiile de doctorat şi în perioada verii, însă examenele propriu-zise vor avea loc tot în toamnă, ca până acum. Măsura de a realiza o perioadă de înscriere la doctorat şi pentru perioada verii va permite Universităţii Tehnice să solicite suplimentarea numărului de locuri pentru doctorat, având în vedere faptul că, în ultimii ani, numărul doctoranzilor a crescut. Astfel, doar anul trecut au fost admişi 154 de noi doctoranzi, fiind cea mai mare creştere din ultimii zece ani, în total, în acest moment, Universitatea Tehnică având peste 700 de doctoranzi.
„Exista incertitudinea dacă aveam sau nu locurile necesare să le oferim candidaţilor la doctorat. Acum însă vom putea face o previziune din vară dacă va fi cazul sau nu să solicităm o suplimentare în toamnă”, a menţionat prof. dr. ing. Dan Caşcaval, recorul Universităţii Tehnice „Gheorghe Asachi” din Iaşi. Modificările cu privire la admitere au fost prezentate în cadrul unei conferinţe de presă care s-a desfăşurat în cursul zilei de ieri, rectorul instituţiei precizând că „se păstrează aceleaşi repere inovative în ceea ce priveşte procedura de admitere: va exista şi anul acesta un sistem unic de înscriere cu un singur dosar şi o singură taxă de înscriere la toate cele 11 facultăţi, totul fiind gestionat de un sistem online care repartizează candidaţii în timp real în funcţie de opţiunile avute şi media de admitere. Candidaţii pot alege în continuare oricâte facultăţi sau domenii de studii, completând un singur formular online şi venind la Iaşi doar pentru a depune documentele în original”.
40 de milioane de euro necesari pentru renovarea Corpului A din Copou
În cadrul conferinţei s-a vorbit şi despre principalele rezultate din mai multe domenii pe care universitatea le-a avut anul trecut. Astfel, Politehnica ieşeană a înregistrat o creştere semnificativă a numărului de studenţi străini, din Republica Moldova, dar şi din ţări UE sau non-UE. De asemenea, anul trecut au fost acreditate două noi programe de studiu în limba engleză, fiind 10 programe de studiu în engleză şi franceză în acest moment.
Totodată, a crescut şi numărul de contracte obţinute de universitate şi a crescut şi suma acestora, fiind un total de peste 30 de milioane de lei. Mai mult, TUIASI a reuşit anul acesta să ajungă pe locul I la nivelul întregii ţări ca număr de solicitări de brevete depuse anul anterior, conform raportărilor OSIM. TUIASI a înregistrat şi o creştere a numărului de lucrări publicate de profesorii şi cercetătorii Politehnicii în reviste indexate ISI, acesta ajungând la peste 600.
În ceea ce priveşte finanţarea, la finalului anului trecut Politehnica a înregistrat un excedent bugetar de 12 milioane de lei care se adaugă la soldul universităţii de circa 20 de milioane rămase din anii anteriori. Un alt subiect tratat în cadrul conferinţei a fost cel legat de renovarea Corpului A din Copou, din partea de clădire a Politehnicii, pentru recondiţionarea acestuia fiind necesari 40 de milioane de euro. Deocamdată, se realizează proiectul necesar pentru începerea lucrărilor.
Publicație : Ziarul de Iași și Bună Ziua Iași
Profesorii şi cercetătorii UMF au dezbătut modalităţile de alegere a rectorului: votul la referendum se dă pe 8 mai
Universitatea de Medicină şi Farmacie „Grigore T. Popa“ din Iaşi continuă pregătirile în vederea organizării primului pas în alegerile care urmează: ale noii legislaturi a Senatului, a rectorului şi la nivelul facultăţilor. Primul păşeşte referendumul care va avea loc în mai puţin de o lună, pe 8 mai, când comunitatea academică decide felul în care îşi va alege rectorul.
De aceea, pe 10 şi 11 aprilie, în Aula „George Emil Palade“ au avut loc dezbateri publice pentru ca membrii comunităţii academice a UMF să fie informaţi pentru ce votează pe 8 mai: alegerea rectorului, iar legea prevede două opţiuni. „Prin vot universal, direct şi secret al tuturor cadrelor didactice şi de cercetare titulare din cadrul universităţii, al reprezentanţilor studenţilor din Senatul universitar şi din consiliile facultăţilor. Votul studenţilor va presupune utilizarea unei urne separate şi se va pondera la 25% din punctajul obţinut de fiecare candidat. Sau pe baza unui concurs public, în baza unei metodologii aprobate de Senatul universitar nou-ales“, au precizat reprezentanţii UMF. Referendumul va avea loc în Sala Rockfeller – pentru cadrele didactice de la Facultatea de Medicină şi în holul Aulei „George Emil Palade“ pentru cadrele didactice de la Facultăţile de Medicină Dentară, Farmacie şi Bioinginerie Medicală.
Publicație : Ziarul de Iași
University of Essex plans largest ever expansion of staff and students
Essex announces it will recruit 150 new staff members as other universities plan for redundancies
The University of Essex will recruit 150 new members of staff, amid a spate of planned redundancies and cutbacks at other universities as a result of a shrinking pool of students and political uncertainty.
Essex is to create 100 new academic and 50 new professional posts as part of the largest expansion of staff in its 55-year history. The university aims to grow student numbers by 5,000 to reach 20,000 by 2025.
Essex was ranked 31st in the Guardian university league tables for 2019, a rise of 17 places on the previous year.
The vice-chancellor of Essex, Prof Anthony Forster, said the recruitment drive is in response to “record levels of interest from applicants” to undergraduate and postgraduate places, combined with an increase in research funding.
“I am immensely proud that we are prioritising investment in staff,” he said. “This will further enhance the educational experience that we offer to our students as well as boost the research power of the University of Essex. We know students want us to invest in staff and that’s what we have announced today.”
According to a recent survey of 14,000 students by the Higher Education Policy Institute, students prioritise investment in staff and teaching quality on their courses over campus facilities. However a recent report suggests that universities spent over £3 billion on new buildings in the past year.
Essex’s recruitment drive stands out in a higher education sector that is grappling with unprecedented financial pressure, with nearly one quarter of universities reporting that they were in deficit last year. Universities are blaming their deteriorating balance sheets on a combination of lowered forecasts for student recruitment, Brexit uncertainty, rising pension costs and rapidly shifting government policy, including the forthcoming Augar review of university funding, which is expected to recommend a cut in headline tuition fees from £9,250 to £7,250.
Since the beginning of this year, several universities in England have announced redundancies. Keele is planning to slash its staff budget by £8 million, Surrey is offering enhanced voluntary severance packages in a bid to make £5 million of savings, more than 50 jobs are at risk in Coventry University’s faculty of health and science, Kent is planning an as yet undetermined number of redundancies and Winchester revealed redunancies in an email inadvertently sent to members of staff. Cambridge is also proposing staff redundancies as part of a drive to ease its £30 million deficit.
This follows universities warnings from several universities at the end of last year to prepare for redundancies. Among these were Cardiff University, a member of the elite Russell Group, and Reading University, which made a £20 million loss for the last financial year. Staff at the University of Gloucestershire are bracing for 100 job cuts and other redundancies.
In England, the lifting of the cap on the number of students universities can recruit combined with a demographic fall in the number of 18-year-olds has resulted in a competitive new market in higher education. This means that the highest ranking universities are able to recruit students who would typically have gone to lower-ranking institutions.
In February, the University of Essex announced that it had suspended a lecturer for posting anti-semitic messages on Facebook.
Publicație : The Guardian
Georgetown University students vote to increase tuition fees to pay slavery reparations
Students at one of America’s most prestigious universities have voted to increase tuition fees in order to pay slavery reparations – the latest reckoning with the institution’s dark history.
Georgetown University, founded in 1789 by Jesuit priests, is today recognised as one of the leading colleges and law schools in the nation.
But its history is inextricably linked to slavery; the college relied on plantations in Maryland to help finance its operations in its early days, and in 1838 it sold 272 slaves to pay off debts – obtaining today’s equivalent of $3.3m.
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On Thursday, students at the university, located in Washington DC, voted overwhelmingly to increase tuition fees and used that money to establish a fund to benefits the descendants of the slaves who were sold.
“The university values the engagement of our students and appreciates that 3,845 students made their voices heard in yesterday’s election,” said Todd Olson, vice president for student affairs. “This student referendum provides valuable insight into student perspectives and will help guide our continued engagement with students, faculty and staff, members of the descendant community, and the Society of Jesus.”
The students voted 2,541 – 1,304 for what has been termed the “Reconciliation Contribution”. This would increase each term’s fees by $27.20, the figure symbolising the number of slaves that were sold in 1838, and modest enough for most students to meet.
Annual fees, which include tuition, board and lodging, and books, are currently $71,580. The vote by students is not binding, and authorities have not said whether they will enact the increase or help establish a fund.
Lee Baker, a descendant of Nace and Biby Butler, a married couple who are among the 272 enslaved people sold in 1838, told the student newspaper, The Hoya, the vote was very important.
“The students remembered, recognised, and reignited awareness about descendants who literally made it possible for today’s Georgetown University,” they said.
“Regardless of what happens, we will know that Georgetown University students practised solidarity and decided to ensure that such an historic injustice has a permanent lens for awareness, analysis and action.”
Georgetown, one of many of the nation’s leading colleges that had links to slavery, has slowly been addressing its ugly past. In 2016, the New York Times published a major investigation into the role of slaves in securing the institution in its early days.
In 2017, it formally apologised for selling the slaves, and renamed a campus building after Isaac Hawkins, the first enslaved man listed in the 1838 sale.
“The university itself owes its existence to this history,” Adam Rothman, a historian at Georgetown and a member of a university working group examining the issue, told the newspaper.
Publicație : The Independent
Does a university’s culture make it predisposed to cyber crime?
Higher education must reconcile its commitment to open access information with good cybersecurity principles, argues Martin Vincent
A recent report revealed two “ethical hackers” working for higher education internet service agency Jisc were able to beat the cyber defences of 50 UK universities in two hours or less. Furthermore, in 2018, 200 institutions recorded more than 1,000 attempts to steal data or disrupt services; so cyber-resilience is clearly a matter of urgency for the sector.
Universities’ attempts to protect themselves must now go beyond new firewalls and software updates. A more soul-searching self assessment of higher education’s exposure to cyber threats is needed to develop resilience strategies that are fit for purpose.
By its very nature, the culture of higher education is collaborative. As a result, universities have a democratic attitude to information. They want to give students, faculty and partner institutions unrestricted access to university resources to support learning and groundbreaking research. This hierarchy of access rights is less common in similarly sized organisations. The trouble is, when you combine an open access culture with large student and faculty bodies, and a significant number of remote server access points, the likelihood of human error causing a significant cyber breach intensifies.
“Spear phishing”, a form of attack highlighted in Jisc’s report, relies on human error and is one of the most common attacks used to target higher education. Hackers send a personalised email, ostensibly from a known or trusted source, to induce targeted individuals to either divulge confidential information, or give them a direct route into an organisation’s system. Once this happens, everything from personal information to university research can be stolen and held to ransom. This means every individual linked to an organisation’s server is a potential security threat – a threat that increases when universities are liberal with access rights.
The climate higher education is operating in makes mitigating this threat more pressing. A university’s financial health is not as certain as it once was, and the fallout of a cyber attack could result in a significant penalty. The £16.4 million fine levied by the Financial Conduct Authority against Tesco for failing to handle a 2016 breach demonstrates how seriously regulators are taking cybersecurity.
Yet, financial penalties aside, the most insidious effect of a cyber breach could be the impact on a university’s reputation. The market for students is more competitive than it has ever been. Universities cannot afford to be known for a high-profile breach where, for example, students’ personal information was compromised.
It would be wrong to argue higher education should sacrifice its open attitude to information access wholesale for the sake of better cybersecurity. It is what makes our universities vibrant, world-leading centres of research. Instead, the sector needs to marry its unique outlook with proactive cyber-resilience strategies that ensure that culture is sustainable, while protecting against threats.
A big part of this is education. Universities need to match the scale of their exposure to human error with a programme that drives home good personal cybersecurity principles to every student and member of staff. It is also sensible for universities to conduct a full audit of server access points to identify weaknesses, paying particular attention to external links.
Universities can improve their own cyber resilience, but they cannot rely on the credentials of those they are connected to: the democratisation of university resources often extends to the students and faculty of partner institutions overseas.
More broadly, while a comprehensive cyber-resilience policy must include proactive measures to identify and minimise risk, there also needs to be an airtight incident planning and response function to limit the damage caused by a breach.
The bottom line is that cyber resilience is no longer the reserve of the IT department, it requires a holistic, organisation-wide approach led by the vice-chancellor’s office and taking in everything from law and regulation, to communications and employee engagement.
The threat posed by cyber criminals will continue to evolve as technology becomes an even more crucial part of university life. It is not outside the realms of possibility for the Office for Students to make a robust cyber-resilience strategy a licensing requirement in the future. If universities get on the front foot now, they will be well placed to protect the open access culture that’s been such a critical component of the UK higher education sector’s success.
Publicație : The Times
Essay mills aim to help students dodge plagiarism checkers
Websites launch new services as they aim to stand out in an increasingly crowded market
Essay-writing services are launching new resources for students, such as tools to help “paraphrase” sentences and beat plagiarism checkers, in an attempt to stand out in an increasingly crowded market.
Edubirdie, an essay-writing service that paid hundreds of YouTube stars to promote its services, has created a paraphrasing tool in what it described as a bid to become a “one-stop shop” that helps students complete their work so they can “enjoy life”.
The tool allows students to paste a section of text into a box and then select synonyms they can substitute to avoid accusations of plagiarism.
This may allow students to get around plagiarism-detection tools such as Turnitin, which checks submitted work against its database of essays and the content of other websites, with the aim of identifying copied work.
Edubirdie’s website claims that the tool is aimed at easing the problems associated with inadvertent as well as intentional plagiarism.
“How many times have you faced unpleasant situations getting a paper from teacher with the mark ‘contains plagiarism’? Some students copy ideas from other writers’ works,” the website says. “However, there are those who may use paper as an example and memorise main thoughts so that they do not intentionally repeat them when creating their own essay. Every student would like to have a paraphrasing tool that helps find synonyms quickly and effectively.”
Speaking generally, Thomas Lancaster, a senior teaching fellow at Imperial College London, said that many essay-writing services were offering additional services, particularly the longer-established sites.
“Essay mills are offering all sorts of additional free services now to hook students in to use them. There’s a lot of money in contract cheating for the companies involved, but it’s also really competitive,” Dr Lancaster said.
Essay-writing services were also hoping to gain traffic from using the keywords that students seeking help with an essay would use in online searches, Dr Lancaster explained; so if a student searched for “how do I find Harvard reference”, they might find a page on an essay-writing website or a free tool offering to help them.
However, students might be best advised not to rely too heavily on such a tool. In 2014, Times Higher Education reported on “Rogeting” – the creation of meaningless phrases through the thoughtless and ill-considered use of Roget’s Thesaurus, generally to hide plagiarised material.
Chris Sadler, a business lecturer at Middlesex University, reported finding the phrase to “stay ahead of the competition” transformed into the quaint “to tarry fore of the conflict”, while “new market leaders” was converted to “modern store guides”.
His favourite Rogetism, however, was a rendering of the phrase “left behind” as “sinister buttocks”.
Avery Morgan, Edubirdie’s senior editor, told THE that the tool was part of an effort to make the site the “go-to source for students and academics” but emphasised that its results should “serve only as a guide” for essays and should not be submitted as the final product.
She added that “students should enjoy this new feature when they are looking to boil down written material to its core importance…EduBirdie’s goal is to allow people the opportunity to enjoy life and focus on one’s passions and priorities, even when work gets in the way.”
Publicație : The Times
Grève pour le climat: pas plus d’une centaine de jeunes devant l’Assemblée nationale
REPORTAGE – Les jeunes ont répondu à l’appel de l’association Youth for climate vendredi 12 avril. Une centaine d’entre eux se sont rassemblés à 14 heures devant l’Assemblée nationale à Paris.
«Rassemblons-nous le 12 avril à 14h devant l’Assemblée Nationale pour un événement qui sera entendu, même par les sourdes oreilles des élu.e.s», proclame le site Facebook de la grève pour le climat, «Dernière teuf avant extinction». Une centaine de jeunes sont réunis pour danser, ce vendredi, à quelques mètres de l’Assemblée nationale. «Puisque les hommes et femmes politiques ne veulent pas nous entendre, nous sommes venus leur montrer que nous sommes toujours là», affirme Enora, 16 ans. Bonny abonde dans son sens: «Il y a vraiment une inaction de la part du gouvernement qui sait pourtant qu’il y a urgence. Il faut cesser de fonctionner dans un système qui ne cherche qu’à engranger de l’argent, et agir».
Des groupes électro assurent l’ambiance
Les lycéens et collégiens poursuivent leurs efforts, après le succès de leur première manifestation du samedi 16 mars. Depuis deux mois, les jeunes se mobilisent tous les vendredis dans plusieurs grandes villes françaises et dans toute l’Europe, pour réclamer des mesures publiques inédites et efficaces contre le réchauffement climatique. Un mouvement inité par Greta Thunberg, la jeune suédoise de 16 ans. Cette fois, ils sont devant l’Assemblée Nationale pour un événement festif. Plusieurs collectifs de musique, dont Unitypac ou Background, mixent ainsi que certains artistes de la scène électro déjà présents lors de la rave pour le climat du 16 mars. Lucie et Elfie , âgées de 17 ans, sont venues exprès du Val-de-Marne (94) pour participer à la mobilisation. Selon elles, ces événements festifs sont «une bonne chose, car la culture rave est assez sensible à la protection de l’environnement».
Ce week-end, environ 150 jeunes de l’association Youth for climate se réuniront à Nancy
Ces jeunes, âgés de 18 ans tout au plus, sont une centaine, rassemblés à l’angle de la rue de l’Université et de la rue Aristide Briand, à quelques mètres de l’Assemblée Nationale à Paris. Une tente rouge a été montée afin de protéger les platines. Sur le toit d’une camionnette, sont juchées deux grandes enceintes. Tout en buvant des canettes de bière, ils sautillent sur place dans une ambiance plutôt bon enfant. La musique, d’un style électro techno, rythme la manifestation. Parmi les pancartes brandies fièrement par les jeunes, une arbore la mention «l’avenir sur nous, prenons en soin dès maintenant» et une autre «Élevons la voix, pas le niveau de la mer».
Ambiance de folie pour célébrer la disparition de la #biodiversité, la monté des eaux, la dégradation de la qualité de l’air … #YouthStrike4Climate #youthforclimate #FridaysforFuture #RépubliqueDesPollueurs pic.twitter.com/vhvw7Fa8na
Même si à Paris le mouvement semble avoir perdu en intensité au fil des semaines, les jeunes ne comptent pas capituler. Dans les semaines à venir, des actions de désobéissance civile sont prévues. «S’il faut passer par des moyens extrêmes pour se faire entendre, on le fera», affirment Lucie et Elfie, toutes deux vêtues de t-shirt noir et de treillis. Preuve en est de l’ampleur de la manifestation à Lyon et à Montpellier. A Montpellier, 1 500 à 2 500 (selon la préfecture et les organisateurs) lycéens, collégiens et étudiants ont défilé dans le centre historique, derrière une banderole proclamant «Etat d’Urgence Climatique». A Bordeaux, une centaine de lycéens a fait un sit-in devant la mairie, avant de se coucher sur le pavé en scandant des slogans.
Ce week-end, environ 150 jeunes de l’association Youth for climate se réuniront à Nancy pour décider de la stratégie future du mouvement.
Publicație : Le Figaro
Deux mille étudiants réfugiés vont obtenir des bourses universitaires
Environ 2 000 étudiants réfugiés vont bénéficier de bourse universitaire à la rentrée prochaine, a annoncé le ministère de l’Enseignement supérieur. Il s’agit d’étudiants inscrits en diplôme universitaire (DU).
Environ 2 000 étudiants réfugiés vont bénéficier de bourses universitaires, à la rentrée 2019. C’est ce que vient d’annoncer le ministère de l’Enseignement supérieur. Il s’agit d’étudiants inscrits en «DU, diplôme universitaire, passerelle étudiants en exil». Environ 1 500 étudiants étrangers, souvent non francophones et qui ont fui des pays ravagés par la guerre, sont actuellement inscrits à ce diplôme. Ils reçoivent, entre autres, des cours de langues. Or, ce DU «ne fait pas encore partie des formations éligibles aux aides sociales distribuées par le réseau des Crous», notamment les bourses sur critères sociaux, explique le communiqué du ministère, ajoutant qu’à la rentrée prochaine, environ 2 000 étudiants pourraient bénéficier de ces bourses universitaires, délivrées sur critères sociaux.
Jusqu’à présent, pour bénéficier d’une bourse du Crous lorsqu’on est réfugié, il fallait être inscrit dans une filière éligible (licence, prépa, DUT…). «Les universités devaient «jongler» avec les dispositifs sociaux pour soutenir les étudiants réfugiés», a concédé Frédérique Vidal , reconnaissant que «si cela avait été fait il y a quatre ans (au moment de la crise des réfugiés, NDLR) elles en auraient été ravies». Nombre d’étudiants réfugiés, a-t-elle encore déploré, ont ainsi été «incités à quitter leurs études pour accéder au RSA».
«L’un des enjeux majeurs des étudiants en exil est de pouvoir commencer ou reprendre des études dans des conditions décentes, avec une véritable perspective d’insertion professionnelle et sociale», a déclaré la ministre de l’Enseignement supérieur, Frédérique Vidal, citée dans un communiqué. «En ouvrant l’accès à l’ensemble des dispositifs d’aide qu’offre l’État, nous augmentons les chances de succès» de ces étudiants, a ajouté Mme Vidal, qui devait s’exprimait en fin de matinée à Strasbourg.
La ministre a également souligné «à quel point il est parfois insupportable d’enseigner à un étudiant en sachant qu’il sera à la rue à la fin du cours» et «parfois aberrant d’essayer de parler intégration à un étudiant sans ressources dont on voit bien qu’il ne se nourrit pas convenablement».
Ces étudiants pourront aussi faire une demande de logement universitaire auprès du Crous et disposer d’un accès facilité aux soins et à la restauration universitaire. Le coût de la mesure est estimé à 8 millions d’euros. «En prenant cette mesure, (Mme Vidal) souhaite mettre fin à (cette) situation absurde» puisque «les étudiants réfugiés et bénéficiaires de la protection subsidiaire sont majoritairement inscrits» dans ce diplôme, précise son ministère.
Le nombre d’universités dispensant cette formation doit passer de treize actuellement à trente à la rentrée 2019, selon la même source.
Rappelons que pour obtenir une bourse sur critères sociaux du ministère de l’Enseignement supérieur, il faut soit être étudiant français, soit étudiant andorrans, de formation française, franco-espagnole, soit étudiant étranger possédant la nationalité de l’un des États membres de l’Union Européenne, ou être étudiant étranger bénéficiant du statut de réfugié, reconnu par l’Ofpra, Office Français de Protection des Réfugiés et Apatrides.
Publicație : Le Figaro
Sarah Barukh, devenue romancière après l’ESCP: «Si vous ne croyez pas en votre projet, personne ne viendra vous chercher»
INTERVIEW – Pour la 10ème édition du Prix du Roman d’Entreprise et du Travail, Sarah Barukh vient d’être nommée lauréate pour son livre «Le cas zéro» (Albin Michel). Un thriller bouleversant qui raconte le combat d’un médecin, Laurent Valensi, qui, dans les années 80, découvre chez un patient hospitalisé les premiers symptômes du sida. Entretien avec l’auteur, devenue romancière après des études à l’ESCP Europe.
LE FIGARO ETUDIANT- Quelles sont les raisons qui vous ont amenée à écrire des romans après des études en école de commerce?
SARAH BARUKH-J’ai toujours rêvé de faire un métier «artistique», mais je ne pensais pas cela possible. Tout d’abord parce que je ne croyais pas en mes capacités littéraires. Et puis parce que je craignais beaucoup trop les voies «incertaines». J’ai suivi le cursus classique, me suis spécialisée en stratégie d’entreprise à l’ESCP Europe, effectué mes stages, mes premiers CDI… Mais j’avais l’impression de jouer un rôle. Je faisais ce que l’on attendait de moi, mais ce n’était pas moi. Alors, dès que j’avais un peu de temps, j’écrivais, d’abord des petits textes pour me sentir mieux, des histoires et enfin mon premier roman, dont j’ai dû retravailler au moins une vingtaine de versions. Je l’ai fait lire à mon entourage. Les retours encourageants m’ont incitée à me projeter davantage.
«Dans la mesure où la vie entière est incertaine, autant consacrer ses efforts quotidiens à quelque chose qui vous fait vibrer»Sarah Barukh
Ce qui me semblait «incertain» et donc dangereux à vingt ans ne l’était plus vraiment à trente-cinq. Dans la mesure où la vie entière est incertaine, autant consacrer ses efforts quotidiens à quelque chose qui vous fait vibrer. C’est comme ça que l’écriture a eu la priorité .
Dans votre dernier roman, vous décrivez le monde de l’hôpital où la qualité de vie au travail n’est pas toujours au rendez-vous. Comment se préserver lorsqu’on débute dans ce type de métier?
Le plus difficile selon moi dans les métiers «à vocation», c’est d’accepter de les cantonner à un travail, un emploi… Il faut parfois s’y obliger soi-même si l’on veut maintenir la distance nécessaire. C’est d’ailleurs le problème du Dr Laurent Valensi, le personnage principal de mon roman, qui hésite sans cesse entre les appels d’urgence de l’hôpital et les appels au secours de sa petite fille qu’il voit trop peu et qui en souffre. Sa vocation donne un sens à sa vie, il ne sait donc pas mettre de limites, quitte à blesser ses proches et alimenter le cercle vicieux de la frustration, car en étant partout, on n’est nulle part.
Ensuite, il faut vraiment essayer de prendre soin de soi, de son corps, en respectant une routine équilibrante chaque semaine: du sport, une nourriture saine etc. Alors tant pis pour le collègue qui vous demande de reprendre sa garde au dernier moment, si vous avez prévu d’aller courir, vous passez en premier dans votre vie.
«Tous les jours, des burn-out sont déclarés en milieu hospitalier»Sarah Barukh
Enfin parler, parler, parler. Tous ces grands principes, les héros de mon roman ne les respectent évidemment pas Les soignants sont bien connus pour ne pas s’appliquer à eux-mêmes les conseils qu’ils délivrent. Le résultat est sans équivoque: isolement, désespoir, frustration. Tous les jours, des burn outs sont déclarés en milieu hospitalier.
Quels conseils donneriez-vous aux jeunes qui hésitent à suivre leur vocation?
Si vous ne croyez pas en votre projet, personne ne viendra vous chercher pour le réaliser. Il ne faut pas avoir honte de ses ambitions et accepter que pour les atteindre, le chemin peut être long, fractionné en de nombreux petits pas. En gros, ma discipline tient en trois mots:
-Pragmatisme: pour exister un rêve doit devenir un projet…
-Humilité: tout a déjà été fait, écrit, pensé. Il y a toujours mieux que vous et vous n’avez jamais fini d’apprendre donc on relativise, on s’applique et on accepte ses erreurs.
-Optimisme: c’est déjà suffisamment difficile comme ça. Autant écarter les embûches du chemin avec le sourire, en se réjouissant de chaque petite étape franchie.
Après, à chacun de trouver sa propre musique, et surtout, il n’est jamais trop tard pour tout changer.
Réussir, cela signifie quoi pour vous?
Nous sommes seuls à pouvoir fixer les critères de ce que l’on considère être un accomplissement, puis à nous en détacher. Peut-être alors que réussir, serait d’être libre? Libre aussi de ne pas réussir…
■ Le Prix du Roman d’entreprise et du travail fête ses 10 ans
Créé en 2009 par Place de la Médiation, le Prix du roman d’entreprise est co-organisé avec Technologia, soutenu par le cercle Européen des DRH et les partenaires sociaux, et est doté par Klesia Mut’. Il récompense chaque année des auteurs ayant édité des romans sur la thématique du travail. Et ils sont de plus en plus nombreux à puiser dans le monde du travail une source d’inspiration. Au bureau, à l’usine ou ailleurs, ils décrivent le travail comme un labeur ou un bonheur. Une formidable opportunité d’identification pour les lecteurs. Du coup, ces romans sont aussi une forme de thérapie.
«J’ai eu un déclic en lisant le roman d’Amélie Nothomb»
«L’idée de ce Prix m’est venue suite à des galères dans ma vie professionnelle, explique d’ailleurs sa conceptrice Marie-José Gava, journaliste pendant 20 ans. «Pression, tensions, management malveillant, surinvestissement, épuisement … j’ai connu la spirale infernale. Moi qui avais écrit tant d’articles sur la souffrance au travail, je l’ai aussi vécu de l’intérieur. Pour prendre du champ, j’ai ressenti le besoin d’écrire un premier livre didactique sur les risques psychosociaux, de transmettre un peu de mon expérience à tous ceux qui vivent l’enfer au boulot, dans ce huis clos de l’entreprise où les luttes d’égo et les conflits font caisse de résonance. Et puis, j’ai eu un déclic en lisant le roman d’Amélie Nothomb, «Stupeur et tremblements», qui décrit l’enfer de la narratrice embauchée dans une entreprise japonaise. À partir de là, d’autres romans sur le travail ont suivi, puis un jury de lecture et un règlement du Prix, élaboré avec les conseils de la Maison des écrivains et de la littérature.
Publicație : Le Figaro
15 aprilie 2019
La BCU Iaşi s-a construit primul metru de autostradă digitală. Urmează 50 de km
Biblioteca Universitară a început un proiect ambiţios de scanare a documentelor, publicaţiilor şi cărţilor aflate în patrimoniul instituţiei. „Estimez că în 2020 ar fi posibil ca BCU «Mihai Eminescu» să înregistreze în mediul online mai multe vizite decât frecvenţa cititorilor activi, estimată acum la 345.000 de vizite/an“, arată directorul BCU. O bibliotecă digitală s-ar putea întreţine din abonamentele modice pe care le-ar plăti utilizatorii. Un prag de rentabilitate ar fi în jur de 15.000 de utilizatori, la un abonament de numai 3 euro anual.
Biblioteca Centrală Universitară „Mihai Eminescu“ din Iaşi a început un proces de digitalizare a informaţiei cu resurse minime, din fonduri proprii. Lucrul a început practic de la zero, în condiţiile în care nu exista un astfel de proiect până în urmă cu câţiva ani, dar în şase luni a început demararea unui proiect pentru crearea unei colecţii digitale de reviste ştiinţifice. Există în momentul de faţă peste 100.000 de pagini scanate care includ titluri de reviste care au marcat cercetarea ştiinţifică românească în perioada interbelică, printre acestea numărându-se şi Anuarul de lingvistică şi istorie literară, Arhiva Societăţii ştiinţifice şi literare din Iaşi sau Buletinul Institutului de Filologie Română „Alexandru Philippide“ şi Bulletin linguistique.
„În 2018, la Biblioteca Centrală Universitară «Mihai Eminescu», procesul de construcţie a unei biblioteci virtuale era mai degrabă un deziderat decât o realitate. Ţinând cont că lucrul efectiv la scanarea revistelor a început în toamna anului 2018 şi că încărcarea documentelor pe pagina de internet a bibliotecii s-a realizat mai cu seamă la începutul acestui an, apreciez că startul este promiţător, în ciuda obstacolelor întâmpinate. În prezent, ritmul de lucru e zilnic şi vom avea rezultate pe măsura efortului depus de colegii bibliotecari“, a declarat conf.dr. Ioan Milică, directorul BCU Iaşi.
În prezent, digitalizarea e realizată cu angajaţii bibliotecii, prin rotaţie, folosind aparatura din dotarea instituţiei. În mod concret, în prezent, la secţiunea „Biblioteca Digitală“ de pe siteul www.bcu-iasi.ro există o colecţie virtuală de peste 170 de volume, iar conducerea BCU îşi doreşte digitalizarea în special a colecţiilor ştiinţifice pentru a crea o bază de date online ce poate fi de folos cercetătorilor.
„O bibliotecă europeană de talia BCU Iaşi are potenţialul de a fi frecventată de un număr însemnat de nativi digitali. Estimez că în 2020 ar fi posibil ca BCU «Mihai Eminescu» să înregistreze în mediul online mai multe vizite decât frecvenţa cititorilor activi, estimată acum la 345.000 de vizite/an. Deja, portalul www.bcu-iasi.ro este frecventat anual de peste 162.000 de vizitatori unici. În cazul bibliotecii digitale, ar fi vorba despre un trafic de 35.000 accesări/lună“, a estimat conf.dr. Ioan Milică.
El crede că, pentru a atinge un reper de 30.000 de accesări pe lună, ar trebui ca în biblioteca virtuală să existe 250 de titluri, cărţi şi reviste, într-un an, pentru a se atinge obiectivul. Dacă până acum s-au scanat 170 de volume, 70.000 de pagini, acesta speră ca într-un an să atingă pragul de 400.000 de pagini scanate, echivalentul digital a 1.000 de volume de 400 de pagini.
Biblioteca digitală ar putea fi autosustenabilă
Directorul BCU Iaşi a identificat, pentru „Ziarul de Iaşi“ trei probleme majore pentru care drumul către o bibliotecă digitală este unul dificil pentru o instituţie publică. Acesta vorbeşte despre izolarea instituţională, prin faptul că bibliotecile funcţionează ca unităţi individuale şi nu constituie o reţea naţională, absenţa unei strategii naţionale cu privire la o standardizare a unor proceduri de lucru pentru a putea fi dezvoltat accesul la resurse digitale şi lipsa unei legislaţii adecvate privind statutul publicaţiilor electronice aflate în custodia editurilor, bibliotecilor, muzeelor şi arhivelor.
„Într-un deceniu, s-au consumat milioane şi milioane de euro pentru crearea unei Românii digitale, dar cu ce efecte? Cui nu i-ar plăcea să poată citi cartea râvnită, deschizând-o din biblioteca disponibilă pe telefonul mobil? Pentru ca acest fapt mărunt să fie posibil, trei ingrediente ar fi necesare, în opinia mea: cooperare instituţională eficientă, birocraţi luminaţi şi fonduri alocate judicios. Finanţarea bibliotecilor centrale universitare cu fonduri menite să accelereze modernizarea digitală ar trebui să constituie o prioritate“, a completat conf. dr. Ioan Milică.
Acesta estimează că, pentru BCU, la nivel de cheltuieli pentru organizarea digitală a colecţiilor tradiţionale de documente ar fi necesare costuri anuale de zeci de mii de euro pentru cumpărarea de echipamente pentru prelucrare digitală, securizarea, conservarea şi folosirea pe termen lung a documentelor digitale.
„Spre a înţelege cât de costisitoare sunt proiectele serioase de organizare a unei biblioteci digitale, e suficient să amintim că platforme faimoase, precum HathiTrust, au costuri operaţionale anuale de 2,6 milioane de dolari pentru gestionarea celor peste 14 milioane de cărţi şi reviste în format digital. Cel mai însemnat proiect mondial de realizare a unei biblioteci digitale, Google Library Project, a fost în 2006 estimat la 750 milioane de dolari, pentru scanarea a 30 milioane volume. În raport cu astfel de sume fabuloase, scanarea milioanelor de documente aflate în principalele biblioteci universitare şi academice româneşti ar presupune un efort financiar substanţial, de ordinul câtorva milioane de lei, deci nu imposibil“, a completat conf.dr. Ioan Milică.
La Iaşi, explică acesta, un laborator de prelucrare digitală a documentelor nu ar depăşi suma de 100.000 de euro, dintre care 60.000 ar fi cheltuiţi pentru achiziţionarea unor echipamente de scanare a cărţilor, revistelor şi ziarelor, 30.000 pentru licenţe informatice şi 10.000 pentru dezvoltarea competenţelor angajaţilor.
„Mai apoi, ar fi necesară suma de 30.000 euro/an, pentru a asigura funcţionarea infrastructurii digitale. În doar câţiva ani, prin dezvoltarea unei platforme de e-abonamente ieftine (10 lei/an, aproximativ 3 euro/an), biblioteca digitală ar putea deveni autosustenabilă dacă ar fi frecventată de 15.000 de abonaţi din toată lumea. Un astfel de «dacă» îmi pare realizabil“, a mai explicat directorul BCU Iaşi.
România, invizibilă pe harta digitală
Acesta consideră însă că România este aproape invizibilă pe harta mondială a resurselor şi colecţiilor digitale de tip academic, mai ales fiindcă multe dintre bazele de date dezvoltate în ultimii ani nu sunt racordate la arterele mondiale de circulaţie a informaţiei fiindcă, explică directorul, bibliotecile încă mai funcţionează după ritmuri impuse din secolul al XIX-lea.
„Senzaţia pe care omul de rând o capătă e că mult clamata Românie digitală pare mai degrabă o iluzie, în condiţiile în care formarea şi dezvoltarea competenţelor digitale se menţine în stadiu experimental. Existenţa celor două Românii, cea europeană, democratică, progresistă, şi cea balcanică, postcomunistă, conservatoare, e cât se poate de vizibilăşi din unghi virtual: în universităţi şi în bibliotecile universitare, accesul la resurse electronice gratuite de ultimă generaţie coexistă şi contrastează cu «facilităţi» de studiu de care până şi şoarecii ar fugi“, a adăugat conf.dr. Ioan Milică.
El estimează că, în prezent, la BCU Iaşi, s-a construit din resurse proprii „primul metru din autostrada digitală a cărţilor, revistelor şi ziarelor“ deţinute în cele 2,5 milioane de documente, patrimoniul bibliotecii. În total, sunt circa 50 de kilometri de documente care trebuie digitalizate, iar pentru a face acest pas conducerea BCU vrea să lucreze în primul rând cu universităţile ieşene. Universitatea „Alexandru Ioan Cuza“ din Iaşi va pune la dispoziţie echipament de scanare performant achiziţionat deja prin granturi europene derulate şi va moderniza o serie de filiale.
Publicație : Ziarul de Iași
Academics need support to increase their policy impact
Improving policymaking is a vital contribution to society, but academics need more time and funds to do so, says Tom Sasse
The knowledge, expertise and research that can help to inform, design and scrutinise government policy is a crucial part of academia’s wider value to society. Yet many academics struggle to contribute to policymaking – in part because they lack support from their institutions. This renders them less able to apply their expertise to improving policy decisions.
When they do get to apply their insights, it can make a real difference to peoples’ lives. One academic’s work on the benefits of early interventions by health visitors – nurses who visit people at home – led to the coalition government investing in 4,200 new posts.
Meanwhile, a panel of 25 academics helps the government conduct randomised, controlled trials on policies before they are rolled out, taking in everything from helping customers switch energy provider to using befriending services to improve end-of-life care.
And a number of major policy changes have been shaped by academics, including auto-enrolment in pensions, the introduction of the national minimum wage and a string of recent changes to the migration system.
Yet many academics still struggle to get to grips with policymaking. They find it hard to know who to approach and how; funding opportunities to establish connections or undertake policy-focused research appear limited; and it is difficult to find time for engaging with policymakers alongside research, teaching and other pressures.
The result is that policy influence, especially in central government, remains the preserve of a small group of usual suspects; valuable expertise is wasted, and policy is poorer as a result. A lack of diversity is also a problem, with the government tending to work with academics who are disproportionately old, white, male and London-based.
Government departments and parliamentarians are partly responsible for this, and they must improve the way they involve academics in policy formation, as an Institute for Government report published last year argued. But a lack of support from academic institutions also squanders the potential benefits of research. Our new report, published today, shows that universities, research councils and funding councils also have a key role in improving and widening policy engagement. But they must raise their game.
First, academia must properly fund policy engagement. There is currently limited dedicated funding to support activities such as secondments, evidence synthesis and training. The research excellence framework gives universities an incentive to cultivate a small number of high-impact academics, but not to build wider capacity.
Second, academia must make the “high-impact career” attractive. Policy engagement is time-consuming, yet academics have no space in their busy 40:40:20 schedules of research, teaching and administration to do it. Diverting time away from producing peer-reviewed journal articles to take up a secondment is considered career suicide – even though such interchange is crucial to improving connections.
Third, academia must improve its understanding of how to get policymakers to use evidence. A major review found that basic research – for instance on the value of secondments or co-producing research – was limited. This means that the government is spending billions funding research to generate new knowledge with little understanding of how to ensure that the knowledge created has maximum impact.
UK Research and Innovation has a key role to play in all of this. With oversight of the research and funding councils, it has convening power to transform how academics from all disciplines, backgrounds and regions contribute to the shaping of government policy.
Although it aims to be a “single voice to enable better connectivity to policymakers”, it has so far said little on this subject. This may be down to sensitivity over a largely separate issue: since its creation, UKRI has faced tough questions about whether it threatens academic autonomy over research decisions.
These are legitimate concerns, but this debate should not be an obstacle to UKRI and others taking steps to improve policy engagement.
While there is clear room for improvement, academia’s strong relationship with another sector offers reasons for encouragement.
Twenty years ago, links between academia and business were weak and created little value. But after a sustained period of investment, there are now 150 business schools, and university-business collaboration is “robust, healthy and growing”. Academia must now deliver a similar change in the relationship between universities and policymakers. If it fails to do so, many academics will continue to struggle to contribute to policymaking, and we will all miss out on the potential benefits.
Publicație : The Times
What’s in a name? For PhDs, everything
Are you a student, a candidate or something else? Whatever title you choose can have an impact on how academia views you and how you see yourself, argues Jenny Mak
As PhDs, we often introduce ourselves and our research to different people. But have you thought about the specific words you use? Do you call yourself a “PhD researcher”, “PhD candidate” or “PhD student”? Being alert to these labels can impact how you conduct your PhD.
These labels can have different associations specific to the university and country you are in, especially regarding the choice of calling yourself a “candidate” or a “student”.
For instance, in the US, “PhD candidate” can signify a student who has completed all of the academic requirements for their degree, except their dissertation. Here, the term acts as a milestone.
In the Netherlands, “PhD candidate” can act as a method of differentiation, because the candidate is not considered a student but a paid staff member of the university.
Alternatively, if you are undertaking a finite duration PhD, like a three or four-year programme in the UK, the titles “PhD candidate” or “PhD student” do not tend to suggest significant differences in status, they instead become descriptive.
And it is in the UK context that we need to reflect on how this descriptive tool can affect our self-identification: are these labels supporting our growth as academic researchers or holding us back?
The words we use can reveal how we see ourselves. In turn, our perceptions of ourselves can determine our actions.
Self-identifying as a “PhD student” might embody modesty – someone who is an eternal learner. But, for some, could hinder them from realising their independence as a scholar. Especially considering that PhD scholars often have to defend their ideas before critics, such as supervisors: people who are not really teachers in the conventional sense of being people from whom we expect instruction.
Self-identifying as a “PhD candidate” can cement this independence, as “candidate” suggests being deemed suitable for a certain level of study, often determined through some form of examination in an upgrade process. But some might find “candidate” too neutral or reliant on external validation to be effective for self-actualisation.
Meanwhile, self-identifying as a “PhD researcher” pre-upgrade might seem presumptuous. But this label could induce feelings of responsibility and a determination to realise research projects, helping scholars identify actionable academic tasks to this end.
Whichever title you prefer, I believe it is your right to choose how you see yourself. Indeed, when you introduce yourself to others, you are also re-introducing you to yourself.
Whether these labels should change at an institutional level, however, is another question. Talking to my fellow PhDs in the UK, it would appear the debate here lies mainly between using the terms “student” or “researcher” – as the term “candidature” doesn’t carry as much weight in the UK. This is where things get tricky.
Being a “PhD student” at a university formalises the relationship between you and the institution (perhaps more explicitly than if you were a “PhD researcher”) in terms of university accountability to you, the student, and the student’s code of conduct. Students pay tuition fees, as do local and international “PhD students” – except they also have access to scholarships and visa sponsorship. Also, the university supports “PhD students” to conduct their research, offering high quality resources and an extensive network to a global research community.
However, in issues like fair employment and anti-casualisation the term “student” might prove limiting as it implies a junior standing. The lens through which institutions view the value of PhDs’ contributions – raising the research profile of the university internationally, developing original knowledge, providing research and teaching support – could also be diminished with this title. This, in turn, influences institutional practices, including university support for PhD professionalisation.
The varying contexts where institutions might choose to use the term “PhD researcher” instead of “PhD student” need to be part of a wider debate. It is important to recognise that these labels and their perceptions have material impact, affecting the “vitality and sustainability” of the university research environment – which carries a weighting of 15 per cent in the research excellence framework.
But interchanging “PhD researcher”, “PhD student”, and “PhD candidate” at an institutional level will not have real significance if perceptions are not adjusted accordingly.
This readjustment must also be an internal one, in the attitudes we PhDs have towards ourselves. So ask yourself, when you first meet someone, are the words you use to present yourself empowering, effective, and self-actualising? If they aren’t, can you do better?
This blog is based on a post originally published for the University of Warwick‘s PhD Life blog.
Publicație : The Time
California’s showdown with Elsevier inspires US campuses
Confidence stalls, however, over depth of faculty commitment to open access
The University of California’s hard-line bid to push publishing giant Elsevier towards open-access models is attracting widespread interest at other US universities where librarians are considering following suit.
Many librarians have expressed their support for California’s decision to cancel its $11 million (£8.4 million) a year subscription with the publishing giant, but are aware that they face their own tough decisions when their own “big deals” come up for renewal. For institutions including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, this will be at the end of 2019.
“We’re anxiously observing” the California situation, said Lorraine Haricombe, director of libraries at the University of Texas at Austin. “There’s a hunger for solutions to budgetary pressures” caused by high journal subscription prices, Dr Haricombe said. “But there’s also historical inertia that makes the sort of wholesale change to address that…a tough slog.”
California’s central demand was that Elsevier and other publishers move away from a traditional subscription model in which readers pay to access articles describing discoveries that scholars had made and taxpayers had largely funded.
Instead, California’s research universities want Elsevier to embrace open-access alternatives in which the author pays a journal a fee to cover the costs of editing and publishing a paper, and the resulting article is then freely available to anyone to read.
The California system got a boost of confidence this month when Cambridge University Press agreed with it a three-year contract largely along the lines of what negotiators have been seeking from Elsevier.
The agreement gives the California system full and permanent access to Cambridge’s 400-journal collection. The pact envisages the California system paying less in subscription charges as it begins to fork out more in author fees for article processing. Although that should not mean any major change in net payments, it will result in far wider public access to the work of California researchers.
“It shows the world that our broken-down negotiations with Elsevier were not a pipe dream,” said Jeff MacKie-Mason, the university librarian at the University of California, Berkeley.
It does not, however, answer the question of how faculty will handle the major inconvenience of losing access to a publisher as huge as Elsevier.
So far, Elsevier has voluntarily maintained faculty access across the California system while offering to continue negotiations.
One leading advocate of open-access models, Heather Joseph, executive director of the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition, admitted concern about how California might react if Elsevier does pull the plug on access. “Then we’ll see whether the faculty scream about it,” Ms Joseph said.
California has taken encouragement, however, from the clamour among other US universities to learn about how California had prepared its faculty for the Elsevier showdown.
“A ton of other schools” across the US, Ms Joseph said, appear to be taking serious steps to get ready to challenge Elsevier when their own contracts expire.
Many of the US universities watching California and Elsevier have at least a bit more time to decide. With less than two years before the University of Utah’s contract with Elsevier expires, Richard Bryan Anderson, an associate library dean, said he would probably opt to renew, not being confident that faculty would back him if he challenged Elsevier as California has done.
“It’s possible that two years from now, the faculty will feel quite a bit different about the cancellation than they do today,” he said. “But as of now, I don’t think we really even know much about how they feel about it today.”
Publicație : The Times
Western civilisation courses prompt Australian revolts
Controversial course proposals a test for governance, opponents say
Plans for lavishly funded “great books” courses are under a cloud, amid academic revolts at two Australian universities.
The executive and the governing council of the University of Wollongong have closed ranks over vice-chancellor Paul Wellings’ approval of a degree bankrolled by the Ramsay Centre for Western Civilisation, a philanthropic organisation.
Meanwhile, proposals to offer Ramsay-funded majors at the University of Queensland have hit a snag, after the board of studies for UQ’s humanities and social sciences faculty unanimously rejected the draft curricula.
The developments at both institutions suggest that the conflict over the planned courses – opposed by many staff and students because of perceptions that they curtail academic autonomy and champion a “Western supremacist” perspective – are increasingly becoming a test of university governance.
Wollongong avoided a staff and student backlash by negotiating with Ramsay in secret, and announcing an agreement in December as a fait accompli. Professor Wellings then bypassed academic senate scrutiny of the proposed course by approving it under “fast-track” procedures, a move that the university says was necessary to meet publication deadlines for a 2020 course handbook.
In late March, the academic senate lodged a formal protest. Insiders said that the fast-track process was typically used to “tweak” existing courses and had never been used to endorse an entire new programme.
On 10 April the National Tertiary Education Union launched proceedings in the New South Wales Supreme Court, seeking to have the fast-track approval overturned. But at a 12 April meeting, the university council sided with the executive.
“I am comfortable that the decisions taken by the vice-chancellor have been in accordance with university policies and in the best interests of the institution,” chancellor Jillian Broadbent said in a statement issued by the university.
That view is not shared by staff and students who protested prior to the meeting. Chloe Rafferty, president of the Wollongong Undergraduate Student Association, said that the university council should have recognised the position of the academic senate “which is supposed to be the body that ensures our university has academic integrity”.
Ms Rafferty said that she had been denied access to the council meeting to discuss a budget for the student union – an address that she said had been planned for months – with three security guards barring her entry. The university said that Ms Rafferty had not registered her intention to attend the meeting – a claim that she denied.
NTEU Wollongong branch president Georgine Clarsen said that she had written to the university council members explaining why the union had taken legal action, enclosing copies of the court documentation, to ensure that the issue would not be “swept under the carpet”.
She said that the university’s governance unit had refused to confirm whether the information had been passed on to council members.
NTEU national president Alison Barnes said that the union had initiated legal proceedings because of the “gradual and persistent erosion of academic governance” at universities such as Wollongong.
The Supreme Court has the power to overturn Wollongong’s administrative decisions because the university was established under state legislation. The first hearing is set for 23 April.
Meanwhile, UQ’s HASS board of studies has warned the faculty’s executive dean that “further consultation and refinement of the curriculum” for proposed Ramsay-funded courses is required.
Many of the faculty’s academics had earlier issued a petition opposing Ramsay-funded courses on academic freedom and institutional autonomy grounds. “There are incalculable reputational risks for the University of Queensland in linking itself to an external body that clearly has a specific political agenda,” the petition says.
Publicație : The Times
Could student mental health apps be doing more harm than good?
As universities try to demonstrate actions and developers sense an opportunity, researchers express concern about lack of evidence behind mobile tools
As concern about the well-being of students grows, and as waiting lists for counselling and support expand, university websites increasingly direct students – and, in some cases, staff – to online support resources, which include a number of apps, among them Headspace and Calm.
There has also been a proliferation of apps designed specifically for students, such as Fika, Emoodji and Enlitened. Although some bespoke student apps are available only to those enrolled at a university, most mental health apps can be accessed freely through iTunes or Google Play.
However, academics have warned that many such apps are based on limited scientific evidence. And with universities striving to demonstrate that they are acting on student mental health and with some software developers seeking to meet a growing demand, there is concern that students might be steered to an app that offers them incorrect “diagnoses” or inappropriate “therapy”.
A study published last month in NPJ Digital Medicine found that 47 of the 73 mental health apps it examined claimed effectiveness in diagnosing a mental health condition or in improving symptoms, mood or self-management. Only two, however, were able to cite evidence based on evaluation of the app itself, and only one could provide a citation to relevant scientific literature.
John Torous, one of the authors of the paper, told Times Higher Education that many app developers reported having used evidence-based therapies, such as cognitive behavioural therapy, in the design of their programs.
“The part that is left out is that just because something is based on evidence-based therapy that works in one setting, ie, face to face, doesn’t mean it’s going to work well when it’s delivered without any human support on a small smartphone screen,” said Dr Torous, director of the digital psychiatry division at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, which is affiliated to Harvard Medical School.
Dame Til Wykes, professor of clinical psychology and rehabilitation at King’s College London, agreed. “It’s understandable to want to make use of digital technology, but we should only be using things that we know work,” she said. “A lot of these apps are produced and launched without proper evidence or peer-reviewed studies of their effectiveness.”
Some apps make claims about the percentage of users who report having benefited from their support, but Dame Til was unconvinced by these. “If we don’t have data from a controlled trial, it is reckless [to promote such apps] as it means we don’t know the harm,” Dame Til added.
In the UK, the NHS has a library for apps that meet its standards for safety, but there are very few mental health apps listed compared with what is available on app stores.
Although Fika, which offers five-minute “emotional exercises”, is not based on peer-reviewed studies of its effectiveness, it has still managed to raise £800,000 in private funding. It claims to “combine the science” of therapies including positive psychology, cognitive behavioural therapy and mindfulness.
However, Nick Bennett, Fika’s founder, told THE that evidence mapping would be very important in the app’s development, and the developer has agreed partnerships with four universities – Coventry, Exeter, Lincoln and Manchester Metropolitan – for research projects that will include an examination of the app’s efficacy and are expected to be peer-reviewed.
This might be a small sign of progress, but academics have also expressed concerns about what apps do with their users’ data.
The rights that app companies hold over data are “astonishing”, Dame Til said, but such information collection is key to their building a credible business case.
Many mental health apps skirt medical regulations about confidentiality by stating in their terms and conditions that they are in fact a “wellness” app.
A paper published last month in the BMJ, which looked at general health apps, found that 79 per cent of the sampled apps shared users’ data.
Despite their concerns, academics do not dismiss the potential value of mental health apps.
“If there are apps that have robust evidence that they work, if the data are encrypted and if the university is willing to pay for its students to use it, then it could be incredibly useful. However, it is crucial to recognise the importance of talking to a professional in person. That is also what students are telling us,” Dame Til said.
Dr Torous agreed. “Students are at an age when they are at a higher risk for things such as depression or anxiety, their brain is still developing, and they are thrust into a high-pressure environment,” he said.
“Apps can be most useful to augment care, but what is best for [students] is professional help…You need to understand your diagnosis: what if you have a thyroid problem that’s making you feel depressed? No amount of apps or therapy will fix a thyroid condition.”
Publicație : The Times
KAIST president in government battle sees light at end of tunnel
Shin Sung-chul, who is under investigation by the Korean government, says state is starting to provide more freedom to universities but progress is slow
The South Korean university leader at the centre of a government investigation has said that research institutions in the country still need to fight for their freedom but that his ordeal could pave the way for improved international collaboration.
The Ministry of Science demanded last year that the Korean Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) suspend Shin Sung-chul, its president, after alleging that he embezzled public research funds in his previous job as leader of the Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST). The case remains unresolved.
One of the allegations centred on payments that Professor Shin made to the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California to secure South Korean scientists’ access to one of its facilities.
Professor Shin told Times Higher Education that he stood by his decision to “invest funding” in the collaboration, saying that it “turned out to be a very successful project” that produced more than 1,000 research papers.
“It’s a decision [for] a university president”, not a government, he added.
Professor Shin said that the “misunderstanding” was “not over yet” but “should be cleared in the near future”, and he was hopeful that the disagreement “might be a good thing for future collaborations between Korea and foreign countries”.
“International collaboration is not that common for the Korean government and Korean scientists yet. They might need some time to understand this international collaboration,” he said. “You have to pay some money to use international facilities. That’s quite normal for scientists, but it’s not understood by the government.”
Experts had claimed that the effort to remove Professor Shin, who was hired to lead KAIST in 2017 under the previous administration, was the latest episode in a long tradition of political interference in university governance and one that risked destroying trust between scientists and the government and slowing the nation’s research progress.
Professor Shin said that government-driven policy and industry-funded research had enabled Korea to make “miraculous progress” over the past 50 years, but now that the country had advanced, universities required autonomy and money for curiosity-driven research to “compete with the best countries”.
He said that the government was starting to “transition from its role as a control tower to becoming a supporting tower”, highlighting that KAIST had received block funding for research, as opposed to funding for specific projects, for the first time this year. Nevertheless, he added, “it’s still a struggle over how much freedom we have between government and universities”.
“From next year, we’re implementing a cross-disciplinary major for our undergraduate programme. We should have the autonomy [to do this], but we have to discuss it with the government…It took one year to pressure them,” Professor Shin said.
Publicație : The Times