Cine este noul rector al Universității de Medicină din Timișoara
Un fost director al Spitalului Municipal din Timișoara a devenit noul rector al Universității de Medicină ”Victor Babeș” din orașul de pe Bega. Doctorul Ocravian Crețu a fost ales, joi noaptea, cu o majoritate semnificativă, confrații de breaslă nefiind interesați de ofertele, inclusiv financiare, ale celorlalți candidați.
Deși au fost patru candidați, Octavian Crețu a câștigat scrutinul detașat, într-un singur tur. Drept de vot au avut 537 electori, iar doctorul Crețu a fost preferat de 370 dintre ei. Ceilalți candidați au obținut, după cum urmează: Eugen Boia, 110 voturi, Jenel Pătrașcu, 72, iar Virgil Păunescu, 91 de voturi. Acesta din urmă, fost secretar de stat, în prezent directorul Institutului de Terapii Genice și Celulare în Tratamentul Cancerului – OncoGen, este marele perdant al alegerilor. Oferta sa pentru medici, publicată pe Facebook, a fost cea mai generoasă: el le-a promis confraților ”majorare a salariilor cu cel puțin 30%” din luna mai.
Cine este Octavian Crețu
”Vă propun translatarea sistemului decizional de la un management de tip providențial la un management descentralizat, într-un leadership de echipă care să reprezinte într-o manieră reală dorința întregului corp academic al universității. Îmi propun descentralizarea structurii de putere pe nivele de competență care să permită implicarea comunității academice în procesul de decizie.
Întotdeauna voi încuraja existența unui mecanism veritabil de feedback managerial, feedback de care sunt convins că va participa modelând esențial strategia de dezvoltare și conducere a universității”, a transmis prof. dr. Crețu în programul managerial cu care s-a prezentat în fața alegătorilor.
Specializat în chirurgie generală, profesorul Octavian Crețu a ocupat, în trecut, și funcția de prorector al universității, dar și pe cea de manager al Spitalului Municipal din Timișoara, în perioada 2005 – 2009, perioadă în care spitalul s-a remarcat în țară ca fiind singurul fără datorii către furnizori. Din 2007 este membru în rândul Cavalerilor de Malta.
Publicație: Evenimentul Zilei
'It can't go on': students join lecturers on the picket line
Students in Manchester express solidarity with ‘overworked, underpaid’ staff
Early on Thursday morning, striking staff and supportive students braved wind, rain and hailstones to picket at the University of Manchester, demanding an end to unequal pay, unfair workloads, rising pension costs and the casualisation of work.
Outside the Samuel Alexander building, Spanish lecturers Adriana Bausells and Rubén Peinado said the precariousness of pay and contracts had become the norm for their department, increasing their workloads and stymieing prospects for promotion.
Peinado, 34, is on his fourth fixed-term contract in four years, which has seriously affected his income and economic security. “Every year I’m offered a contract renewal for only 10 months ‘to satisfy a temporary need in the department’. I get my last paycheque in June, then nothing until the end of September.
“How do you say to your landlord that you have no job over the summer so can’t pay rent for two months? I go back to Spain, come back in September, then a few months in I’ll get a letter saying I’m no longer needed and the process starts again. It makes you feel really, really bad.” Bausells, 33, said she also had to move home three times in the last five years for this reason.
“When it comes to teaching it makes it so hard to innovate, because you don’t know if you’ll see these students next year. Last year was my first time seeing students graduate and the feeling was amazing – I’ve seen them from first year through their final year. It’s a brilliant but rare opportunity nowadays.”
Postdoctoral student Rebecca said the systemic casualisation of work and pay marginalised people from less privileged backgrounds. “It’s driving lots of people out of academia who can’t afford to be on temporary contracts and constantly looking for the next job, which is really bad for diversity.”
She will be back on the job market next year looking for permanent lectureships that she’s unlikely to find. “I’ve spent 10 years training for a career in academia, but I’ve seen so many colleagues who couldn’t find permanent work have to leave the sector altogether.”
Taking shelter by the Whitworth Building, students directed frustration towards university management. For third-year philosophy and politics student Orlando Phipps, this was his third consecutive term having lectures cancelled because of industrial action. “I’m here out of concern for my lecturers – they don’t take these decisions lightly – and to stand up to the financialisation of higher education.”
History student Frank Roche, 21, added that the system was unsustainable. “I know somebody who works part-time at [burger chain] Archie’s – if he was full-time he’d be making more than some of our full-time lecturers. It’s just a ridiculous situation. They’re constantly overworked, underpaid and suffering mentally. It can’t go on.”
Several staff members cited that by increasing pension costs, the Universities Superannuation Scheme was ignoring the recommendations of two joint expert panels that deemed it unnecessary.
English and American studies professor Jackie Stacey said younger colleagues wouldn’t have a pension they could live on when they retire under the changes. She also found her workload unmanageable. “The volume of work is way too high and impossible to do in the hours that we’re paid for. University management has literally no idea what our day-to-day lives are like.”
Monica Pearl, lecturer in 20th century American literature, added that work-life balance was non-existent. “For some of us, we’re on the picket lines in the morning but afterwards we might finally get to go to the dentist or get our eyes examined. I just couldn’t do those things during the semester, because I’m working all the time.”
Daniela Caselli and John McAuliffe have both taught at the university for about 15 years and have seen a shift toward investing in regeneration of buildings, development of new parts of the campus and overseas expansion, rather than in staff, teaching and research.
“We should work 37.5 hours a week, but it’s actually more like 60 or 70,” Caselli said. “We want to do our job well, but I feel constantly put in a position where I perform not at my best.”
English literature lecturer Chris Vardy said the only way to secure a more permanent role was to do research on the side, which you’re not paid for, and “compounds the problem of workload more and more as I have to work far beyond the hours I’m paid for”.
As the picket came to an end and with the rain finally letting up, Pearl added, “None of us wants to be on strike. It’s the last resort. It’s against our ethos as teachers. We want to teach – but we’re broken by the work conditions before us.”
Publicație : The Guardian
Thousands of university workers strike across UK
Academic and support staff take action over pay, pensions and working conditions
University workers have formed picket lines on campuses across the UK on the first day of the “biggest-ever wave of strikes” over higher education pay, pensions and working conditions.
The University and College Union (UCU) reported that support from staff and students remained solid, despite the fact it will be the third time university staff have gone on strike in the last three years – most recently just before Christmas.
UCU branches across the country posted pictures of lively picket lines at universities in Manchester, Glasgow, Sheffield, Essex, Newcastle and Cardiff among others, and there were messages of solidarity from politicians including the Labour leadership contender Rebecca Long-Bailey.
Angela Rayner, the shadow education secretary, said: “Labour stands in solidarity with striking university workers today. They are on strike due to the failed marketised system created under the Tories.
“They don’t do so lightly. Reasonable terms and conditions and fair pensions are the minimum they should expect, and their treatment is a stark contrast to the eye-watering pay packets of a few vice-chancellors.”
Up to 50,000 lecturers, technicians, librarians and other academic and support staff at 74 universities will take part in a total of 14 days of strike action, staggered through February and March, which will potentially affect about 1.2 million students through lost lectures and tutorials. Many have expressed their support for staff, but are pushing for compensation from university managers.
In south London, students sipping cups of “solidaritea” joined staff at Goldsmiths University of London on picket lines outside the Richard Hoggart building. “The workload is simply becoming unsustainable for many in the profession,” said Philippa Burt, a theatre and performance lecturer.
Wearing a high-vis vest and brandishing leaflets, Burt said that while there were specific demands from the UCU, many had joined the picket lines because of concern about a general decline in working conditions. She said her timetable, under which she works six days a week but is only paid for four and a half, is typical across the profession.
“We’ve seen pay cuts alongside an exponential growth in workload,” added another senior lecturer, who did not want to be named.
Many of those on the Goldsmiths picket said the current strike, which follows an eight-day walkout shortly before Christmas, was the result of universities refusing to negotiate with the UCU. Employers, however, insist they have gone a long way to meet union demands.
The Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA) said on Thursday that disruption for students would be limited. They claimed that during the pre-Christmas strikes 29% of UCU members took strike action at affected universities, representing just 5% of all staff, and that early reports from this latest action suggested turnout had fallen further.
A UCEA spokesperson said: “It will take time for universities to find out exactly how many scheduled classes have not taken place on a given day. Feedback also points to mixed support and impact across the minority of UK universities affected by the strikes, and each university is of course focused on managing this period of disruption as best they can for their students.”
One lecturer at Goldsmiths said: “They’ve consistently reneged on their promises and have failed to consult us every step of the way. And we’ll be here again in a few months if we have to be.”
A theatre lecturer on the picket line, who did not want to be identified, disputed the employers’ claim earlier this week that pay increases and better working patterns were not financially viable. “The money always seems to be there for capital investment but never for the wellbeing of staff or students.”
A fine-art lecturer with 15 years’ experience said she initially supported the protests in December because of the proposed increase in pensions contributions by staff, but that recent cuts and a reorganisation of her department had attracted others to the cause.
“This is part of a wider move towards marketisation of higher education,” she said. “They’re taking away our autonomy and the result is that we’re working longer hours for less.”
The UCU is calling on university managers to address excessive workload, pay, a 15% gender pay gap, increased casualisation and changes to pensions for staff in the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS). Members are being asked to pay 9.6% in pension contributions, up from 8%, and the UCU wants universities to pay the full increase instead.
The UCU general secretary, Jo Grady, said: “We have been receiving news of solid support for the strikes across the UK. That support sends a clear message to universities that, instead of focusing on silly games and spinning in the run up to the walkouts, they should have been working with us to try and sort things out.
“We have been clear that we are always ready to seriously discuss all the issues at the heart of the disputes. Students are understandably unimpressed at the intransigence of their university leaders and have made clear demands today that vice-chancellors and principals work harder to try and resolve the disputes.”
However, UCEA said the demand for a pay rise of more than 5% was unaffordable, with several universities reporting deficits in their latest accounts. “UCEA has consulted all of its members in presenting new positive proposals addressing the important issues around employment in universities, focusing on casual employment, workload/mental health and gender pay gap/ethnicity pay. UCU is urged to consult all of its members, including the vast majority not taking strike action, and present these positive proposals to them.”
Publicație : The Guardian
Après une licence de psychologie, l’orientation délicate des « sans master »
Moins d’un étudiant sur deux en licence 3 de psychologie obtient une place en master dans cette discipline. Ils peuvent néanmoins s’orienter vers d’autres parcours.
En juin dernier, alors qu’elle terminait sa licence de psychologie, Mélissandre a postulé à quinze masters dans cette discipline très demandée. « Je me disais que, comme ça, je pourrais avoir le choix entre plusieurs propositions. » Mais, de choix, l’étudiante toulousaine n’en a eu aucun. « J’ai vu les refus s’égrener, jusqu’au début du mois de juillet, où ma dernière demande a elle aussi été rejetée, raconte la jeune femme de 21 ans. Certes, je n’avais pas des notes étourdissantes, mais j’avais un projet professionnel précis, inscrit dans le domaine des troubles alimentaires. Je travaillais même dans une association spécialisée dans la boulimie et l’anorexie. »
Après ces multiples refus, Mélissandre peine à rebondir. « Ces candidatures m’avaient pris beaucoup d’énergie et se soldaient par de la frustration et du doute », se souvient-elle. Dépitée, elle cherche « un peu tout et n’importe quoi », pour ne pas se retrouver sans activité à la rentrée. Elle tombe finalement sur une offre en service civique : un poste dans une association qui lutte contre les inégalités scolaires dans un collège du Havre. Elle est acceptée. « Aujourd’hui, je retrouve peu à peu la confiance qui m’avait quittée. Je pense à retenter un master en psycho l’année prochaine. Ou bien un master en métiers de l’enseignement. »
« Faire comprendre aux étudiants qui entrent en première année que démarrer une licence de psychologie ne signifie pas forcément devenir psychologue à la fin »
Depuis la mise en place, à la rentrée 2017, de la sélection dès l’entrée du master 1 (et non plus en master 2), de nombreux étudiants en psychologie, licence en poche, n’ont pas la possibilité de poursuivre dans cette discipline. Si plusieurs facultés ont bénéficié d’une dérogation pour mettre en place la réforme progressivement, elles étaient toutes entrées dans le système à la dernière rentrée.
Actuellement, on compte environ 5 000 places en master 1 pour 12 000 étudiants en licence 3 de psychologie, selon les chiffres de l’Association des enseignants-chercheurs en psychologie (AEPU). Ce qui entraîne une « sélection drastique », convient son président, David Clarys, également doyen de l’UFR de sciences humaines de l’université de Poitiers. Il y voit certains avantages : « Cela évite, comme dans le système précédent, de couper les étudiants en plein milieu d’un master. Autant qu’ils se réorientent avant. »
Publicație : Le Monde
Università, Ferruccio Resta è il nuovo presidente della Conferenza dei rettori
Guida del Politecnico di Milano, passa ora alla presidenza della Crui dopo Manfredi, diventato ministro. "Ricerca e formazione sono un investimento, non una voce di costo"
ROMA - Ferruccio Resta, 51 anni, ingegnere, rettore del Politecnico di Milano, è il nuovo presidente della Conferenza dei rettori delle università italiane, di cui era segretario generale. Eletto dall’assemblea della Crui, sostituisce Gaetano Manfredi, nominato lo scorso dicembre ministro dell’Università e della Ricerca.
Nel discorso di insediamento Resta ha delineato l’idea di una Crui "propositiva e coraggiosa" e promotrice di una progettualità indispensabile per lo sviluppo del sistema universitario e, attraverso di esso, per la crescita del Paese. Ha detto: "In un momento di forte criticità e di grandi trasformazioni, all’università, così come alle istituzioni politiche, è richiesta una maggiore dose di responsabilità. È questo il momento di ribadire un'unità di intenti, fissare obiettivi ambiziosi e condivisi".
Le priorità elencate da Resta prevedono un aumento e una diversificazione dell’investimento in formazione e ricerca ("per garantire la sopravvivenza e la competitività delle università presenti sul territorio italiano"), la crescita nel posizionamento internazionale ("utile a contrastare la fuga dei più giovani"), la semplificazione del carico normativo e l’attenzione per ricercatori e dottorandi, leve competitive rispetto a Paesi concorrenti.
"Esistono urgenze che non possiamo rimandare", ha detto Resta, "per quegli atenei che altrimenti non sarebbero in grado di reggere la competizione con l’estero e per quelli che non riuscirebbero a sopravvivere, pur essendo l’unica realtà di crescita di territori in difficoltà. Ricerca e formazione sono un investimento, non una voce di costo".
I rettori Salvatore Cuzzocrea (Università di Messina) e Maurizio Tira (Università di Brescia) sono i due nuovi membri della Giunta.
Publicație : La Repubblica
Da mille a 255 euro: il bonus di merito per diplomati mai stato così basso
Istituito da Fioroni nel 2007, due anni dopo era sceso a 650. Ora è ai minimi storici. La ministra Azzolina: "Lo aumenteremo e miglioreremo il programma delle eccellenze. I ragazzi devono sentire che lo Stato è vicino"
Si fa presto a dire merito. Con poco più di 250 euro si premia una carriera scolastica fatta di pagelle zeppe di 9 e 10. Parliamo del bonus di merito introdotto nel 2007 dal ministro della Pubblica istruzione Giuseppe Fioroni per valorizzare le eccellenze della scuola italiana: i diplomati con 100 e lode. Allora era di mille euro oggi gli oltre 7 mila cervelloni della maturità riceveranno 255 euro. Un assurdo se si pensa che la cifra è esattamente la metà di quanto viene assegnato, da alcuni anni, a tutti i diciottenni per il semplice fatto di avere raggiunto la maggiore età.
L’incremento degli alunni super bravi e il contemporaneo taglio del budget ha inesorabilmente ridotto il premio. Già nel 2009, dopo appena due anni di gestazione, l’importo slitta verso il basso: 650 euro. Nel 2013 passa a 500 euro, fino ai 300 euro del 2018 e ai 255 euro fissati la scorsa estate. Intanto i 100 e lode sono più che raddoppiati, passando dai 3.073 del 2007 ai 7.365 della scorsa estate, con l’immancabile polemica delle troppe lodi assegnate al Sud. Il capitolo di spesa che premia tutte le eccellenze (dai 100 e lode ai campioni di Italiano, Fisica, Matematica, Latino e coloro che si piazzano ai primi posti nelle competizioni nazionali e internazionali) passa dagli iniziali 5 milioni ai 2,3 milioni del 2019. Fondo che per il 2020 si ridurrà a 1,7 milioni.
Eppure per gli studenti della secondaria superiore il traguardo da raggiungere non è affatto facile. Per fregiarsi della lode occorre ottenere il massimo punteggio in tutte le prove dell’esame finale, avere collezionato il massimo credito scolastico disponibile (40 punti) e mostrare pagelle con la media finale superiore al 9 negli ultimi tre anni, senza neppure un sette. Antonello Giannelli, a capo dell’associazione nazionale presidi non ha dubbi: «L'esigenza di contenimento della spesa pubblica ha imposto negli anni il severo svilimento di una delle rarissime misure meritocratiche del nostro Paese».
Lo sa bene Jordi Stira che si è diplomato nel 2014 a Palermo col massimo dei voti. Ha dovuto fare i salti mortali per ben sfruttare il premio ricevuto ormai ridotto a 350 euro: «Subito dopo gli esami finali – racconta – ho sostenuto il test di accesso alla facoltà di Medicina e ho utilizzato quasi interamente i soldi per acquistare libri universitari molto costosi. Se non avessi avuto questo contribuito avrei dovuto chiedere ai miei genitori che già spendono una cifra abbastanza alta per le tasse universitarie. Certo mille euro sarebbero stati una bella cifra e avrei potuto fare molto di più». E il discorso dell’aiuto allo studio è rilanciato da Giulia Biazzo, dell’Unione degli studenti: «I fondi del programma per le eccellenze del Miur dovrebbero essere investiti per finanziare le borse di studio per quanti più studenti possibile. La vera priorità per l’istruzione pubblica dovrebbe essere il sostegno a chi non ha possibilità economiche».
Dalla ministra Lucia Azzolina arrivano parole di speranza su un cambio di rotta a vantaggio degli studenti: «Valorizzare le nostre eccellenze scolastiche è un dovere. Non è soltanto una questione di bonus, credo che dovremmo pensare anche a iniziative più ampie. Campus estivi, borse per proseguire gli studi, magari in collaborazione con realtà esterne. Aumenteremo il bonus e miglioreremo il programma delle eccellenze. I ragazzi devono sentire che lo Stato è loro vicino».
Publicație : La Repubblica
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