Call for academics

By Candice Keller

Young people need to continue studying and aspire to become academics to continue research and teach future university generations, experts warn.

Without more up-and-coming academics, universities will be sapped of crucial resources within 20 years because of an ageing workforce.

More than half of academics working in universities around the country are of the baby-boomer generation – now aged between 50 and 65 – and soon will face retirement.

However, few young university graduates are making the transition from student to teacher, with many being lost to public and private sectors for sponsored research or higher-paying positions. University of Adelaide social geography researcher and author Professor Graeme Hugo says this is a concern for all tertiary education institutions to address with urgency.

“Australian universities expanded quite rapidly in the 1970s so there were big numbers coming into the profession at that time,” Professor Hugo says. “As a result, 56 per cent of the workforce are baby boomers or older generations. That presents a challenge because in 20 years’ time, more than half the academic population will be retiring.”

To become an academic, students must complete postgraduate study – in most cases a PhD.

Adelaide universities have found fewer graduates are going on to further study because of financial pressures pushing them into the workforce.

University of South Australia vice-president of academics Professor Joanne Wright says a multi-faceted strategy will be needed to rectify the problem. “We need to support more students in doing their PhD by increasing the value of scholarships and trying to make it an attractive avenue for young people,” she says. “Universities are considering international recruitment and recruit from everywhere.”

Academics have two major roles – teaching and research.

The balance between duties varies depending on their department and research workload.

It was this freedom and variety that attracted Hayley Uden to the field. Ms Uden, 26, is a lecturer in podiatry at UniSA and says she enjoys the mix of practical, teaching and research work.

The former Annesley College student was one of the few academics offered a job before completing postgraduate study.

However, she expects to finish her master’s degree this year.

She had always aspired to be in teaching but never envisaged it to happen so soon.

“I get the best of all worlds now – lecturing, research and working in the clinic,” she says.

“I really enjoy the independence and the opportunity to drive podiatry forward into the future.”

IT’S ACADEMIC

• 32.7 per cent of university lecturers and tutors are under the age of 40.
• Academics must have completed post-graduate study, usually a PhD.
• Academics give lectures, complete research, mark assignments and answer student queries.
• Most get further training in formal teaching skills once in the role.

Article from The Advertiser, June, 2010.