Impact of the recession on research and research careers

14 July 2009

By Web Admin

 By Aaron Porter, Vice-President (Higher Education), National Union of Students

It seems that no corner of the UK, no profession or way of life has managed to escape the effects of the current recession, considered by many economists and other experts to have been the worst in over 60 years.

Higher education is certainly no exception, indeed the effects of the recession have been both deep and widespread, the repercussions are being felt right across the sector from institution to institution and it is making its impact felt on the bottom line of most University management accounts. The role of research within Universities is being considered and debated from the level of funding being allocated over the coming years, through to the diversity and areas being pursued. Question marks being raised over the diversity of research that institutions will continue to pursue, and a particular focus on the concentration within and across Universities.

But as much as the recession is having a substantial impact on institutions at a strategic level, I want this article to focus on how there has been a substantial impact on the individuals choosing to undertake and those currently pursuing a research career. Whilst the recent allocation of RAE funding can provide a small amount of certainty about the extent to which institutions can pursue and invest in research over the next few years, this is only part of the picture. The certainty over research funding which falls out of the parameters of the RAE allocations is a great deal less clear with significant fears over the total that will be available and the ways in which this will be allocated across the sector.

For those pursuing a research career, clearly this most immediate question which should rightly cross their mind, is whether this is a secure and sustainable future to pursue. I genuinely believe we need to face up to the critical question as to whether the UK is doing enough to ensure that we will have enough researchers to take forward critical work over the coming decades.

Yet bizarrely whilst the purse strings are tightened and the pressure is heighted on the academics charged with taking forward our research, it seems that there is a mounting pressure, indeed expectation that higher education will be the key to take the UK out of our economic slump and unlock our potential for future economic growth. At Government level the absorption of the Department of Innovation, Universities and Skills into Lord Mandelson’s super Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, may not mention education or learning in its title, but would clearly indicate that higher education is seen as a critical driver to the future of UK business and the economy more broadly.

Personally I’m still reserving judgement on whether this is a merger that is going to benefit higher education. I fear that this could heighten an agenda which seems only to value research which has an obvious and measurable economic benefit, whilst continuing to devalue and degrade other forms of research that may have longer term benefits or possess cultural value which is less easy to quantify. As the role of higher education within the new department establishes itself I will look on keenly to observe the emphasis which higher education has within Lord Mandelson’s empire and how it is supported to do this.  

But also we should consider the impact that may be felt in terms of widening participation on our research community. The introduction of tuition fees and then top-up fees is unquestionably having an impact on the demographic progressing into postgraduate study and ultimately research careers. A recession accentuates the fear of debt, and it is consistently those from the poorest and non-traditional backgrounds that are most averse to getting themselves into greater levels of debt. With this being the case, the current recession is likely to deter those from lower socio-economic backgrounds from progressing into postgraduate study and then onto a research career, and likely to just consolidate our research base drawn from the more privileged echelons of society. This is somewhat of a generalisation, but a fair one based on clear statistics, and we shouldn’t be afraid to raise this and consider how we can challenge it.

In addition, the challenges we face presently take place at a time where international systems of higher education are developing and progressing rapidly. International competition, most notably from China and India, threatens both the UK international reputation but more importantly the kinds of research we are able to undertake. This is likely only to intensify over time, and the UK needs to have a clearer strategy about the kinds of skills we need the UK population to have at all levels. I believe that the current economic climate, and the upcoming general election is the right time to visit the findings of the Leitch Review; to re-evaluate our progress, re-ignite the political debate and ask politicians to reaffirm their position both in terms of the objectives set out in the report, but more importantly how we should set out to achieve them.

The effects of an economic downturn can often only be quantified and measured retrospectively, forecasting is usually an imprecise science. For me, the key to dealing with the consequences of the recession on research careers is to make the case clearly and loudly that higher education and world class cutting edge research will place the UK in a strong position to take us out of the downturn, and to place in a strong position during years of subsequent growth. Research which should not necessarily be considered narrowly as having immediate economic benefits, but a broader and more liberal assessment of the benefit of research in all its guises. We need to find ways to support talented academics to enter research careers, irrespective of their background, providing they have the talent, a new agenda which seeks to widen participation beyond simple undergraduate study. But finally, and perhaps most controversially, for higher education to be able to deliver the challenges I have laid out, it needs to be sufficiently well financed – one might say, ‘you need to speculate to accumulate’ – although where did that get us during the last decade?

 By Aaron Porter, Vice-President (Higher Education), National Union of Students

Vitae would like to thank the author(s) for contributing this article. Vitae would like to remind readers that the information and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Vitae or CRAC: The career development organisation.

This article has been published as part of Vitae's Researcher careers and recession online activity in July 2009.  To view other articles on this theme please visit www.vitae.ac.uk/careersandrecession