Lack of transparency & accountability in universities cause immense harm to people, which for many has long-lasting consequences
This thread lists data & stats to show the scale of wrongdoing in unis
It makes for grim reading & it is only the tip of the iceberg
#BrokenAcademia
This thread lists data & stats to show the scale of wrongdoing in unis
It makes for grim reading & it is only the tip of the iceberg
#BrokenAcademia
SEXUAL MISCONDUCT
70% female students (= >1 million students) experienced sexual violence while at uni
26% male students (= ~283k students) experienced sexual violence
40% students (=1 million students) had at least 1 experience of sexualised behaviour from uni staff
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Millions of students experience sexual misconduct. Yet unis fail students over & over:
>50% students believed that their uni did not respond adequately to their complaint.
50% of students believed that the uni had denied their experience or made reporting difficult
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RACISM
24% of ethnic minority students experience racial harassment
In most cases their harasser was another student, but a large number said it was their tutor or academic
International students told us about feeling unwelcome, isolated and vulnerable
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It is worth remembering that:
only 2% of academics are black
less than 1% of professors are black
there are only 25 black female professors in UK universities
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Are universities effective at dealing with complaints of racism?
In short, absolutely not:
students/staff donât have faith in their unis; complaints process
they fear retaliation
and consequences to their studies/career
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In short, absolutely not:



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Students from a âworking classâ background have reported severe and systemic bullying from staff and other students at several institutions
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LGBT+ DISCRIMINATION
14% of students have been the target of negative comments or conduct from staff in the last year because they are LGBT
This rises to more than a third of trans students compared to seven per cent of LGB students who donât identify as trans

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DISABILITY DISCRIMINATION
Students with disabilities drop out at higher rates bc of a lack of support.
Of the full-time undergrads who declared a disability, those with mental health conditions had the lowest continuation rate (86.8%) compared to non-disabled students
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GENDER DISCRIMINATION
The gender pay gap in unis is 12%
Women dominate at the early-career ranks, as seniority & salary increase the percentage of women staff decreases. At professor level, less than one quarter of staff are women
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BULLYING
Hundreds of academics have been accused of bullying students & colleagues:
aggressive behaviour
extreme pressure to deliver results
career sabotage
HR managers appearing more concerned about avoiding negative publicity than protecting staff
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Hundreds of academics have been accused of bullying students & colleagues:


career sabotage

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SUICIDES
The number of students taking their own lives has overtaken the general population for first time in 2018. The suicide rate among UK students had risen by 56 per cent in the 10 years between 2007 and 2016, from 6.6 to 10.3 per 100,000 people
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The number of students taking their own lives has overtaken the general population for first time in 2018. The suicide rate among UK students had risen by 56 per cent in the 10 years between 2007 and 2016, from 6.6 to 10.3 per 100,000 people
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RESEARCH MISCODNUCT & FRAUD are common in universities & research institutes and this is particularly dangerous as it can create false results on which other research is built and it weakens the publicâs trust in research
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IMPACT
The effect of university wrongdoing on victims can be devastating:
It can cause or aggravate mental illness and drive people to suicide
It can prevent the victim from completing their course, from continuing their job & from finding a job elsewhere in academia
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The effect of university wrongdoing on victims can be devastating:


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How do unis cover up their wrongdoing?
NDAs are a tool for universities to suppress information that the public would find shocking in order to protect the reputation of the university and of university managers
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NDAs are a tool for universities to suppress information that the public would find shocking in order to protect the reputation of the university and of university managers
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According to the information provided by unis, which is likely to be heavily doctored to minimise the full picture:
Unis used 11k NDAs in 5 years
2/3 of unis spent 87m on NDAs in 2 years: this is from students' fees & taxpayer's money
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Through NDAs & instilling fear of retaliation, universities prevent the staff and students of that university, as well as prospective staff & students, from understanding the full extent of wrongdoing and corruption within the university: it is a tool for information control
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NDAs & fear of retaliation allow universities to escape accountability. If there is a known bully, sexual predator or wrongdoer, unis are able to keep this person at the uni without anyone knowing. This means that this person can continue to harm others with impunity
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IN SUMMARY
Uni wrongdoing is endemic because:
Unis have a culture where wrongdoing is not only tolerated but covered up
Inadequate complaints processes rife with conflicts of interests
Fear of repercussions for the complainant
No external oversight
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Uni wrongdoing is endemic because:




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References:
Summary of data: https://www.dobetteracademia.co.uk/index.php/specific-issues/university-wrongdoing-data
Staff Exploitation: https://www.dobetteracademia.co.uk/index.php/specific-issues/staff-exploitation
Whistleblowing in HE: https://www.dobetteracademia.co.uk/index.php/specific-issues/whistleblowing-in-universities
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Summary of data: https://www.dobetteracademia.co.uk/index.php/specific-issues/university-wrongdoing-data
Staff Exploitation: https://www.dobetteracademia.co.uk/index.php/specific-issues/staff-exploitation
Whistleblowing in HE: https://www.dobetteracademia.co.uk/index.php/specific-issues/whistleblowing-in-universities
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MEDIA ARCHIVES
Sexual misconduct: https://www.dobetteracademia.co.uk/index.php/university-wrongdoing/university-sexual-misconduct-in-the-media
Discrimination: https://www.dobetteracademia.co.uk/index.php/university-wrongdoing/discrimination-in-universities
Bullying: https://www.dobetteracademia.co.uk/index.php/university-wrongdoing/bullying-in-universities
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Sexual misconduct: https://www.dobetteracademia.co.uk/index.php/university-wrongdoing/university-sexual-misconduct-in-the-media
Discrimination: https://www.dobetteracademia.co.uk/index.php/university-wrongdoing/discrimination-in-universities
Bullying: https://www.dobetteracademia.co.uk/index.php/university-wrongdoing/bullying-in-universities
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