UNIVERSITY LECTURER | Publish or Perish! Do academics need to publish their research?

In 1942 Logan Wilson wrote that academics needed to publish or perish. The idea that without a constant stream of research papers and articles a lecturer would fail. So… is that the case today? As a university lecturer I want to share my research outputs and journal papers are an important method to do this. Research articles also keep me relevant in my academic field and can help researchers connect with each other. Plus, whether we like it or not, an academic publication record is a key performance indicator for a university. Publications are important in annual appraisals, institution research evaluations and academic promotion. So, will lecturers perish if we fail to publish? Check out the video for my thoughts! :)

I'll be posting a new video every Monday at 10am GMT. (Maybe a second video each week can return in the summer!) Thank you for watching and all the lovely support/comments for the channel.

All views are my own. #drcst #academiclife #university
Music | Upbeat

[neilpyper]

When I got my first academic post, everything seemed to come down to publication, even for those on teaching contracts. Now, I think this is less the case than it was, at least in my field (business management). In my last job, teaching and management crowded out publication, and there was very little impact on my career, even though I was at an institution that had research excellent aspirations. When I applied for senior academic jobs last year, I got called to interviews despite not having great publications, and got the job that I wanted. I am probably unusual in that I want to be a teacher (though management takes up more and more of my time). The teaching and education career track is far more established and respectable these days. Indeed, I see more and more colleagues becoming teaching-focused professors!

[rosejemima]

hi! im a first year biochem student and i aspire to be a professor one day. your videos are super helpful and insightful!!

[tinglin]

I feel like "publish and perish" is more relevant to those who want to land a permanent position in academia.

[bridgetsmith]

Love your videos. Can you please do a video on how you've adapted to teaching online?

[coolisfoolable]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and your experience. It seems everyone agrees that publishing is important for academics to stay relevant and (hopefully) maintain thair careers.

But I also see a problem with the pressure imposed upon academics via the "publish or perish" model. Many academics publish utter rubbish just to maintain "productivity". not to mention the games some may play in order to boost their "impact". What are your thoughts on this?

[henryezechukwu]

Am an early career lecturer in Nigeria, At the moment I am targeting atleast two each year. Do you think publishing review papers is also important as the research paper, and if they are weigh as the same

[Anteater]

I think I’d like to be a teaching fellow but I think it’s hard enough finding a lectureship position let alone teaching fellowship