CERII POLICY BRIEFING – 04/2023 www.aru.ac.uk/cerii April 2023 Precarious transitions? Doctoral students negotiating the shift to academic positions Guidance and Recommendations Professor Marie-Pierre Moreau, Anglia Ruskin University, Dr Kate Hoskins, Brunel University London, Dr Ellen McHugh, Brunel University London About this briefing This briefing provides an overview of findings from research led by Professor Marie-Pierre Moreau (Principal Investigator), Dr Kate Hoskins (Co-Investigator) and Dr Ellen McHugh. The research was funded by the British Academy/Leverhulme Small Grants programme. The aim of the research was to understand how students who have recently submitted their PhD thesis (less than 18 months ago at the time of the interview) negotiate access to an academic position, with specific consideration of the role of the doctoral supervisor in this process. This policy briefing focuses on the transition from a PhD to an academic position. The briefing presents key findings and recommendations for national key stakeholders, higher education institutions (HEIs) and doctoral supervisors to support early career researchers in building an academic career during their studies and at post-doctoral stage. Background and key findings The current UK higher education context is characterised by an increasing level of financial and political uncertainty, with changes to the funding mechanisms of higher education, growing competition for students, and the UK’s exit from the European Union. Moreover, the returns of a PhD and the transition to a permanent academic position have been uncertain due to the increased precarity of academic jobs, with implications for the career prospects and well-being of doctoral and early career researchers (ECRs). The research draws on a qualitative approach, with interviews conducted with early career researchers and PhD supervisors across the UK. The research shows inconsistencies and inequalities in term of the nature and extent of the support provided to ECRs who make the transition to an academic post. This raises equity issues as the study shows that the support provided by the supervisor, as well as by the department and institution, is crucial in the outcomes experienced by ECRs. The extent and nature of the support provided through the supervisory relationship is also mediated by gender, ethnicity and social class. Overall, the way supervisory teams and institutions work tend to accrue privileges, with While, middle-class, male students most likely to benefit from extensive and relevant support in negotiating access to an academic position. As a result, we argue that the supervisory team represents a crucial, yet understudied, mechanism in challenging or reproducing inequalities in terms of access to academic and other jobs constructed as desirable by doctoral students and ECRs. Contact the research team Email: marie-pierre.moreau@aru.ac.uk Why is this an important issue? • Academic careers have become more precarious over the past decades. The ‘returns’ of a doctoral degree, once a guarantee of an academic career, are more uncertain as well as gendered, classed and ‘raced’. • These uncertainties and the rise in the costs of higher education borne by doctoral students have well-identified effects on the career prospects and well-being of doctoral and early career researchers. • Institutions and supervisory teams can influence the future trajectories of doctoral and early career researchers depending on the nature and extent of the support provided. • Our research highlights deep inequalities in terms of the support doctoral and early career researchers receive from their institution and supervisory team. This Briefing Paper was developed by Dr Samson M. Tsegay, Research Fellow, ARU, in collaboration with the research team and in consultation with HE stakeholders.