Discontent of the dons

Why are academics so underpaid and undervalued in Britain? And how can they gain the respect that they feel they deserve? Michael Dunning reports

The French hold academics in esteem. But listeners of BBC Radio 4's Today programme rank them as the United Kingdom's 11th most respected profession. Do academics themselves feel respected? The answer, it seems, is no.

"You don't get respect for intellectual insight in this country, whereas in other countries such as France, you do," says Natalie Fenton, president of the Association of University Teachers. "It's not seen as a good thing to be clever in the UK. People tend to see academics as being locked in their ivory towers. In the old days it was a mystified profession, but the status has dropped – it has been degraded."

Fenton's contention that the British have little regard for the life of the mind was given credence by a recent speech to Parliament by the Queen: "We are a moderate, pragmatic people, more comfortable with practice than theory," she said.

Central to the public perception of academics is the way they are portrayed in the media, according to the eminent sociologist Professor AH Halsey, author of The Decline of the Donnish Dominion. "Academics are treated with less respect by the media than used to be the case," he says. "The media often refer to academics as boffins – clever, but not in the real world."

David Utting, the head of media relations at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and a former journalist, believes that different parts of the media treat academics differently. "Specialist supplements treat academics differently from the tabloids. The Sun or The Daily Mail, for example, if sympathetic to an academic's point of view, will portray him or her as serious and as a holder of the truth. If, on the other hand, they are unsympathetic, then academics are reduced to 'boffins'."

This poor image of academics isn't confined to the public and media but, according to many academics, is deeply entrenched in government. It was particularly noticeable during Margaret Thatcher's reign in the Eighties, when Oxford dons hit back by denying her an honorary degree at her alma mater. "After the rise of the social sciences in the Sixties and Seventies and the student movements of that era Keith Joseph was complaining that the modern student was being taught left-wing values by left-wing dons," explains Professor Halsey.

Poor pay reflects the image that the present government has of academics, says Professor Susan Bassnett, pro-vice chancellor of Warwick University. "The Government's view is anti-intellectual. It has a notion of education being about basic learning. Academia is not respected; the Government has trashed research universities. It has an unhealthy focus on education for the economy, rather than for knowledge's sake."

But academics cannot be absolved of blame for this state of affairs. The poor image that the media, government and public have of academe is created, in part, by academics themselves, says Fenton. "Academic researchers do not have a history of encouraging communication in the public domain. They are often frightened to talk to the media because they fear being misrepresented and do not want to lose status among their peers."

Utting agrees: "Academics are afraid of dumbing down by the media, and some have an elitist view that their work cannot be expressed adequately to the public. But it is a good thing that the media is disseminating serious research messages."

In trying to improve the public image of academics, Fenton believes that the Government and universities should spend more time promoting the positive aspects of academe. And academic pay is key. "Ministers should be investing in university staff," says Sally Hunt, general secretary of the AUT. "Urgent action needs to be taken to increase starting salaries and attract new staff into higher education." Perhaps then academics will feel respected.

WHAT THE ACADEMICS SAY

Professor Lewis Elton, University College London

As a higher proportion of the population goes to university, the domestication of academics has started to appear. The public perception of academia is tied to the perception of the quality of teaching. I think it has remained unchanged during my time in academia and the quality has been mixed and often inadequate. When I tell people that my job is to improve university teaching, they say, "And about time, too." But when I talk to academics, I get the response: "What on earth for?" There is a discrepancy – and I fear I am on the side of the public.

Chris Pole, sociology lecturer, Leicester University

People often think that academics live in ivory towers. The public sees that academics in medical schools or in engineering have a direct relevance, but with philosophy or fine art, they ask: "What are they for?" Manybase their idea of academics on media representations, which are often of bumbling boffins. Governments, too, often have a negative view of academics – just look at the Thatcher years and her mistrust of anything social and, therefore, of social scientists.

Professor Gordon Campbell, English, Leicester University

Ancient stereotypes of academics are still in place. People don't understand what academics do. My neighbours think I'm a teacher.

Academic pay has sunk and there is no serious use of academics in political life, unlike in other European countries. The present government has continued the Tories' stance by underinvesting in and undervaluing academics. They treat us with contempt and indifference. New Labour has carried on the audit culture put in place by the previous administration, which sees universities as places that churn people out for the economy. They don't see universities as places where people learn citizenship.

In the media, academics either play the boffin role, as experts talking about a given issue, or they appear on late-night arts slots on Channel 4, which are quite marginal. This is partly the fault of academics because, unlike Simon Schama, they can't communicate well with the public.

Professor Susan Bassnett, comparative literary theory, Warwick University

The English aren't profoundly intellectual, so academics aren't admired and given much status. Poor pay reflects that. In the Eighties there were lots of novels about academics, which contained a great deal of humour, but that interest has waned, and there is little media representation now. By contrast, in Franceacademics comment on all sorts of issues.

Dr John Mardaljevic, physicist at De Montfort University Leicester

Media representations of science are poor. Science is often treated in terms of deficiency: "They can't do this" or "they can't do that". "We've been waiting for a cure for Aids for 20 years." This comes from a failure to understand what science is at a fundamental level. It stems from an inability to distinguish between science and technology. Technology is about providing things for need, whereas science is about enquiry.

Science and engineering have never really been held in high esteem and the Government reflects this. Inevitably, we are paid less. But that doesn't stop scientists thinking of themselves as some kind of elite. Ultimately, scientists' ideas are the engine of civilisation and progress.

education@independent.co.uk