A Post- Covid HE Future: Do we need a ‘Restorative University’? (Advert Reference: RDF21/BL/LHRM/JONES)

Project Rationale and Description

The main contention in this proposed research is that universities have lost their bearings and capacity to deal with uncertainties and complexity in terms of crises such as COVID-19 and the upcoming ecological challenge. The current COVID crisis has exposed in the starkest economic terms the costs of a sectoral strategy built on a combination of top-down managerialism and marketisation, constantly striving for external legitimisation in the form of global league tables, accreditation, research income and measures of teaching, impact, sustainability and quality assurance bodies. The circle of attract (primarlily through international students) and spend was virtuous for as long the supply chain remained unbroken but the pandemic broke it. With a reactive short-term stance without any slack in the system, it is contested that universities’ core social purpose has largely been neglected. At best, the most marginalised and powerless are subject to token ‘well-being’ gestures that satisfy ‘transparency’ and ‘accountability’ concerns, but do not tackle the fundamental systemic issues. 

It is contended that we need no less than a new social purpose for universities, representing an enhanced substantive rationality (to counter the instrumental rationality of managerialism), where values-based action is crucial in determining alternative courses of action, since this is how fundamental priorities are established. A useful way of imagining such a future would be through the metaphor of the ‘Restorative University’ based on research by the principal supervisor (Jones, D.R. (2014, 2015 a,b,c, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020).

This research will explore how and why such restoration needs to happen, specifically from an academic perspective. By using the restorative metaphor as a conceptual lens, this research will explore the significance of individual and collective restorative space (physical, social, cognitive & emotional) for academics, across the UK higher education sector. Taking a processual approach, it will track when, where, how and why academics enact such spaces in their working lives. For example, in the current COVID context, academics are increasingly calling for much greater attention to the following areas (Jones et al. 2020):

1. Acceptance and support for vulnerability, self and collective care 
2. Bio-cultural connection
3. Physical and emotional well-being 
4. Collegiality and inter-disciplinarity
5. Aesthetic sensibility

Such research could have implications for wider citizenship initiatives around well-being and sustainability agendas within business schools and universities as a whole. It will draw on the collective auto-ethnographic approaches used in prior research by the principal supervisor, to unmask any significant implications for organisational development, performance management, metric management and accreditation practices in universities. Such a focus, may also cast a post-COVID spotlight on new public management practices across other sectors, such as healthcare and education. This proposal thereby is aligned to departmental, faculty and university research (MDRTs) priorities around sustainability, social responsibility, work futures, critical management studies in the former and ecological futures and integrated health and social care in the latter. Finally, this research area has much potential around publishing in the major 3 and 4* journals in this field, AMLE, Studies in Higher Education, British Education Research Journal and Management Learning – The Principal Supervisor is an Associate Editor for the latter and has just led a SI in this research area (Jones et al., 2020).   

Eligibility and How to Apply:

Please note eligibility requirement:

• Academic excellence of the proposed student i.e. 2:1 (or equivalent GPA from non-UK universities [preference for 1st class honours]); or a Masters (preference for Merit or above); or APEL evidence of substantial practitioner achievement.
• Appropriate IELTS score, if required.
• Applicants cannot apply for this funding if currently engaged in Doctoral study at Northumbria or elsewhere.

For further details of how to apply, entry requirements and the application form, see

https://www.northumbria.ac.uk/research/postgraduate-research-degrees/how-to-apply/ 

Please note: Applications that do not include a research proposal of approximately 1,000 words (not a copy of the advert), or that do not include the advert reference (e.g. RDF21/BL/LHRM/JONES) will not be considered.

Deadline for applications: 29 January 2021

Start Date: 1 October 2021

Northumbria University takes pride in, and values, the quality and diversity of our staff. We welcome applications from all members of the community.

For informal enquiries, please contact Prof David Jones ([Email Address Removed])