‘You certainly don’t get promoted for just teaching’: experiences of education-focused academics in research-intensive universities

Changes in drivers of academic roles within higher education institutions globally have resulted in increased proportions of academics in education focused (EF) posts. International and UK research suggests that EF academics can experience dissatisfaction with career progression and the perceived value of their work, including those in research-intensive universities. Previous UK research was conducted prior to the introduction of the TEF which has altered the landscape. Therefore, it was timely to examine the current experience of EF academics in research-intensive universities through a theoretical lens to understand barriers and facilitators to career progression. This interview-based study used two theoretical frameworks, Feldman and Ng’s Framework for Career Mobility, Embeddedness, and Success and Kanter’s theory of Power within organisations to explore the experiences of 43 EF academics across 12 research-intensive UK universities. Four contract types were identified, some of which allowed promotion. Three broad themes were derived from the data, including (1) Lack of agreement on the definition of education-focused academic roles, (2) Level of value and appreciation of educational expertise and the impact on education-focused academics, (3) Career development opportunities for education-focused academics. Recommendations to further enhance the experience and career progression for EF academics in research-intensive universities further include; ensuring transparency in recruitment into EF posts as to whether career development is possible within that post, the need to continue the sector-wide discussion on the definition of EF roles that recognises the complexity and diversity of activity and continued work to value and recognise appropriately educational expertise.