Author Archives: Athene Donald

Raising Expectations: Funders Get Tough(ish)

About 18 months ago, Dame Sally Davies, the Government’s Chief Medical Officer, unilaterally raised the bar for Medical Schools wanting to apply to future rounds of funding through the Biomedical Research Centre scheme, demanding (in essence) that they obtain an … Continue reading

Posted in Equality, Uncategorized, Women in Science | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Undue Influence?

If the newspapers are to be believed – and that’s a big if – then television has an awful lot to answer for when it comes to which university courses are over-subscribed. In quick succession last week, stories were run … Continue reading

Posted in Careers, Education | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Culture, Class and Quakers

Last week Melvyn Bragg ran a special series of In Our Time discussing the meaning of culture in both the past and present.  Because of the timing of the programme I rarely listen to it, although it’s great for listening … Continue reading

Posted in Education, Science Culture, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Is Removal of the Gender Pay Gap a Utilitarian Dream?

Last month the University of Cambridge published its latest Equal Pay Review, something it is now doing biennially (rather than annually) since things don’t change that drastically year on year. As in previous years, if you look at the average … Continue reading

Posted in Equality | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Classifying Group Leaders

It’s the season for lists: best photos of the year, best quotes, best-dressed (even worst-dressed) celebs, momentous moments – you name it, there’s probably a list for it somewhere on the web. Since I’ve just covered the other seasonal topic … Continue reading

Posted in Academia, Research, Science Culture | Tagged , , , | 17 Comments