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Teaching, research or balanced? An exploration of the experiences of biomedical scientists working in UK medical schools
FEBS Open Bio, Volume: 11, Issue: 11, Pages: 2902 - 2911
Swansea University Author: Steven Capey
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© 2021 The Authors. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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DOI (Published version): 10.1002/2211-5463.13304
Abstract
Driven by demand for high standards in university education, efforts have been made in the UK to address the perceived imbalance between teaching and research. However, teaching is still perceived by many as having less credibility and is attributed less importance. The purpose of our research was t...
| Published in: | FEBS Open Bio |
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| ISSN: | 2211-5463 2211-5463 |
| Published: |
Wiley
2021
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| Online Access: |
Check full text
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| URI: | https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa58677 |
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| Abstract: |
Driven by demand for high standards in university education, efforts have been made in the UK to address the perceived imbalance between teaching and research. However, teaching is still perceived by many as having less credibility and is attributed less importance. The purpose of our research was to explore how distinct types of academic job profiles (‘research’ or ‘education’ focused, or ‘balanced’) impact on biomedical scientists' perceptions of the lecturer role. Specifically, we investigated the experiences of biomedical scientists in ‘post-1990’ medical schools, which are known for their commitment to excellence in both research and education. We conducted 22 face-to-face, semi-structured interviews with biomedical scientists in five schools. Focusing on experiences of work, the interviews covered: ‘motivations’, ‘role expectations’, ‘teaching’, ‘research’ and ‘career’. The recorded qualitative data were transcribed and then analysed thematically. Our results, offering an insight into the working lives of biomedical scientists in medical education, suggest that in settings with a dual emphasis on education and research, individuals on ‘balanced’ contracts can experience a strong pull between research and teaching. In addition to posing significant challenges with respect to workload management, this can impact profoundly on professional identity. In contrast to the balanced role, ‘research’ or ‘education’ focused roles appear to have clearer requirements, leading to higher employee satisfaction. We conclude that to assist the educational mission of Higher Education, attention should be paid to balanced contracts, to (a) ensure employee support, (b) mitigate against negative perceptions of teaching, and ultimately, (c) guard against staff attrition. |
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| Keywords: |
career; education; medical education; medical school; professional identity |
| College: |
Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences |
| Issue: |
11 |
| Start Page: |
2902 |
| End Page: |
2911 |