Background: The under-representation of women and other minority group members in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) academia is a problem internationally and is attributed in part to hostile workplace cultures. We draw on the social identity perspective to examine the dynamic inter and intragroup processes entailed in these…

This Point of Departure ponders the question of decolonizing assessment of learning in higher education. In addressing this question, we, as scholars of color who work in the academy in the US and the UK, have leaned on the work of Shahjahan, Estera, Surla, and Edwards' (2022) '"Decolonizing" Curriculum and Pedagogy: A comparative review…

Barriers to equity, diversity, and inclusion remain in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) for historically underrepresented and marginalized individuals. The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of women and LGBT+ academics and PhD students in the United Kingdom. Specifically, this article examines systemic…

Background: Mentorship is critical to success in postgraduate science, technology, engineering, math, and medicine (STEMM) settings. As such, the purpose of this study is to comprehensively explore the state of mentorship interventions in postgraduate STEMM settings to identify novel practices and future research directions. The selection criteria…

Higher education institutions have been identified as inequitable for historically marginalised student and staff populations. Student-staff partnership has recently emerged as one approach to redressing such inequities. To what extent are institutional partnership schemes considering or achieving this goal? Using two phases of qualitative data…

How can black women academics improve the lives of young people in their community? Etienne and her colleagues explore the ways they can intervene in two persistent and severe problems - the escalating knife crime that costs ever more young lives, and the disproportionately low academic attainment of black students compared with their white peers.…

Legislation such as the Equality Act 2010 has ensured that considerable progress has been made in tackling discrimination in relation to the 8 protected characteristics that are defined in law. UK HEIs are well-versed in monitoring the diversity of their workforce and ensuring that recruitment is compliant with the legislation. However as HEIs…

Students from Black Minority Ethnic (BME) groups continue to experience disadvantages compared to White students in UK Higher Education (Pilkington, A. 2013. "The Interacting Dynamics of Institutional Racism in Higher Education." "Race Ethnicity and Education" 16 (2): 225-245.). Evidence highlights that an attainment gap exists…

The use of zero-hours contracts (ZHCs) has been associated with the transfer of risk away from corporate employers and towards individual employees. In universities increasing numbers of teaching staff are employed on such contracts. Academics from Black and minority ethnic backgrounds (BME) are disproportionately more likely to be employed on…

Replete with espoused discourses of equality, diversity and inclusion within public bodies, is the UK, wherein lauded initiatives reward its universities' commitments to increasing the access and positioning of 'women' in higher education. This paper contributes a critical quantitative analysis of the state of representation and participation of…

Racial inequalities in higher education are widely recognised, from the scarcity of black and minority ethnic (BME) professors and vice chancellors, to student attainment gaps and campaigns to decolonise the curriculum. This collection of essays brings together experts' ideas for reducing racial inequality across the sector. It includes…

Black and minority ethnic (BME) communities continue to experience differential outcomes within the United Kingdom (UK) mental health system, despite increased attention on the area. The trauma of racism for BME academic and professional staff within higher education remains problematic against a backdrop of cultural and organisational…

Drawing on existing evidence, including Universities UK's (UUK) own research, this guidance provides a solutions-focused call for action to universities -- working with the entire university community -- to address racial harassment and make universities safe places to work and study. To support this, recommendations are put forward to support…

Decolonisation is a socio-political movement which challenges Eurocentrism and post-colonial notions of power. This has numerous implications for higher education institutions (HEIs), where the content and delivery of curricula may be seen as products of colonial legacy. The decolonisation agenda has increasing support from students, the academy,…

UK Higher Education is characterised by structural and institutional forms of whiteness. As scholars and activists are increasingly speaking out to testify, whiteness has wide-ranging implications that affect curricula, pedagogy, knowledge production, university policies, campus climate, and the experiences of students and faculty of colour.…