Young Academy: let's call everyone professor

Last Monday, DUB published an article about the suggestion, made by several scholars, to use the title of professor more broadly and expand the right to confer PhD degrees. The Young Academy seems to have picked up the gauntlet, coming out with the same plea a few days later. This doesn't come as a surprise as the Young Academy's plea stems from a longer-standing stream of criticism of the hierarchy prevalent at Dutch universities.

The Young Academy is a group of prominent scientists of a relatively young age, who are affiliated with the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (Dutch acronym: KNAW). Many of the members hold the title of full professors themselves, even though that's not visible on the members' page on the website, where the titles are left out and visitors must click further to see them.

Conferring doctorates
This debate began years ago when the first critiques on the right to confer doctorates emerged. It is not unusual for assistant and associate professors to supervise PhD candidates. However, they are not allowed to confer a PhD degree as that is the purview of full professors. Since 2017, that right has been expanded somewhat but not sufficiently, according to The Young Academy.

Moreover, there is an argument that has been gaining ground steadily, according to which the hierarchy pyramid at Dutch universities, with full professors at the top, makes the work environment unsafe. Cosmetic differences such as the right to wear the gown and the title of professor “are not innocuous”, says The Young Academy, which suggests giving the title of professor to assistant and associate professors as well, along with the corresponding rights.

An explanatory note on the idea says that levelling off the hierarchy would ensure that “younger academics, in particular, would have the courage to speak out without fear of reprisals if full professors disagree”.

Sweetener
The Young Academy has also anticipated objections. For instance, an earlier survey found that giving assistant and associate professors the right to confer PhDs is often seen as a sweetener: just a way of postponing their becoming full professors. Another objection is that the expansion of these rights would mean the end of inaugural speeches. After all, you cannot let everyone make a speech. There would simply be too many professors.

The Young Academy answers all of those questions on a ‘yes but’ page. As an example, a better definition ought to be provided when someone is allowed to be promoted to a higher position. As for inaugural speeches, the members suggest simply changing the concept. “Here’s a suggestion: make 40 inaugural speeches a year and let people submit a good plan for a public lecture, ten years or more after obtaining their PhD.”

Support
In a column published earlier this year, KNAW President Marileen Dogterom expressed her support for this type of plan. She is not the only one: the activists of WOinActie have also suggested the same idea. What is new now is that there is a serious lobby in favour of a change.