Unis at risk of corruption, and it’s the staff who say so

Four in 10 of the staff at SA’s three universities ­believe their institutions are ­vulnerable to corruption and inappropriate conduct, according to a survey.

University of Adelaide interim vice-chancellor Mike Brooks.

Four in 10 of the staff at South Australia’s three universities ­believe their institutions are ­vulnerable to corruption and inappropriate conduct, according to a survey by the state’s Independent Commissioner Against ­Corruption.

The survey of more than 3200 staff revealed intense concern about low entry standards, pressure to pass failing students, bullying and harassment, and inappropriate recruitment and promotion processes.

Staff who participated in the anonymous survey also reported wage exploitation (particularly of casual employees), falsification of data in research grant applications, and manipulation of ­research to make outcomes look better.

“International students are ­accepted with well below the ­required English language proficiency in order to maintain income. The senior management refuse to engage with these issues and just accuse academics of being bad teachers when they raise it,” said one staff member who is quoted in the report, titled ICAC University Integrity Survey 2020.

“If students do not attend courses, fail assignments and get bad grades, academics are hauled over the coals, so the result is that academics make courses easier and increase grades so no questions are asked,” said another staff member.

Some respondents said students were passing courses, or ­attending work placements, without sufficient competence or ability, which could endanger public health or safety.

“The university has lost control of clinical requirements and many students are graduating without completing a sufficient number of procedures that are workforce ready and competent as a new graduate,” one staff member said.

Academic staff were found to be particularly dissatisfied, with one saying: “Any semblance of academic control over our curricula or research is gone — we are now forced into one poor decision after the other by professional staff managers who are not qualified to make decisions in these ­domains.”

Others report breaches of research integrity, alleging plagiarism, deletion of data to make research results look better, and concealment of flaws. “A couple of my colleagues quite clearly publish bogus scientific research, plagiarise off others, or publish the same article many times in different journals,” a respondent said.

The survey also found that significant numbers of staff were afraid to come forward when they saw corruption or inappropriate conduct. “Four out of 10 respondents stated they would be worried about their job if they reported,” the ICAC report said.

University of Adelaide interim vice-chancellor Mike Brooks said in a message to staff on Thursday that “inappropriate conduct of the kind outlined in the survey findings is unacceptable and should not be tolerated”.

University of South Australia vice-chancellor David Lloyd said: “While some of the contents of the aggregate report are deeply concerning and will warrant further examination, UniSA is waiting for our own institutional report and data to assess the feedback in our specific context.” Flinders University vice-chancellor Colin Stirling said he strongly encouraged staff and students to report concerns. “The university will always investigate thoroughly and take action as required,” he said.