Eurodoc's Response to UKRI's "New deal for Postgraduate Research"

On the 26th of September the largest research funder in the United Kingdom, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), released a report "New deal for postgraduate research". In this document and in their "Collective Talent Funding Roadmap 2022 to 2025" UKRI outlines how they intend to continue the practice of not employing doctoral candidates.

The malpractice of refraining from employing doctoral candidates enforces and enhances the precarity which is widespread during the early stages of a researcher's career. It has further consequences on social rights, financial benefits, families, and personal relationships. Moreover, this precarity and the insecurity that it induces impairs creativity, decreases work efficiency, and reduces the individual's overall career prospects and well-being [5]. It is Eurodoc's firm opinion that all ECRs, including doctoral candidates, are professionals and should be treated as such.