Home PhDs trumped by overseas maths experts

The UK's research funding regime skews the academic jobs market against British mathematics postgraduates in favour of more experienced researchers from overseas, according to leading mathematicians.

The preliminary report of a gathering of UK mathematicians at Manchester University has concluded that "home-grown" maths postdoctoral researchers are "largely unemployable in British universities" because of the pressure on departments to attract more established staff.

The report says: "The level of research output, which British university departments are required to demonstrate in order to obtain adequate levels of funding from the Higher Education Funding Council for England, can now only be achieved by sucking in increasing numbers of older and more experienced researchers from overseas.

"Mathematics departments have no choice but to appoint the best applicants and, at present, British applicants stand little chance of being shortlisted."

The report adds: "It becomes essential to ensure that our national curriculum (in schools) and incentive structure allows our schools and universities to produce home-grown research mathematicians of a sufficient calibre to compete with those from other countries."

The meeting, which took place in March, was organised by Alexandre Borovik of Manchester and Tony Gardiner of Birmingham University.

Their preliminary report asks: "Where will the next generation of UK mathematicians come from?" and they conclude that "the UK mathematics community now falls far short of reproducing itself".

The report says that the UK maths PhD is "too narrow" and calls for reform of maths teaching in schools, universities and teacher training programmes.

However, Jim Ewing, general secretary of the National Postgraduate Committee, said: "I don't see how the average British maths researcher can be less employable in a British university than the average researcher from the rest of the world."

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