I'm a professor in the Politics department of a large British university. Ask me anything

I'm a professor in the Politics department of a large British university. Ask me anything

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One and only bump

what's up with Robert Nozick?

>voting

I respectfully decline to make their decisions less illegitimate, thank you

Is being transgender a mental illness?

When do we get proportional representation?

What do you call a government or an establishment on which the old people of the same rule?

actually this is a shit question.

How many of your colleagues are closeted Marxists?

will trump win?

are you UKIP voter?

>Professor
>in politics
Made my day. How does it feel to be a living meme?

He's dead.

At my level, only two. In the department as a whole there are five.

Probably not. The Clinton Clan don't like losing and they've essentially got the support of everyone who voted Obama.

I haven't met one of sound mind.

Rei or Asuka?

Excellent. I'm going to Kitzbuhel in January for the Hahnenkamm. Afterward I will be staying with friends in Zurs.

Life is good.

No, but I did vote to leave the European Union.

>At my level, only two. In the department as a whole there are five.

Proportionally not many then? Any idea about the sociology department?

Why do you think we give a fuck about your shit opinions.

>high paid
>job security
>respected in society
>endless secondary income options
>get to travel about for stuff

Marixsm has really fallen out of favour (believe it or not) at the Russell Group universities, with the tendency for research grant pursuits to put them off being too vocal or make them shuffle off elsewhere. They've usually got themselves into other departments (languages are popular, sociology and history following up) because there's more room for their theories. Or they've gone abroad, to lesser universities or retired.

20 years ago and about half the final year undergraduates, MA students and PhD candidates were either heavily reliant on Marxist theory for their work (whatever it was they were doing) or were themselves committed Marxists.

I don't

Supporting this. Is one, if not THE most important question in the last 20 years

What's your opinion on Olson's wandering/stationary bandit theory?

What do you think about Tiebout Sorting.

What is the most important lesson you've learned from reading Doug North?

Do you think the UK's humanities departments are the right size, or are they too large?
Do you think it benefits the country to have so many people taking degrees, are are they over-valued?
Hand on heart, would the country notice if formal humanities courses were decimated?

what % of the professors are aware that taxation is force and that their salaries (or part thereof) are extorted from the productive classes?

if they love economics so much, do they have sidegigs in the free market -like real businesses that help the economy- or do they just mentally masturbate the whole time?

thanks in advance

No you're not.

pic very related - your credibility

>What's your opinion on Olson's wandering/stationary bandit theory?

I'm not in political economy.

Many are too large. Some, however, run a very tight operation and do so to a high standard. There's a current trend toward academics going after teaching qualifications (PGCE modules and the like) to get more involved with their students, but in my opinion I think it's attracting the wrong people to academia.

>Do you think it benefits the country to have so many people taking degrees, are are they over-valued?
They are overvalued. I don't think it benefits the country, but I don't think it's inherently damaging.

>Hand on heart, would the country notice if formal humanities courses were decimated?
It depends in which areas.

You could quite easily cut foreign languages down. I've always been firmly of the opinion that if you require formal structure to learn a language then you probably aren't clever enough to study anything else. I'd say the same for most arts courses.

"Humanities" is broad. You could probably cut a quarter of the modules offered in our departments with no negative impact, other than on the employment of the people who conduct them. I like to think that my area (security) is a tad more relevant, but even then there's a lot that could be removed.

how many postmodernists/continental philosophers work at your university.

i have determined that the current wave of SJWism is a result of continental philosophy. do you agree or disagree?

also, why are continental philosoophers such awful people?

>do they have sidegigs in the free market -like real businesses that help the economy- or do they just mentally masturbate the whole time?

Nearly everyone does work on the side. Obviously, EU experts have been in demand recently. I contribute to a number of journals and have given a few television interviews in the past.

For instance, I'm not actually paid a full salary by the university I work for. I am paid by a seperate, private, institute.

How can modern societies resolve Converses rational ignorance problem?

also isn't "Logic of Collective Action" required reading for political theorists? Do you atleast have a basic notion of the evolution of the state and regional monopolies on teh use of force?

How often do you browse Sup Forums?

>real businesses that help the economy
> I contribute to a number of journals and have given a few television interviews in the past.

so you dont help the economy, you are just rent seeking

thanks, professor

Provide some proof you fucking cunt, else you're just an 18 year old faggot in his mum's basement masturbating to loli

Prove you're not with a timestamped picture of something professor related. Obscure/block/remove your face / identifying information if you must

whats the new hotness in the political science scene? people losing their shit about the wave of populism in america and europe?

how accurate is this Rules For Rulers video?
youtube.com/watch?v=rStL7niR7gs

What do you think about islamic immigration?

>i have determined that the current wave of SJWism is a result of continental philosophy. do you agree or disagree?

It's not a current wave. It's always been present, it's just more obvious at the moment. For decades, especially in the UK, universities were places that the bulk of society didn't come into contact with so everything was experimental, theoretical etc etc and could be as wild as it liked. They haven't intensified, they're just the same as they always have been. It's just more noticeable, and thanks to the internet you can see it around the world.

I'd agree that the rejection of mathematics, science and statistics among social justice movements is indicative of continental philosophy.

Well, Jane's certainly helps the defence industry which is a large and powerful chunk of the economy.

It probably is in the USA, where political scientists are obsessed with voter choice and statistics. There's an American here who teaches a STATA course, of which I'm hoping to attend next year.

Daily. It's nice to see something with the lid off.

Why do you and your colleagues feel the need to push agendas?

In my 4 years of studying in the UK I have never seen a single professor who doesn't act superior and try to push his own agenda, be that pro-EU, anti-EU, tory, labour or whatever.

Do you have zero pride in your profession? Zero ethics?

How can modern societies resolve Converses rational ignorance problem?

Brexit ravaged the Europhiles. I saw reasonable, switched on people have actual breakdowns because the vote didn't go the way they wanted. Someone took eight weeks, unpaid, off to get over it. Another had prepared about three years of work as to how the EU was vital to the defence and security policy of the UK (it is not) and may as well join a history department.

They're reassured that Clinton will win comfortably (which she will, not that I am excited about that) and seem to have latched onto that to try and get the Brexit memories away. What they're doing is disregarding the issue of the millions of people completely opposed to everything Clinton stands for, which will not end well.

The video simplifies something complex in quite a convincing way, but I'd not put any stock in educational videos (political or otherwise)

Fucked if I know.

I think there's a tendency for people who like an audience to get drawn to academia. Look at this thread, for example.

>In my 4 years of studying in the UK I have never seen a single professor who doesn't act superior and try to push his own agenda, be that pro-EU, anti-EU, tory, labour or whatever.
They, or we, feel it absolutely necessary to explain things that we have an interest in and because we're paid to do so we can't even fathom a scenario in which that expertise is unwanted.

>Do you have zero pride in your profession? Zero ethics?
I enjoy what I do and I try to do it to the best of my ability.

Where did you study?

What do you think the chances of a middle eastern war involving America and Russia are, in the next 5 years?

As a student of International Relations, what is my best course of action with regards to potential career moves and, perhaps, networking.
Should I lick people's bumholes?

Was brexit a good idea in terms of politics not economics?

would you recommend a career in academics to a- say- 18 year old in 2016?

I've heared the competition is fierce

>Another had prepared about three years of work as to how the EU was vital to the defence and security policy of the UK
fucking lol.

>The Clinton Clan don't like losing and they've essentially got the support of everyone who voted Obama.

you are clearly clueless on american politics then

*heard

Post proof or I'm deleting this thread.

Have you ever met a student who admitted they were a national socialist?

I still tell my professors I'm a Libertarian even though I haven't been for 2-3 years now

What kind of bribes do you accept? The large paychecks you get for giving speeches count too.

Directly involving both American and Russian combat forces? Low.

Clinton will want a war, though. Her husband had the Balkans and she will want at least one foreign policy excursion. I personally don't believe it will be in Syria, in any meaningful way, as she has at least one term to work her magic on another nation. It'll have to be a new war and have direct American involvement from the beginning, with fewer actors and an easier sell to the electorate.

The Clintons love NGOs and whatever the NGOs (that includes everyone, not just the lefty aid agencies) lean toward next will probably have a large conventional US commitment follow up.


A friend of mine who runs the personal development (ie, getting a job) module is convinced that most students who lose out do so because of bad time management. You should be looking well in advance. Think about what you want to do and contact people who have done it, ideally who have also gone through the same process as you. More often than not they're willing to help, they may not have the time though which is why it's best to start early.

Avoid "graduate programs". They are scams. Aim higher than entry level and ask what they're after, get it from the horses mouth.

How does academia perceive new Phds who are older than normal? I will be close to 40 when I finish.

My degree will be in a business discipline.

1) How old are you (roughly)?

2) I did a Philosophy degree (wish I did STEM, regret it massively). Should I go into law? What else would you recommend? I worked as a web dev after uni for a while because I did some elective modules in computer science, but webdev is fucking shite to be honest with you pham.

What determines "help the economy", the UK operates different to Spain in that we rely on professional services rather than working on tapas farms etc...

Not OP but lots of experience within universities.

>Hand on heart, would the country notice if formal humanities courses were decimated?

Yes I think that decimating a key area of our education because people deem it to be less valuable as a short-sighted decision, sure if we lived in an economy where the bourgeoisie needed to be cut down a size and people were better offer smelting ore then you might have a point.

Are you confused between Humanities and SocSciences perhaps? I think there is far much more baggage in the latter these days.

Either way hand on heart subjects such as History, Philosophy, Classics and English are important subjects and it would be shit to get rid of them. I'd keep all of them over sociology and psychology if given the choice.

I think much of this non-STEM is shit debate comes from actual students rather than working adults. Most careers you will enter do not care if you did Maths or English for your degree, they are almost always non-picky about your background. I say this as someone who works in finance, there are a tonne of people from non-numerical subjects and they are all competent employees.

At the end of the day when you are 35 who really cares about what you studied between 18-21? Unless you entered a technical job that requires you build on actual difficult maths / engineering then it really doesn't matter.

I would say that if someone does want to study Humanities/SocSciences they should ask three questions

1) Can I get a 2:1 easily?
2) Could I feasibly get a Postgrad qualification (I find the most successful students from these areas usually do)
3) Can I get into a university that is in the top-40 in the UK.

If you answer all three of these as Yes, maybe, yes then I would go for it and you will likely do alright life

cheers, appreciate it

If you relish the subject and have a genuine interest in researching it then go for it, but take it one step at a time. Volunteer for some research projects (there will be plenty going) and make sure you keep a good set of contacts. When taking your graduate degree, get as much contact time as you can with your supervisor or adviser. Express an interestto the people that already do it and they'll point you in the right direction.

Many universities also have schemes and programs they conduct with other universities, either by geographical proximity or rough equivalents, that allow you the opportunity to travel to different areas and meet different people. It's a lot better than doing the Erasmus piss up, and actually worth your time.

Clinton will walk the election. Trump would have been good fun, but Clinton has it in the bag. Barring a video of her being awarded star cadet at the KGB pass out parade, or torching a black church in the South, she'll win by five points at least.

I supervised one student from Estonia who was a national socialist. That's about it, or at least the only one I know of.

Bribery is for criminals :)

god bless estonia

>I'm a professor in the Politics department of a large British university.
I don't believe you. But
>Brexit ravaged the Europhiles. I saw reasonable, switched on people have actual breakdowns because the vote didn't go the way they wanted.
I really want to believe that. Germans were actually much calmer about this than I expected. But then, in Britain the opposing ends of society were almost always farther apart than here.

What are alternatives to graduate programs anyway? Since I think you mean both bachelor and master's degrees right?

I'm in my late 30s.

Avoid law. Law is oversaturated. If you're capable of working independently and have some experience in private industry (which I'm assuming you do, considering web development) then I'd go after an MBA, if you are considering further study.

Rather bizarrely, a friend of mine acquired a BA in History and after volunteering in a hospital for a period was accepted onto a medicine degree as a graduate. This was at Cambridge University. If you regret not going down the STEM route and have an interest, look into graduate medicine. He also volunteered at a Army Medical unit to get some more experience.

Favourably. Especially if it's something that requires a great deal of real work experience. You'll be in a much better position, the only downside to your age is that you may find working with people in their late teens and early 20s frustrating.

The best graduate student we have at the moment is in his fifties. He's got 30 years of telecoms experience and is an absolute delight compared to the usual slouches.

Does your university openly teach hatred of White people like many of the American ones do?

>What determines "help the economy"

if you saw project veritas IV, the lady who got a job in the democratic superpac just because an associated gave a 20k donation... that's rent seeking

having a journal priced on what public institution, with public funds, are "willing" to pay for it... that's rent seeking

jobs that are independent of performance towards customers (ie, professors dont usually say to student "please tell me how could i be abetter professor for you") or, rather, whose customers are not the ones announced (eg, pharma and military companies paying more to universities than students do in feed, hence becoming the entities the university has to please)... that's rent seeking

helping the economy is making clients happier, or less miserable, and some institutions (eg, feminism) dont have a radar for that or dont even seem to care that women report being less happy nowadays than 30 years ago

and you haven't asked my original question:

>what % of the professors are aware that taxation is force and that their salaries (or part thereof) are extorted from the productive classes?

thank you for your attention

Fug any students?

Did you get your job by telling that Islam isn't the problem but Christian White Men are?

>feed
*fees

I'm kind of inclined to agree with you that Clinton will win, sadly. What do you think Clinton's presidency will be like, in general? Are fears of America becoming a one party state due to Clinton's planned pardon of illegal Americans (who will almost certainly become loyal democrat voters) legitimate, or can we see republican presidents still in the future? And how legitimate are fears of Clinton provoking war with Russia?

>Clinton has it in the bag

Care to elaborate your reasoning CTR? I bet you were remain too.

>Did you get your job by telling that Islam isn't the problem but Christian White Men are?

Yes. This is 2016, we don't want to be on the wrong side of history!

Don't bother imo, most people of my graduating class (my final degree was IR) didn't. Unless you are rich or well-connected already being entry level seems like hell as everything I remember was unpaid or shit for potential career stuff. Basically looking to exploit you. You gotta play the long-game in politics, make yourself desirable really.

1)
a) Keep up good language skills
b) Keep interested in current affairs

2)
a) Work as a civil-servant or an industry that works closely with the government
b) If private sector try and get into a multinational that gives you experience around the world

Just try and move in that general direction, you have a better chance when you are bringing something to them.

>MBA

Is that really useful? My dad did one and he never used it, ever. What jobs even require it?

>Rather bizarrely, a friend of mine acquired a BA in History and after volunteering in a hospital for a period was accepted onto a medicine degree as a graduate.

I have actually spent a lot of time looking into that route, I compiled a list of all the unis that offer graduate medicine and their requirements.

I haven't done med experience tho and I know I would need to. Might look into it again.

Have you felt any pressure to adjust your curriculum or grading to accommodate Social Justice Warriors?

Try and get a job at an agency/ngo, be content with being in a mediocre job for half your life then maybe an ok job for the other half.

Live under constant threat of being fired just because, have a shitty boss.

Or try to become a teacher, that's sorta ok.

>what % of the professors are aware that taxation is force and that their salaries (or part thereof) are extorted from the productive classes?

Everyone is aware that they are paid mostly by taxes.

When I was a TA I did, as it was allowed, but now I'm not allowed to. It still happens, but I'm not party to it.

There was a period where this rang true and you can still find that stuff if you want to go look for it, but broadly speaking we're quite a sensible bunch. I don't know of any serious academics peddling that.

Also there is a much broader gap here between the Student Union, the broader student body and the University itself, whereas in the USA there doesn't seem to be one.

Gain the experience through internships and part time work, then when you graduate go after the job above the graduate position. The role with 2-3 years of experience required. That isn't legally binding and they will still take your application.

I've given references to students applying for jobs "requiring" two years experience who have started the month after they graduate, with no formal work experience. It's not a fixed requirement, it's more of a recommendation.

There was a lot of frothing at the mouth and, apparently, actual tears in some places.

so your final degree was a postgraduates degree? IR is quite saturated as it is seeing as it is quite popular in my home country (Holland). I should definitely try and make myself 'more desirable'

Can you hire me?
I'm finishing my PhD.

We can do research into memes.

How will Britons stop their country from becoming majority non-white by 2060?

Are people stupid because of their genetics or their upbringing? If you think it's a combination of both, or even more factors, give a list of them with percentage of importance, please.

Is studying Politics at undegrad even worth it? Also which university would you recommend?

I have a strong interest in Politics but I don't want my course to be whitewashed SJW bullshit.

I want a course that doesn't hand hold but has a good structure/course material.

Durham/Oxbridge?

If this is true, then why is SJWism so out of control now?

How many spine points do you have and what are your departmental preparations for the next REF?

Thanks, aprreciate it.
Final two questions:
- What do you think about the current situation in the South China Sea? Will China fuck shit up?

- What can a student do to get better grades? Do you know any books or w/e that guides a student toward obtaining better grades in general?

Much obliged

>Bribery is for criminals :)
Please take the question seriously. If it's a 'large university' then you must know what I'm talking about.

I already said I voted for Brexit. People who tell you the opposite of what you believe don't necessarily support it themselves. The clever money is on Clinton.

Nope. I tend not to have many in my classes anyway. They're a loud but tiny minority.

No, though there are certain academics in civil war studies (for example) who are convinced that every war since WW2 can be explained by whitey's evil colonialism.

It will be a continuation of Obama as that has gone down well, all things considered, with the voters. You will see a further erosion of civil liberties and probably a hardening of the American right in the face of that, similar to the period around the time of the AWB and the militia movement.

It's unlikely for a small state Republican party to win an election again, particularly if all the social programs are forced through. The Republicans will have to restructure themselves as any losing party must.

I feel like I'm hijacking this thread a little, but as someone who works in politics, let me try and answer another question about job prospects -

No, it's not worth it. Not unless you have a good plan for a masters and a pre-determined career path. And a willingness to never stray from that career path.

Basically, unless you want to work in the foreign service and that's all you ever want to do in life, knock yourself out.

Also be prepared to fight with thousands of people for ok-ish jobs.

So nearly all jobs? Perfect.

What?

What you said applies to a majority of jobs right now. Well, in the US at least.

But the democrats will naturalize all the mexican immigrants. How can a republican party ever win?

...

>the time of the AWB and the militia movement.
I'm sorry but I have no idea what you're talking about. Care to explain things to me briefly?

I'm thinking if I don't do a Politics degree I should just join the army. I don't have much interest in other subjects (I suck at Maths) and the job prospects are shitty across the board.

With a libertarian leaning candidate like Rand Paul.

No, you misunderstand.

An engineer can work at many different locations and companies, with different projects and options.

He can specialize in something else and change his job a little.

A lawyer can work in a law-firm, go become a corporate lawyer, go work for an NGO, for government.

And so on.

A political scientist (lel) or IR student can only ever try to go for one place, one job and pray to god he gets it or he's screwed and has to scrape by doing internships and shit jobs at NGOs.

And the competition is bigger in politics, because there's much fewer places that require a meme degree, compared to the people who have it, to practically any other profession.

This goes double for the guy I'm responding to, who will soon have thousands UK political students who managed to find jobs here in the EU institutions and around them and will have to return. Not to mention the several thousand people who had their options cut in half.

We don't take bribes as such, but there are numerous options to earn extra income.

Because it's more observable, due to instant access.

Russell Group (though I would avoid Liverpool), plus Aberystwyth and Hull. Hull is severely underrated.

Stick to the mark scheme. Look at past papers, but keep your own style. You should be writing extra work and getting feedback on that work way in advance of deadlines. Make the most of your contact hours and ensure the work you deliver is always of a higher quality than your peers. Be critical, assess the quality of your sources and the impact on your own research or judgement.

Head of school has retired, but the new one is basically continuing where he left off due to the massive gains made under the previous incumbent. As I mentioned earlier, there are more academics being expected to take teaching qualifications to get the research impact to the undergraduates.

I'm not paid by the university so I'm not on the pay scale here.

whats up with the Europe flag, faggot?

>I should just join the army

Hey, if you don't mind being largely a cuck for foreign powers, army is a great choice. I wanted to join the army myself. Then I realized I don't really want to serve the institutions, even if I want to serve my country.

But you should first consider what you want the politics degree for. If you can identify a career choice, see it's viable and want to make it your life goal - go ahead.

What's up with all your poverty and unemployment, homosexual?

Well that doesn't sound like a good degree to ever get into, then. Unless there was literally no one in it yet. Surprising that there's so little to do.

Since you are interested in Austria, how do you see the future of this country?

>"There was a period when this rang true"
Elaborate, what exactly used to go on? and why did it stop?

Clinton isn't going to win legitimately. We are still 15 days out. You have no idea how tense this election is. It is lot more conflicting then anything i've seen and i've seen 5 elections so far. Clinton is not ahead in the polls despite what concern shills tell you. Trump has already won. We all know this. Now we just wait to see if t ((they)) accept his win or not.

Its probably easier to do an easier, unrelated degree if you want to do postgrad med at my uni
The only thing they look at are grades and UMAT (a logic/reasoning test) score

>I'm sorry but I have no idea what you're talking about. Care to explain things to me briefly?

AWB is Clinton's (Bill) assault weapon ban..