Survey reveals employment situation of researchers at the University of Coimbra | Coimbra University

The Academic Association of Coimbra (AAC) opened, on Wednesday, May 1st, an exhibition that highlights the precariousness to which doctoral students working as researchers at this university are subject.

The survey, which was launched in February, involved the participation of 128 researchers from various higher education institutions in Coimbra.

In statements by P3, the president of the association, Renato Daniel, said that the study came about for two reasons: on the one hand, to denounce a precariousness in research that he believes “often goes unnoticed” and, on the other, to instigate students university students who aspire to a career in the field to “fight for the rights of an increasingly unstable class”, he argued.

“Researchers are often post-higher education students who end up subject to job insecurity and contractual instability. Most of the precariousness they presented has nothing to do with the higher education institution where they investigate. A large part of them is related to chronic research funding and precarious contracts that end up not helping researchers continue their work as they would like”, he added.

The results, presented in the form of bar graphs, were shown in Largo D. Dinis, in the city center of Coimbra, on Labor Day, with the aim of reaching more people. At the moment, writes Rádio Universidade de Coimbra (RUC), the exhibition is on floor 0 of the AAC building.

The exhibition addresses topics such as barriers to accessing the job market in the private sector, the investment that exists in the area or the renewal of staff at higher education institutions.

The majority of respondents feel that their level of training is not being valued (76 agree and 24 disagree), reads the statement sent to P3. The rest did not respond.

The researchers were also asked whether having a doctorate could be discriminatory for entering the job market. In response, 78 believe so and 21 disagree.

Regarding the need to renew university staff to value doctorates, the responses were unanimous: 115 defended a change.