COVID-19 threatens to lead to a “lost generation” of researchers, say international scholar networks

On 16 March 2020 the world started to shut down to curb the spread of COVID-19. One year later, existing societal inequities have been brought into sharp relief. In the higher education sector, in-person teaching, learning and research have faced severe interruptions or have been halted altogether. Faculty and student flexibility and mobility have been reduced, and university resources have been severely constrained and remain uncertain.

The impacts on early-career researchers and faculty are especially alarming. In addition to lost research and student training opportunities, reports of retracted postdoctoral and faculty offers, hiring freezes, pay cuts, lost professional development opportunities, and many young scholars dropping out of the workforce all threaten to lead to a “lost generation” of researchers if rapid action is not taken.

Today, two global networks of scholars, the InterAcademy Partnership (IAP) and the Global Young Academy (GYA), issue a communique highlighting some of the most pressing challenges for higher education globally, and propose solutions to mitigate the further entrenchment of inequalities.