Thatcher (think female Regan) managed that one over here. In the USA-ian system your position is tenuous until tenured. In the UK your position is always tenuous.
Related: the academic teaching union is on strike for better pay. When your position is always insecure pay tends to be shite.
Ah, yes, we know her over here. Reagan was the male Thatcher. [And when I lived in Grantham I was constantly reminded of its famous daughter.]
Pay is still shite for academics, even with tenure. In fact, we’re told that’s a selling point: The pay might suck, but at least there’s tenure. In truth, being untenured and on the tenure track is pretty safe as well. In many states, those aren’t annual contracts, so there has to be cause for firing. And if people are meeting benchmarks towards tenure and not being egregious, they’re fairly safe.
WTF? They keep charging more tuition, at a much higher rate than inflation. I call bullshit.
Well, public ones at least keep getting fewer and fewer state dollars. Enrollment is often on a downward trend too.
and so on . . .
I’m aware of the long-term trend of some states reducing university budgets, but others are holding firm while the public universities still increase tuition and “post-COVID” enrollment exceeds previous highs. Either they are hiring a lot of staff, spending a lot on capital projects, or someone is making a shit-ton of money skimming.
Where are these places? The most optimistic estimates I’ve seen are “leveling off,” and only in community colleges, and only because of dual enrollment.
That’s just for last year. Overall, enrollment at public institutions was down 10% in fall 2020, and even optimistic estimates have the declines leveling off.
That is becoming less so, though, especially down here.
In Oregon, the state universities are stuffed to the gills, with many first years students tripling up in double rooms. Also, they didn’t see an actual drop in enrollment during the pandemic, since the major ones had e-learning programs that swelled in proportion to on-campus drops. Both Oregon State and U of O are well above pre-pandemic enrollment numbers based on the presentations I’ve seen.
That’s great news for Oregon. Here’s Oregon’s enrollments for the past 10 years. They are back where they were in 2017, but not at their 10-year high. So, up about .5% from immediate pre-pandemic. Better than most, for sure.
Across the system, OSU is definitely up, with most of that due to the opening and growth of two new campuses.
Data here: Enrollment and demographic reports | Institutional Research | Oregon State University
Their main campus is up 3.3% from itself in 2021, which is an outlier among universities. Great for them, but not the norm nationwide.
Dorm usage, though, is not a good way to judge. Universities tend to allow their dorms to be oversubscribed, figuring that some percentage of students won’t show up, or will subsequently choose to live off campus. Then they get surprised and have to double kids up. This year has been especially bad, as kids want to return to “normal.”
Just going by what’s right in front of my face. 
My alma mater, a private university, is at max undergrad enrollment and didn’t experience much of a decline during the pandemic. I get that it is an outlier.
I still don’t buy that university budgets are tight after decades of astronomical tuition and fee increases. I know that departmental budgets are tight, but the math just doesn’t add up for the institutions overall.
A budget is a statement of values and priorities. University budgets are “tight” when it comes to spending on instructor-related academics because universities value them like we value grandpa’s old mantle clock. They’re nice to have around, you hope it keeps working, but you don’t want to put too much money into fixing it up.
… not sure where to post this, if anywhere
It did get Boing’d, and I think in Fuck Today. But this is as discontentful as education gets. So, yeah. Such a freaking horrible thing. And your post appeared here while I am watching Lucifer, so apropos.
… I guess I should check the front page more often
I’d advise small doses.
