Postgraduate researchers (PGRs) may be overlooked by incoming sexual harassment regulations in universities, despite being particularly vulnerable, academics have claimed.?

A new??produced by?the 1752 Group and UK Council for Graduate Education (UKCGE) warns that the experiences of PGRs ¡°have not received the same level of attention as undergraduate students¡± in relation to tackling harassment and sexual misconduct, noting that PGRs have very ¡°different conditions of study¡± to other students.?

From 1 August, all English higher education providers registered with the Office for Students (OfS) must publish and maintain policies and procedures?about sexual harassment on campuses, which should?set out how students can report incidents, how incidents will be handled, and how the university intends to provide support for those affected.

While the incoming regulations have been largely praised, Anna Bull, co-author of the toolkit and co-founder of the 1752 Group, told Times Higher Education that PGRs ¡°could be left out of the conversation¡± when it comes to protections around sexual harassment, as they exist in ¡°a liminal space¡± between staff and students.?

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¡°There¡¯s a danger that universities¡¯ approaches to implementing these regulations to address harassment will focus on taught students, or particularly taught undergraduate students, and PGRs need a slightly more bespoke approach,¡± said Bull, a senior lecturer in education and social justice at the University of York.

Bull warned that PGRs could fall between the cracks of recent legislation designed to protect workers from sexual harassment and regulations for students.?

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In particular, PGRs face ¡°significant risks¡± from ¡°abuses of power from staff both within and outside their institution¡±, the report says, as they?¡°may be equally or more aligned to their disciplinary community than their institution¡± and may be vulnerable to harassment at conferences, online, on field trips, or in relationships with external mentors.

Such networking events are ¡°crucial¡± for career development, Bull commented, highlighting the need for ¡°sector-wide work in this area¡±. The report recommends that universities work with sector-wide organisations such as the UKCGE, disciplinary and professional societies to create an awareness campaign around harassment and sexual misconduct aimed at PGRs.

The ¡°blurred line¡± of PGRs¡¯ status between staff and student means that greater clarity is needed on professional boundaries between PGRs and more senior university staff, the report continues, noting that ¡°academia does not have formalised standards of professional behaviour in this area¡± unlike in professions such as law, healthcare, social work, and counselling.

It outlines that institutions need to ¡°balance a top-down with a bottom-up approach¡± when it comes to setting professional boundaries. Top-down initiatives could include prohibiting intimate staff-student relationships, while ¡°bottom-up¡± approaches include discussions within departments to agree a shared approach to professional boundaries.?

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¡°Discussions around appropriate professional boundaries should then be added to existing staff training and PGR professional development programmes,¡± the report says. ¡°For PGRs, such sessions are relevant not only during their studies but also support their professional development as future managers and leaders in higher education or industry, when they may need to address such issues.¡±

Commenting on the incoming OfS sexual harassment regulations, Bull said she is ¡°really heartened¡± to see ¡°the huge amounts of work¡± being put into preparations. However, she added: ¡°I think it¡¯s a case of time and tell. We don¡¯t really know a lot about what approach the OfS will take to monitoring the implementation of [the regulations].¡±

juliette.rowsell@timeshighereducation.com