Arecent article in the Washington Post on “Pracademics” presents a polemic centred around the role and status of academics who work outside of universities in the UK and USA.
Jon Marcus paints a positive picture of the integration of so-called pracademics in higher education institutions, offering as a key rationale the value of professional and industry experience in teaching.
“Pracademic” isn’t a new term, though as with many such portmanteau terms its exact origins are unclear. One example of its use in the literature utilises the term to explore academic identities and whether they are “under threat”.
Since then, its use has proliferated and it appears now, to use the vernacular, to be having a moment.
