Opinion | University work culture: balancing excellence or breeding burnout?
By Maximillian Burnos, Second Year Law and German
When the word ‘university’ comes to mind, one often thinks of an institution of scholarship and learning, creating the impression of an environment of growth and intellectual development. But at what cost? Are universities striking the right balance between promoting academic development and personal wellbeing, or has such a relentless push for excellence created a culture of burnout?
It is without question that standards and expectations of people are growing and with that, ambitions and excellence. A natural consequence of this is pressure. In the corporate world, there is a demand for only the best, with people joking that entry-level positions are asking for 20-years of work experience of a 22-year-old new grad.
This has led to the development of a new breed of student: ‘the work hard to only work even harder’ student.
With the expectations of an overly competitive job market, these students push themselves to absolute breaking-point at university, striving for the highest grades, the most demanding extracurriculars and, to show the fruit of their labour, the flashiest LinkedIn profiles. For some, the grind for this flashy marker of success has become more than just an intellectual challenge – it’s an emotional strain. Yet this toxic culture continues to dominate, and are universities really doing anything about it?
I spoke to some fellow students about this, and most said that this culture of corporate worship is leading to a terrible spiral of stress, with 18- and 19-year-olds thinking about nothing but how best to fit the criteria for these jobs. The proof is in the LinkedIn profiles.
But how can universities strike a balance with something that has become so ingrained in the mind of the 21st Century, high achievers? Surely the culture of corporate glorification isn’t entirely their fault?
While that is partly true, as the highest achievers often put pressure on themselves to be the highest achievers, universities should be pushier about trying to disband this toxic culture. One way to do this is to change the attitude to what ‘successful’ means.
Asking the same students what ‘success’ means to them, I received fairly similar answers, all along the line of rising to the top of their respective corporate ladder and bringing themselves to the peak of their careers. Essentially, who can become the best corporate robot. What all these definitions lack: personal development.
The University of Bristol should be praised for their efforts. The Bristol PLUS Award encompasses the best of both worlds: it promotes employability through the development of personal and interpersonal skills, without hopping on the trend of corporate glorification.
One learns what success means not by selling their soul to become the top dog at a company, but by learning the skills that can make that a whole lot easier, such as entrepreneurship, networking, and negotiation. While coming into the job market with a first-class degree might put you ahead of some candidates, being able to demonstrate these skills on applications and during interviews will pay you dividends.
As such, let’s not pin too much blame on the universities, and maybe give them a little bit of credit – after all, they are trying their best.
We need to kill the culture of corporate glorification, as this is what is truly driving burnout to breaking point.