How scholars spend their time

These data show how scholars used their time at different types of university in the period 2012 to 2015

At the most research-intensive universities (defined as those in the top decile for total research funding received), academics spend more than half their time on research, double the proportion spent at younger universities.

Scholars at younger universities prioritise teaching, but also have a larger administrative burden than elsewhere (a quarter of academic time versus a fifth at older and research-intensive universities).

At all types of institution, knowledge exchange plays second fiddle to other tasks.

The data come from a survey of more than 18,000 academics by the National Centre for Universities and Business, entitled .

As reported in last week’s Times Higher Education, it found that a dwindling number of academics were commercialising their work.