Wellbeing in Academia: Rethinking What We Have Normalized

Abstract

This perspective examines wellbeing in academia through a personal and structural lens, highlighting how norms of overwork, administrative overload, and unequal institutional support contribute to chronic stress and burnout. Drawing from my own trajectory – from early passion and precarity to a more reflective and health-oriented engagement – I explore systemic factors such as the normalisation of unpaid labour, asymmetrical expectations placed on teaching staff versus students, and the impact of hierarchical power dynamics, including challenging interpersonal relationships shaped by Dark Triad traits. While acknowledging the intellectual rewards of academic work, I argue that sustainable wellbeing requires transforming entrenched cultural and institutional practices rather than relying solely on individual resilience. Concrete suggestions include integrating wellbeing into training, recognising emotional labour and its worth, and establishing enforceable and sufficiently realistic norms around workloads and sick leave. This piece calls for collective reflection on what “normal” means in academia and advocates for a healthier, more equitable academic environment.