The business of being distinguished - The Express Tribune

In recent years, an unhealthy trend has begun to blur the line between genuine academic distinction and purchased visibility. Fellowships, memberships, publications and even awards are increasingly treated as items that can be acquired through fees, nominations and formal endorsements rather than through sustained scientific contribution. There is nothing inherently wrong with professional societies charging membership fees, nor with researchers paying legitimate publication costs. The problem begins when money becomes the principal route to prestige. If a qualification, fellowship or distinction can be secured largely through payment and a few references, its value as a marker of scientific excellence becomes questionable. Similarly, publishing papers in outlets that primarily reward the ability to pay may strengthen an individual CV without necessarily strengthening science. This distinction matters greatly in countries where research resources are already scarce. Public money allocated for scientific development should ideally support laboratories, equipment, students, fieldwork, data collection, training and meaningful international collaboration. When such resources are disproportionately spent on personal memberships, fee-based distinctions or profile-building exercises, the benefit often remains confined to the individual rather than flowing back into the scientific system. A strong scientific culture should reward discovery, integrity, mentorship, useful research and measurable contribution to society. Academic recognition should emerge as a consequence of good science, not become a substitute for it. Institutions therefore need to distinguish more carefully between genuine professional development and expenditure aimed largely at enhancing personal profiles. Scientists should certainly be encouraged to participate in respected international networks, but public resources must be used with clear academic justification and demonstrable institutional benefit. Science advances through ideas, experiments, evidence and people, not through the accumulation of purchased titles. Dr Firdous Imran Ali  and  Dr Intikhab Ulfat Karachi

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