Who is responsible?

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One important aspect of training students and young scientists is to provide them with core competencies that help them to become successful researchers and prepare for the job market outside research and academia. However, the current paradigm of training through research or for research largely fails to fulfil this requirement. By and large, it focuses on training students for a life in academic research and teaches students little that could be of help later outside academia. To improve the professionalism of staff to support the students' learning experience, the current training paradigm—based on the master–apprentice model—needs a major overhaul to move towards a model whereby both students and their supervisors cooperate and learn from each other. > In any other arena, the behaviour of supervisors and their virtual malpractice would certainly fall into the category of ‘professional misconduct’ Universities are under more pressure than ever to train graduates with a broader set of skills. Yet, graduate education in the sciences has changed very little. Despite repeated calls for change from the private sector and professional bodies, higher education still focuses largely on preparing young scholars for a career in academia, which can ultimately only offer employment to a minority of today's scientists and engineers. As a result, many young scientists are facing uncertain career prospects and lack a wider range of skills and competencies, which they often cannot or do not learn from their supervisors or university courses. For many years in Europe, various reports have been calling for changes. In May 2005, the British Government proposed a “universal ethical code for researchers”, which, among other things, calls on researchers to “[a]ct with skill and care in all scientific work”, to maintain skills and assist their development in others, to “[s]eek to discuss the issues that science raises for society” and …