Professor Jason Arday has resigned from the UK’s University of Cambridge.
A professor has resigned from the UK’s University of Cambridge after the Daily Telegraph revealed he falsely claimed to have published a book.
In a letter online, Jason Arday said he was resigning “with immediate effect” from his position at the university and also Jesus College, citing “unrelenting level of
public scrutiny”.
The statement came hours after the university announced it was investigating him following new information regarding his “academic qualifications and honorary appointments”.
Arday, who was a professor of sociology of education, has also been the subject of plagiarism claims after the Telegraph reported that he had been accused of copying parts of his PhD thesis from another student.
The Telegraph also revealed that Arday had repeatedly claimed that he was the author of a book called Being Young, Black and Male: Challenging the Dominant Discourse.
The book was listed in his biography description in published essays as well as promotional material for speaking events, and was attributed to the Palgrave Macmillan publishing house.
The revelation raised questions over his employment at the University of Cambridge. To apply for a professorship at Cambridge, applicants need to submit an extensive portfolio of work, which includes a complete bibliography of essays, journals and book chapters.
Jesus College, where Arday is a fellow, had also announced it was investigating him, saying they recognised it was “a very difficult time for him and his family”.
Announcing his resignation on the Good Law Project’s website, Arday said: “While criticism is an inevitable part of academic life, what I have experienced has gone far beyond scholarly disagreement. The relentless accusations, speculation and public commentary have taken a profound toll on me and on those I love.
“This decision should not be interpreted as a loss of faith in scholarship or in the values that first brought me to Cambridge. Nor should it be mistaken for an acceptance of the narratives that have surrounded me. It is simply the decision of someone who has reached the limits of what any person should reasonably be expected to endure.”
The accusations that Arday had allegedly plagiarised the work of another academic made international headlines, after analysis of his PhD thesis showed more than 180 separate passages were identical or near-identical to the other academic’s thesis.
In recent days, Arday has put his apparent plagiarism down to autism, saying he absorbs information through mimicry.
He has admitted that a claim about running 600 miles in six days for charity was wrong, saying it had taken 12 days. He has accepted that he did not raise £5.5m for charity alone – as he had said in the past – but had instead been part of a syndicate of about 100 people, none of whom he could name because he had signed a non-disclosure agreement.
The universities of Glasgow and Ohio State have denied claims by Arday that he had been a visiting professor at their institutions.