The Writer’s Divide: Academics Vs The World -By Abdulazeez Alhassan

Quora defines an academic as “a person who is engaged in higher education and research. Academics are usually employed by universities or academic institutions and are involved in teaching, conducting research, publishing scholarly work, and contributing to the academic community through conferences, seminars, and other forms of academic discourse”. In contrast, writers outside of academia are people who write literature, articles, books, novels, short stories, etc. They are professionals and creatives, and their writing styles are often more versatile, adaptable, and engaging, targeting a broader audience than that of academic writing.

The key features that define a person as an academic include, but are not limited to: teaching, research, peer review, and commitment to ethics. An academic must teach courses at the university level, share their expertise with students, and help train the next generation of scholars and professionals. On the other hand, most writers do not teach at the university level. Additionally, academics are expected to produce scholarly papers that contribute to the knowledge and understanding of their field, whereas writers only write. Academic work is also typically subject to peer review, where other experts in the field evaluate the quality and validity of the research before it is published.

Understanding the nuances that separate an academic from a writer will help us build a strong distinction between academic writing and other forms of writing. Academic writing is typically used in scholarly research, academic journals, and textbooks. The writing style in academic writing is formal, structured, objective, and organized. On the other hand, other forms of writing, such as creative writing, technical writing, and business writing, serve a broader purpose. The style, tone, and language are less formal and more relaxed. This writing is also more creative and intended to entertain, inform and persuade readers.

In academia, the award of professorship and the measurement of a scholar is based on the quality of their research output, quantity of research output, citations, teaching and mentoring, service to the profession, and collaborative work. It is not measured by the number of books authored or popularity.

Who is a professor?
A professor is a high-level academic title awarded to individuals who have demonstrated expertise and achievement in their field of study. Professors typically teach at universities, colleges, or other institutions of higher education. Therefore, professors and scholars have almost the same characteristics.

Sheikh Pantami and his critics have recently created a hullabaloo in the social media space, and I see no reason for that. For Sheikh Pantami does not possess the above-mentioned qualities of becoming a professor or a scholar. He is being questioned by academics on why he accepted the title of professorship and claimed to be a scholar.

It could be recalled that Pantami had accepted his professorship from the governing council of the Federal University of Technology Owerri (FUTO) on the 20th August 2021 when he was not a teacher either by employment or by contract in the university. Sheikh Pantami was also not employed by any university to teach, mentor, or carry out research within and outside Nigeria, nor did he publish scholarly articles in national and international journals, and none of his work was peer-reviewed, which would validate his professorship as it was then.

The two mistakes Sheikh Pantami made led scholars and professors to reject his titles in their entirety.

It is worthy of note that Sheikh Pantami is a genius; based on his vast knowledge, expertise and experience he is far better than many professors. Therefore, fans of Sheikh and Facebookers should know that nobody is envious of his titles. Instead, critics are just concerned with the process of obtaining such titles. It should be understood that shortcuts are not accepted in the academic environment, regardless of the person’s status.

In conclusion, the yardstick for becoming a professor is determined by teaching, research, published articles in national and international journals, etc. Sheikh Pantami does not meet the criteria. While academics necessarily engage in academic writing as part of their work, Sheikh Pantami is more of an Islamic scholar, preacher, a genius, and a business writer.

Lastly, I therefore urge Sheikh Pantami to cancel that invitation, he shouldn’t be emotional.

Abdulazeez Alhassan is the President of Universal Writers and Authors (UWA).