Topic: Universities

Thu 6 Aug 2026 at 3:20pm

Jason Arday became famous when Cambridge University made him its youngest black professor in 2023.

In short:

Professor Jason Arday quit his job after the university started looking into claims against him.

Dr. Arday was accused of copying parts of his PhD work, but he said racism was behind some of the criticism.

The scandal was used by some newspapers and commentators who called Dr. Arday a symbol of diversity policies.

A Cambridge professor quit his job after the university started investigating claims against him.

Jason Arday, who became the youngest black professor in 2023, was accused of copying parts of his PhD work.

People also questioned some of his achievements, and Dr. Arday said racism was behind some of the criticism.

In a letter, Dr. Arday said quitting was the only way to end a difficult time, but he didn't accept the accusations against him.

He said it was just a decision to stop enduring the difficult situation.

Dr. Arday quit his job as a sociology professor and a fellow at Jesus College, effective immediately.

This happened just hours after Cambridge announced it was investigating Dr. Arday's academic qualifications.

The university also said it was looking into complaints about academic misconduct.

In June, the university defended Dr. Arday, saying the plagiarism claims had been looked into and dismissed.

The university didn't say what new information led to the investigation, and Jesus College started its own investigation.

A US academic claimed that parts of Dr. Arday's PhD work were copied from other works.

Some of Dr. Arday's claims about his life, like running 30 marathons, were also questioned.

Dr. Arday admitted making mistakes but said he was being unfairly portrayed as a liar.

He also said the campaign against him was motivated by racism.

The scandal was used by some newspapers and commentators who called Dr. Arday a symbol of diversity policies.

A letter supporting Dr. Arday, saying he was being targeted because he's black, got over 15,000 signatures.

The publisher of Dr. Arday's memoir said it was proud to publish his story, which includes his experiences with autism.

Dr. Arday said he was non-verbal until age 11 and only learned to read and write at 18.

The publisher noted that no plagiarism claims were made about the memoir.

Dr. Arday said he needed time to heal and be himself again, but promised to return.

"I will return," he said.

AFP

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