This week on the Civic Sociologist podcast, I'll be presenting a recording of a talk I gave at a recent conference in Manchester called 'A Processual Account of the Rise of the Modern University System', which tracks my on-going research into the long-term 'Academization Process' beginning in the early 19th century. We can see two phases in this process, first a shift from the medieval to a modern elite university, then a second phase moving from elite to mass. Because contradictions embedded in the logic of the first phase have not been resolved, we can see a range of social issues and inequalities that are caused by further expansion of credentials today. This links us up with many of the themes we are interested in at Civic Sociology, including the rise of anti-expert populism and what we might do differently to better connect academics and professionals with the public and vice-versa.