Browsing Google for “academic promotions” generally yields two types of hits. One is full of documents from various universities that give the appearance if you just follow these very detailed and precise rules and recommendations for how to prepare a kick-arse application, ‘you’ve got this’. The game of roulette is not mentioned. The other type is posts from now ex-academics who cannot come back from how woke they are to the sector’s toxicity. Before they reach that point though, you will find discussion on whether to apply for promotion internally or seek a job elsewhere at a higher level. There’s no denying the trend the latter is easier, but that just rubs salt in wounds that loyalty is not rewarded.