Academic prestige refers to the perceived authority, influence, and reputation that an individual, institution, journal, or publication holds within the academic community. It often determines how seriously their work is taken—regardless of its actual content.

### 🧠 Key Features:

* Institutional affiliation (e.g., Harvard, Oxford) * Journal impact factor (e.g., *Nature*, *Spine*) * Author prominence (e.g., citation count, keynote invitations) * Committee memberships (e.g., SRS Task Force) * Publication count (quantity often over quality)

### 🎭 Critical View:

It is often used as a proxy for quality, but it can:

* Mask mediocrity when used to justify poorly substantiated work. * Perpetuate gatekeeping, limiting entry to new voices or unconventional ideas. * Encourage careerism, where academics pursue prestige more than truth.

In short: Academic prestige is the currency of credibility in academia—but like any currency, it can be inflated.