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.