Prof. Dr. Eva Ulrike Pirker was recently interviewed for the VUB newsletter about her research project, MERLIT at VUB. In this interview, Prof. Dr. Eva Ulrike Pirker outlines how her international team is exploring how ideas of merit, value and success have been shaped and contested in English-language literature from the 17th century to today — showing that while meritocracy remains an influential ideal, it’s deeply entangled with privilege and power and must be critically examined, especially amid current threats to equitable access to education and critical debate in universities. You can read the full interview on the VUB website.