Opinion

To consolidate strengths and address shared challenges, top regional institutions have formed the Asian University Alliance, Tsinghua University’s Zhou Zhong explains

The region must revive the reform spirit of 100 years ago to reverse the loss of talent, say Marcelo Knobel and Andrés Bernasconi

Good academic leadership that enables universities to stay abreast of societal developments is more vital than ever, says Ole Petter Ottersen

Tan Chorh‑Chuan explains how the National University of Singapore is addressing two key questions posed by the new age of empowerment

Ahead of the 2018 World Academic Summit, speaker Nicolas Pejout looks at entrepreneurialism in universities

Eric Royal Lybeck says the Russell Group and UUK do not represent academics and calls for a comprehensive voice representing the professional interests of scholars

Matthew Reisz reflects on the radio programme that proves many people still have a passion for seemingly obscure academic knowledge

Universities must support and help the next generation of working-class researchers come through academia, says Lisa Mckenzie

Edward Peck looks at the findings of UUK’s Review of the Teaching Excellence Framework

The difficulty of introducing student feedback in Papua New Guinea casts light on more general problems, says John Warren

A survey of 50 laureates is full of insight, warnings and the can-do attitudes powering ‘beautiful minds’

Amid growing indifference to the public value of universities, the LSE’s Minouche Shafik suggests four ways to restore confidence and pride in the academy

Universities should play a key role in teaching Canadians about their nation’s racist past and the possible ways to redress it, says Glen Jones

Wise and honourable assessors of grant applications must be allowed to use their discretion, says Sui Huang

The conservatism of Spain’s universities and employers is damaging the nation’s future, says Samuel Martín-Barbero 

Julie Devonshire calls on universities to help students to bridge the gap between entrepreneurial aspiration and action

Community contribution matters as much as teaching and research, says Karen Stanton

More work is needed to understand the mental health needs of researchers, say Susan Guthrie and Catie Lichten

Mike Smith reveals six of the most useful pieces of advice he has been able to give his PhD students over the years

Peter Mathieson is a big believer in the merits of globalisation, and wants universities to instil this belief in their students

The battle is not over for universities, but this week’s figures on international students are vindication for an embattled HE sector, says Sir Keith Burnett 

Singaporeans are starting to question the benefit of recruiting so much global research talent, say Pang Eng Fong and Linda Lim

Don’t blame vice-chancellors for their salaries – we need to rethink where power lies in universities, says Tom Cutterham

It is time to consider how we can stop senior academics bullying their way on to research papers, says Trisha Greenhalgh

Brain-boosting drugs can help students and academics alike to unlock their potential, says Hemmel Amrania

Creeping political interference in universities, from the UK to Hungary and the US, is part of a worrying shift in attitudes towards higher education

Hungary is making ‘dubious history’ by reversing the expansion of universities, writes David Matthews

Variations in the Russell Group demonstrate a mixed national picture, write Joshua Stubbs and Paul Wakeling

In the last two decades the number of mainland students going abroad to study has increased more than twentyfold, but what does this mean for employment, asks Ka Ho Mok

Yusra Mouzughi on the challenges of doing business when universities take a break

Southampton Solent University’s Tere Daly responds to the former political adviser’s article in today’s Daily Telegraph

Key figures from the university sector respond to the 2017 A-level results

Remuneration committees should pay less attention to other institutions when setting their leaders’ pay, says Nick Hillman

Replacing England’s tuition fee system with a cheaper and fairer alternative is not as difficult as many claim, says Andrew Adonis

Kurdistan shows that post-conflict countries can build a thriving higher education sector by working with foreign partners, says Dlawer Ala’Aldeen

Spreading the word on social media about research can help academics get ahead, but is it too much of a distraction, asks Brooke Erin Duffy

Universities used to be thought unsinkable, but the unthinkable – an institution going to the wall – is now a genuine, if yet remote, prospect

Think carefully about treating students differently because of their backgrounds

Together, FE and HE can become a dynamic force for skills development in the UK, writes Alison Whittle

Taking in a refugee student posed more challenges than Sharon Maxwell Magnus was expecting, but the effort was well worth it

Phil Baty has the latest on the publication of the 2018 Times Higher Education World University Rankings, which will be launched in London in September

The effectiveness of the NSS boycott means it is now time for universities to sit up and listen, says Sorana Vieru

Universities, funders, rankers and individual academics all need to act to stamp out predatory publishers, says Roger Watson

Australian legislation proposes to lower the country’s generous loan repayment threshold – but some argue that it should rise even higher, says Andrew Norton

The subject-level teaching excellence framework could lead to a lot of stress for no great gains over the institution-level TEF, says Andrew McRae

The publication game that researchers are obliged to play has stripped the purpose out of social research. Time to change the rules, says Yiannis Gabriel

The official weekly newsletter of the University of Poppleton. Finem respice!

Institutions are feeling under attack; they need to counter their critics by showing proudly and publicly the immense good work they do

Joanne Taylor and Genefor Walker-Smith on the importance of scholarly rigour – even when the media want answers fast

The success of the student boycott of the National Student Survey is not necessarily a success for students, writes Andrew McRae 

Vitriol directed at Cambridge professor of Classics on Twitter is part of wider battle to politicise diversity, says Conrad Brunstrom

Post-Brexit university funding issues are about more than the big pots of research cash, writes Gurpreet Jagpal

Many students aren’t reporting sexual harassment or assault on campus despite efforts to tackle the problem, say Hareem Ghani and Graham Towl

Joanna Dally and Frances Downey imagine the research culture of the future

Prevent monitoring and defeat of legal challenge shows that anti-extremism policy is not limiting academic freedom, says Hifsa Harron-Iqbal

Expanding degree apprenticeships will strengthen universities’ important role in improving their local communities, says Dawn Morley

Running a major university today is a hugely demanding job that requires a rare skill set, says Len Shackleton