Politics

Favouring of candidates aligned to ruling party could do long-term damage to universities, scholars warn

Former Tory adviser advocates need for controls to reverse resource decline, but another expert sees ‘block on access to education’

Rishi Sunak’s recent attack on higher education expansion as ‘one of great mistakes of the last 30 years’ leaves questions on economics and politics

Trudeau’s immigration minister accuses institutions of ignoring costs to students from abroad and demands a recalibration

Science secretary’s condemnation of ‘extremist posts’ by UKRI equality advisers has led to accusations of ministerial ‘bullying’ and censorship

New millennium has wrought ‘transformational’ change on Australian higher education, and much of it has been ‘negative’, seminar hears

Union and employer association welcome delay to resolve ‘unintended consequences’

With 10th framework programme likely to live alongside plethora of sector-specific spending pots, EU countries must decide if it should do a bit of everything or go back to basics

The UK government should be doing more to help students survive the cost-of-living crisis, not dissuading them from studying, says Zahir Irani

After eight years under an increasingly hostile Law and Justice government, researchers are hoping for an about-turn on academic freedom and critical studies

Party stalls even on limited changes like stepped loan repayments, while deeper reform might only come ‘in return for value-for-money case’

Commentators predict renewed emphasis on international education and change of ‘tone’ around indigenous issues

Diplomats leave India as stand-off expands, limiting visa services and putting especially high risk on small rural campuses

After world’s largest funder of medical research spends a year without a permanent head, US Senate gives Harvard oncologist a list of political pleas but no serious opposition

Committee also wants ‘Team Australia’ approach, bankrolled by a levy, to ‘open doors’ in Africa, Asia and Latin America

‘Fail rule’ iced and indigenous opportunities extended despite Senate battle

Government ‘misstep’ clears way for protracted legal battles over future of Africa’s biggest distance learning institution, academics say

McGill and province’s other English-language universities see dire threats to their finances and diversity

Australia’s proposed international education levy is replete with policy contradictions, new paper argues

Key group endorses amalgamation but recommends ‘additional risk management measures’

With opposition senators seeking retention of unpopular ‘fail rule’, bill’s passage appears far from assured

Protests under canvas have popped up in 26 cities over rising living costs and what students say are poorly directed EU pandemic recovery funds earmarked for student accommodation

Test run on more than 300,000 US student applications suggests technology can identify specific personal qualities with little bias

Scientists’ ability to understand changing climate is being undermined by lack of coordination and funding, House of Commons select committee report finds

Education ministers call on universities to ‘act swiftly and decisively against any threats’ amid violence in the Middle East

Growth rates run counter to government policy objectives, Australian conference hears

PA Consulting survey spotlights concerns on finances plus relations with ministers and regulators, but also optimism on potential solutions

Lord Robbins’ review of British HE has had a 60-year legacy, but it ducked the question that looms largest over today’s sector, says Nick Hillman 

The challenge for universities seeking greater openness, innovation and collaboration is they can’t do it on their own, say Ian Matthias and Mike Boxall

Amid concerns about value for money and the supposed liberal bias of certain humanities and social science subjects, conservative politicians are increasingly intervening in curricular decisions. Do such subjects still have a place at public universities – and who should get to decide, asks Paul Basken

Shadow education secretary avoids mention of the word ‘fees’ in conference speech comments

Animated by both left and right, operations’ right to label themselves ‘university’ or ‘college’ amplify a regulatory danger for US higher education

Core budgets of UK grant-awarding agencies eroded as new money goes elsewhere

Labour leader hits back at Rishi Sunak’s claim that higher education expansion target was one of ‘great mistakes of last 30 years’

New polling shows strong support for degrees from parents, while Tory tactic may be of ‘near-zero interest’ to public

Voters have little enthusiasm for paying higher taxes to fund universities, new polling finds

Matt Western calls sustainable sector funding ‘a big ask’ as two vice-chancellors back graduate tax

Academics believe institutions have been ‘punished’ for perceived opposition to president Daniel Ortega

Sector organisations warn that country risks brain drain if it does not end stagnation in investment

Agency accused of violating Lisbon convention for quizzing students who earned foreign credit after governance rift at the University of Theatre and Film in Budapest

There are doubts about the education ministry’s proposed quality measures, with major players warning firmer guardrails will be needed to protect the public purse and baffled school-leavers from bad operators

Recruitment target is a ‘staged performance’ unlikely to yield real results, according to academics

With tuition fees no longer an issue of contention, higher education reverts to bit-part role in forthcoming election

Prime minister’s conference speech twice repeats ‘no more rip-off degrees’ line, sending signal ahead of election year

Tory conference also hears ex-minister warn of ‘perverse situation’ in which ‘DfE is cutting R&D spending’ via tuition fee freeze

Tory conference hears much talk of apprenticeships, with education secretary on mission to ‘change every middle-class mind in country’

Observers welcome efforts to tackle visa fraud but say new compliance efforts must be ‘robust’

Union brands proposal to limit impact of industrial action on students ‘a spiteful attack on workers everywhere’

With deadlines rushed and then missed, even the straightforward work of Australia’s major higher education review is looking anything but

Administration demands open process that allows anonymity, upsetting agencies seeking clearer rules in an era of partisan attacks

Sussex chief challenges ‘uninspected belief’ that additional cash for student learning – including grants for Covid-hit generation – is politically unthinkable

Accord panel should take note that fee changes ‘don’t change behaviour’, researcher urges

Reports suggest the government is considering reforming A levels so that children study a wider range of subjects in post-16 education

Upskiling staff to thrive in clean-energy industries could mostly benefit graduates and high-skill workers, Andreas Schleicher tells conference

In reviving controversial gainful employment rule, administration also worries traditional institutions by requiring they publicly report their own graduate salary data

Universities must focus on the student experience, but they also must clarify what students want that experience to be

As higher education minister in the Blair government, Alan Johnson steered plans for top-up fees of £3,000 through Parliament. As he returns to the sector in a new role, the former postman talks to John Morgan about why fee-funded university expansion remains the best hope for creating a fairer UK

UC Davis’ chancellor, Gary May, has plenty of background in attracting minority students, but finds California’s decades-old ban on race-based admissions a formidable foe

In departure from previous small-scale efforts, initiative seeks to retain thousands of students for work after graduation

As legislation driving rebadged lifelong learning entitlement passes, sector leaders caution that mature learners’ aversion to debt means it cannot bring ‘transformation’ ministers foresee