International features (World in Focus)
Bizarre riffs about The Karate Kid or the Wu-Tang Clan may irritate his students, but ‘strategic vexing’ can promote the more adventurous educational mindset that undergraduates require in the age of ChatGPT, says Jose Marichal
Failure to expel crackpot social scientists from Russia’s academy has allowed dangerous dogma to dominate public discourse, says Andreas Umland
In a special report from the territory, David Matthews hears concerns that scholars are paying the price for ‘politically incorrect’ talk
With Hungary accused of ‘undermining democratic values’, Malcolm Gillies considers to what extent universities with a liberal mission can flourish in ‘illiberal’ societies
The male student societies are under pressure like never before. Is it time to shut them down – or can they mend their ways?
Martin McQuillan meets José Mujica to discuss education and philosophy
Yong Zhao believes China doesn’t foster the free thinkers it needs. What is the state of the country’s higher education system?
Jack Grove reports from Moscow on bold plans to revive the country’s ailing higher education sector
Jon Marcus examines the decline of all-female institutions in the West and their rising popularity in the developing world
Matthew Reisz reports on Anglo-Israeli scientific collaborations against the backdrop of a campaign for a boycott
The story of an unlikely branch campus in Cyprus and higher education on a divided island
How does a tiny institution create such outsized impact?
Does more mean better or worse?
Beijing wants to supercharge its nation’s universities as it has its railroads, but might its ambitions falter for want of academic freedom and cultural change?
The state is confronting student protest with an iron fist while promising to relax its grip on the academy. Jack Grove reports from the country
David Matthews reports from the island state on the questions facing its burgeoning academy
Susan K Burton looks back at her time teaching at Japanese universities and wonders why more Westerners don’t head east
Mobile phone ownership across the continent is rocketing, but can it expand higher education’s reach and quality?
We report from Spain on the University of Mondragon, which is fighting to preserve its teaching mission, industry-focused research and mutual governance model
The subcontinent plans to create capacity for an extra 10 million students in five years, with particular emphasis on quality of education. But how?
Student protests brought down a government but failed to freeze tuition fees: what’s next for a province where universities remain high on the political agenda? Elizabeth Gibney reports from Montreal
Post-Sandy Hook, hundreds of American college presidents are taking on the gun lobby. Amid the US’ increasingly febrile and evidence-free policy debates, does the campaign signal a return to the ‘bully pulpit’ for the American academy’s leaders? Jon Marcus reports
The visa process can trap students in a costly Kafkaesque limbo. To improve life for foreign scholars, the sector should halt its failed lobbying over policy and focus on publicising the misery caused by Byzantine bureaucracy, argues Simeon Underwood
Financial models that have stood firm for decades are failing, technological revolution is opening new doors and a growing middle class is creating unprecedented demand. At a time of extraordinary economic and demographic change, Elizabeth Gibney explores five trends that are transforming the face of global higher education
Ireland’s government expects consolidation to play a big role in creating a financially sustainable higher education system. As the sector pores over a new strategy document that will inform ministers, Matthew Reisz considers the shape of things to come
Ireland’s government expects consolidation to play a big role in creating a financially sustainable higher education system. As the sector pores over a new strategy document that will inform ministers, Matthew Reisz considers the shape of things to come
Austerity has brought tragedy to Greece and the UK. Martin McQuillan reflects on the narrative and ideology of ‘fiscal discipline’ and what it means for both nations and their academies
All eyes are on Brazil’s academy and its rising research output, generous funding and willingness to team up internationally in a bid to become a major player. Elizabeth Gibney reports from São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro
Spring is dawning in the Gulf and the UK academy’s links with the region’s repressive, anachronistic autocracies look increasingly questionable, says Christopher Davidson
Weary of cronyism, many in Italy welcomed a metrics-based research evaluation - until they saw the catalogue of approved publications, ‘crazy lists’ that ignored many journals in favour of provincial newspapers, religious circulars and yachting magazines. Massimo Mazzotti writes
Joanna Sugden reports from New Delhi on the challenges facing Western institutions seeking to gain a foothold in India
The UK sector’s growing involvement in offshore education includes everything from branch campuses and institutional partnerships to validation and franchising. David Matthews weighs the different models’ risks, rewards and rationales
Chile’s education minister says reform is coming at last to its costly, largely privatised academy - but at a ‘slower pace’. Will it satisfy those who joined widespread protests calling for affordable study? Elizabeth Gibney reports
On most indices, a comparison of the Welsh and Scottish academies shows that the latter holds the aces. As the Saltire soars, will mergers allow Wales to cope with the shock waves generated by England’s funding big bang? David Matthews reports
As students cram for scarce undergraduate places, private institutions proliferate and research outputs rise rapidly, will China’s impressive growth spurts bring gains in quality as well as quantity? Carolynne Wheeler reports from Beijing
In a competitive world, Japanese universities are realising the importance of internationalisation if they don’t want to get left behind. But culture change can be a slow and difficult process. Jack Grove reports from Japan
It may be the birthplace of the academy, but Greece’s now-dysfunctional higher education system is on its knees and in desperate need of reform, argues George Th. Mavrogordatos. However, the country’s politique du pire and its organised violence threaten the possibility of progress
As the fallout from the Arab Spring continues, David Matthews reports from Cairo on the birth - and troubled infancy - of the student union movement in Egypt
The diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks articulate the importance of the academy in the ‘great game’ of international politics. David Matthews investigates
Ahead of Lord Woolf’s report on the scandal of the LSE’s links with Libya, Christopher Davidson examines the issue of UK university funding by Gulf autocracies in the light of the Arab Spring