Access with impact
Access to university is the hot topic. With the obvious changes to the way higher education is paid for and changes in the level of tuition fees, along with the ending of Aimhigher and the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA), universities will be working harder than ever to ensure that students from under-represented groups have the opportunity to progress in to higher education. (more…)
Beyond bricks and mortar boards: universities and the future of regional economic development
The current uncertainties in the UK economy do not seem to be diminishing; solutions to sluggish economic growth and rising unemployment continue to be hot topics for debate. Government attempts to boost the economy have focussed on rebalancing the economy, from a heavy reliance on the public sector and the South East to boosting private sector growth in a more balanced way across the regions. (more…)
Look beyond the headlines figures to find out what’s really going on with university applications
As ever, UCAS’s release of its applicant figures has been eagerly anticipated. They are considered so important because they are seen as one barometer of the success or failure of the government’s tuition fees policy changes.
The media tend to focus on the decline in actual numbers or the percentage decline from 2011 to 2012. But when we look at the rates at which UK students are applying we get a better insight into what’s going on. (more…)
Yes, there’s more to do, but it’s wrong to imply research misconduct is widespread in the UK
At the recent BMJ meeting I attended on what to do about research misconduct in the UK, there was a strong sense of urgency that action is needed, and frustration that this issue is long overdue attention. (more…)
It’s time to collaborate on access
Alan Milburn’s report on social mobility, due in the spring, will address the thorny question of how universities can continue to work together with schools and colleges to ensure anyone with the potential to go to university is not put off by the new fees regime. (more…)
January 20, 2012 at 12:25 pm Naomi Drinkwater Leave a comment
Yes to open debate and transparency in research, but FOI is the wrong tool for the job
The Protection of Freedoms Bill will be debated in the House of Lords again tomorrow. This is our chance to get an exemption for pre-publication research from Freedom of Information requests, in line with the exemptions in Scottish and US legislation. Universities UK have produced a briefing for Peers that explains more. (more…)
We need to be innovative about university and business collaboration
Since coming to power, the coalition Government has reiterated a commitment to science, ring fencing the science budget in the Spending Review and committing further capital funding to support the research infrastructure. (more…)
The UK needs strong universities for growth – the data speaks for itself
Saying that higher education in the UK is going through a period of change may be an understatement.
Many column inches have been taken up with the changes to funding for teaching in all the countries of the UK. Important as these changes are it’s vital that we don’t forget the significant impact higher education and universities in particular, have on the UK’s economic and social well being. Universities UK’s new visual data report Driving Economic Growth shows this in full technicolour. (more…)
December 1, 2011 at 10:45 am Universities UK Leave a comment
Exempting unpublished university research from FOI is a reasonable request to make
There has been a lot of concern within universities about how Freedom of Information [FOI] requests affect university research. Universities UK is currently trying to persuade Parliament to amend the Freedom of Information Act to create a new exemption that so that universities (in England, Wales and Northern Ireland) can decline to release information and data relating to research that has not yet been published. (more…)
Digging deeper into the UCAS applications data – there’s more to it than meets the eye
Following this week’s coverage of university applications, we could all be forgiven for thinking that the government’s proverbial chickens had come home to roost. The 9 per cent drop in applications compared to this time last year was reported as the first real indicator that the new student finance regime was taking its toll.
But as always with statistics, there’s more to the story than that. (more…)
Universities UK
Nicola Dandridge
Naomi Drinkwater
Vivienne Stern
Eric Thomas
Tom Lyscom
Liz Bell
chrishaleuk
Nadine Winskowski
Fiona Waye
