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Exempting unpublished university research from FOI is a reasonable request to make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…)
Reflections from Australia: across the globe, investment in higher education is central to securing growth, finds Nicola Dandridge
I’m writing this 30,000 feet in the air, flying home to London from Melbourne, Australia. I spent a week in Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne, courtesy of the British Council and the Australian International Education Conference [AIEC]. So, thank you British Council and thank you AIEC. I made three short contributions to the conference and delivered one lecture – a small price to pay for a week in this extraordinary and utterly wonderful country. (more…)
University sector has strength and diversity to face these uncertain times, says new Universities UK President
Speaking at an Association of University Administrators [AUA] event the other day, I was asked to outline my thoughts for the sector at the start of my presidency of Universities UK [UUK]. I started off by noting that just like all parts of our economy and society, higher education is facing many challenges and uncertain outcomes. I did say, however, that universities could take heart from the fact that the Government listened to us when we made our case about the important and essential role higher education plays in building the UK’s future prosperity and growth. (more…)
Broccoli, apprenticeships and the student market – dispatches from Conservative party conference
In his speech to the Tory faithful today, David Willetts described universities as a national asset like the Monarchy and the armed forces – how close to Tory hearts is that? Pretty close I suspect. He sang universities’ praises this afternoon, armed with a heads-up from the Times Higher league tables that the rest of us will see this Thursday, that even more UK universities are in the top 100 than last year. (more…)
Universities UK
Nicola Dandridge
Naomi Drinkwater
Vivienne Stern
Eric Thomas
Tom Lyscom
Liz Bell
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