UK could lose 57 per cent of EU student numbers, says DfE study Government finally publishes modelling that estimates loss of £63 million for UK universities from drop in enrolment of new EU students By John Morgan 9 February
New OfS chair Lord Wharton must resign Tory whip, says Labour Appointment of former Conservative MP as chair of English higher education regulator ‘adds to catalogue of cronyism’ By Chris Havergal 9 February
UK overseas master’s enrolments shot up in year before pandemic Trend could be linked to boost in demand from India, data suggest By Simon Baker 9 February
Want to be an innovation hot spot? Don’t copy Silicon Valley Toronto professor offers path to ‘innovation in real places’, arguing that prestige research universities aren’t that important By John Morgan 9 February
US academics hit out at ‘erosion of tenure system’ Universities and colleges are violating own policies to fire tenured faculty because of Covid-related financial troubles By Ellie Bothwell 9 February
Minister: strip degree powers if graduate employment falls short Gavin Williamson tells English regulator it ‘should not hesitate’ to issue fines if planned absolute baselines are not met By Chris Havergal 8 February
Elite scientists increase stranglehold on academic publishing Growth in collaboration and larger teams could mean that PIs and senior researchers reap citation rewards By Simon Baker 8 February
Fury at two-track plan for International Baccalaureate assessment Students say it is unfair to award some students their grades through exams, while others will be awarded through teacher assessment By Anna McKie 8 February
Racism victims ‘struggle to access mental health support’ Study warns lack of ethnic minority representation among counselling staff could lead to problems being dismissed By Anna McKie 8 February
How academia shunned the science behind the Covid vaccine Katalin Karikó’s struggle with mRNA gives universities mandate – if they want – to tackle persistent barriers By Paul Basken 8 February
Sexual assault ‘built into design of university environment’ Universities should urge their students to behave better but also must consider how they may enable abuse, argue Columbia professors By Matthew Reisz 7 February
India and Indonesia among UK sector’s priority overseas markets Update to government’s international education strategy names five target countries and provides more detail on Turing scheme By Ellie Bothwell 6 February
Minister: traditional higher education model ‘no longer relevant’ Long-standing divides between schooling, employment and industry will be disrupted, predicts Singapore MP By Joyce Lau 5 February
India hands £5 billion budget to new research funder Budget also aims to cut bureaucracy and open up internationalisation avenues By Joyce Lau 5 February
MPs back Conservative peer to lead English sector regulator Education Select Committee endorses appointment of Lord Wharton as Office for Students chair By Chris Havergal 5 February
Pacific v-c fights for job as council fails to resolve crisis Crisis precipitated by proposal that could have shifted pan-Pacific university’s headquarters from Fiji, embattled leader says By John Ross 5 February
Kehinde Andrews: Enlightenment ideals perpetuate racism in academy Pioneering black studies professor calls on universities to reflect on their history and the forms of knowledge they exclude By Matthew Reisz 5 February
Publishers claim Plan S’ repository rules will bankrupt journals Major scholarly publishers warn that some titles will become unviable unless open access scheme changes tack on compliance By Jack Grove 5 February
New Adelaide v-c rebuffs criticism over China ties Peter Høj insists he is not Mr Fix-it, after taking over his second crisis-struck university, but acknowledges need to listen to staff concerns By John Ross 4 February
Crow: keep online education connected to academic research Arizona State University president says digital learning shift must ‘stay attached’ to core knowledge-generating activities By Ellie Bothwell 4 February
Fijian officials deport Pacific university’s vice-chancellor Expulsion marks escalation of long-running crisis at the University of the South Pacific By John Ross 4 February
Ucas data: Russell Group boosted recruitment as post-92s squeezed Figures renew concerns that last year’s pandemic-affected cycle adversely hit less selective universities By Simon Baker 4 February
Research misconduct ruling on historian’s Holocaust affair claim ‘Insufficient evidence’ for Warwick historian’s allegation that concentration camp survivor had lesbian affair with SS guard, university panel says By John Morgan 4 February
Staff say online teaching means more work and worse mental health Respondents to THE survey reject idea of tuition fee refunds for students By Chris Havergal 4 February
John Borrows: the natural world has something to teach us The Canadian indigenous law expert on listening to rocks and learning from a Hollywood ‘bad guy’ grandfather By Paul Basken 4 February
Judy Yung, 1946-2020 Tributes paid to an ‘incredible scholar, teacher and community activist’ who made a rich contribution to Asian American studies By Matthew Reisz 4 February
Japan raises funds for £70 billion university research endowment But the eye-popping amount comes with caveats, experts say By Joyce Lau 4 February
The week in higher education – 4 February 2021 The good, the bad and the offbeat: the academy through the lens of the world’s media By THE reporters 4 February
Incoming US education chief pushes for clear student pathways With little Republican dissent, Cardona looks headed for easy Senate approval By Paul Basken 4 February
US ends lawsuit challenging Yale’s use of race in admissions Under Biden, Justice Department abandons case pushed by Trump By Paul Basken 3 February
Myanmar coup ‘could stall decade of higher education development’ Experts call on global community to support Burmese scholars By Joyce Lau 3 February
Biden immigration reforms offer hope to overseas students New US president aims to reverse Trump-era limits on public benefits to foreigners By Paul Basken 3 February
No extra in-person teaching on English campuses before 8 March Updated guidance in line with Westminster government’s plan to announce phased route out of the coronavirus lockdown on 22 February By Chris Havergal 3 February
Rapid rise in professors aged over 65 sparks opportunities debate Nearly half of all professors in the UK are now aged 55 or over By Simon Baker 3 February
Marking boundaries and algorithms shift in grade inflation row Degree outcome statements show some universities have clamped down on rising number of firsts By Simon Baker 3 February
Australian universities in ‘deep trouble’ as borders stay closed Professor says country will lose its lead on overseas recruitment and predicts ‘major forking of the way’ between Australia and UK By Ellie Bothwell 3 February
Pandemic ‘cost Australian universities more than 17,000 staff’ Universities and government dispute magnitude of sector’s losses as it braces for worse in 2021 By John Ross 2 February
Union condemns Liverpool’s ‘rank and yank’ science cuts plan UCU says axing health and life science researchers with the least grant income and fewest citations is ‘catastrophic error of judgement’ By Anna McKie 2 February
OfS chair pick will keep Tory whip but ‘uphold independence’ Lord Wharton says ‘top universities’ should have lighter-touch regulation in pre-appointment hearing By John Morgan 2 February
Canada’s ‘insolvent’ Laurentian University starts restructure Pandemic cited as last straw for Ontario institution, following decade of financial problems By Ellie Bothwell 2 February
Peter Høj takes the reins at University of Adelaide Danish-born viticultural scientist arrives with strong accolades and a reputation for cosiness with China By John Ross 2 February
Augar review’s ‘dumb’ failings spotlight policymaking flaws Absence of political leadership, consensus building and links to ‘levelling up’ agenda seen as weaknesses of Westminster government’s post-18 review By John Morgan 2 February
Extra £50 million for English hardship funds ‘a sticking plaster’ Much more cash – and fundamental reform – needed to alleviate impact of Covid-19 on learners, say unions By Chris Havergal 2 February
Dead professor’s course alerts faculty to Covid-era rights Concordia University case prompts caution over possible exploitation of recordings By Paul Basken 2 February
Australian students take ‘try-before-you-buy’ approach to degrees Accelerating trend adds to nightmare scenario for admissions staff and forces universities to lift their game on student experience By John Ross 2 February
Teaching intelligence: embedding equity into the curriculum Anna McKie hears from experts on how to ensure your pedagogy helps students achieve, regardless of their background By Anna McKie 2 February
Australian state brushes aside transparency recommendations New South Wales sidesteps call for more reporting of universities’ foreign fee fix By John Ross 1 February
Imperial bullying questions ‘deflected and ignored’, claim staff UCU branch demands answers after passing motion of no confidence in president and finance chief By Anna McKie 1 February
Student ‘forced to drop out’ after anti-discrimination speech Expert fears that sexual minorities are ‘invisible and muted’ across Chinese campuses By Jing Liu 1 February
UK universities cutting jobs accused of exploiting pandemic At least 12 institutions planning to make redundancies By Anna McKie 1 February
Covid triggers remote-experiment revolution at labs across Europe With scientists forced to work from home, many now conduct experiments from a distance, and the continent’s biggest research facilities think this change is here to stay By David Matthews 1 February
Lectures on the way out in Australia and New Zealand, says survey Covid-19 proves both a stimulant and restraint on the jettisoning of long-form lectures By John Ross 31 January
Ian Jacobs: ‘No regrets’ about international education splurge University leaders harnessed an ephemeral income stream to realise ‘ambitious’ institutional strategies By John Ross 31 January
Prospective overseas students ‘most concerned about finance’ THE survey finds that availability of funding trumps health, student experience and quality of online learning as main worry By Ellie Bothwell 30 January
Watchdog warns suppliers to disabled students over price-fixing Competition and Markets Authority says collusion on prices could have left disabled students with less funding available through support scheme By Anna McKie 29 January
MPs and peers want £700 million to support Covid-hit students Cross-party report calls on Westminster government to more than double hardship funding, but says straight refunds aren’t the answer By Anna McKie 29 January
‘Rule-bending’ needed for devolved nations to stay in Erasmus+ Policy expert says agreement between EU and UK is ‘not at all geared to separate treatment for regions’ By Ellie Bothwell 29 January
Female academics bounced back in publishing as lockdowns eased Percentage of papers with female authors rose markedly in latter part of 2020 By Simon Baker 29 January
Biased grant reviewers ‘should be put on notice’ ‘No-cost’ administrative changes would save money and heartache, Australian researchers tell new minister By John Ross 28 January
US college leaders fear getting lost amid Biden’s crises Delay in naming top higher education official taken as inauspicious By Paul Basken 28 January