Social science

Studying high art is still important, but popular culture can give humanities undergraduates better pointers on how to convert their refined understandings into practical action, rather than passivity and pessimism, activist scholar Caroline Levine tells Matthew Reisz 

Scale of unsuccessful funding bids will be ‘dispiriting’ for researchers and raises questions about ‘substantial differences’ in research landscape, Oxford professor warns

Increased scale of new German-Dutch imprint will speed transition to open access publishing and allow more investment in infrastructure

From dedicating time for brainstorming to taking inspiration from their dog, five writers explain how they are changing their approach to academia and life as another academic year begins in the northern hemisphere

‘Astonishing demand’ to suspend book launch over claims that its essays ‘delegimitise trans people’ shows activists have been ‘emboldened’, say editors

Pairing of ideologically opposed academics should become sector norm when researchers disagree, says Pennsylvania project leader

Barack Obama’s favourite political thinker Yascha Mounk has made his career attacking right-wing populism. His latest target – identity politics fostered on US campuses – will surprise many of his acolytes, he tells Matthew Reisz

As university libraries invest heavily in digital resources, Caroline Ball explains why physical books are still vital for research, teaching and the preservation of knowledge

Academia and the armed forces may seem worlds apart, but officer training has valuable lessons for university managers, says former Indian army veteran-turned-professor Vikas Rai Bhatnagar

University managers’ doomed pursuit of unattainable ideals turns staff into martyrs who see work as sacrifice and suffering. It explains much about why so many feel stressed, harassed and miserable, says Joe Moran

Those with passionate convictions must be willing to concede their arguments may be flawed or even wrong if useful debate is to happen on campus, says UCL president Michael Spence

Politicians, the public and judges have grown tired of deferring to universities’ opaque decision-making processes, as illustrated by Supreme Court’s ban on affirmative action in admissions, say Anthony Carnevale and Peter Schmidt

Seven years after he took the ‘big leap’ out of academia, John Ankers explains what he’s learned from life coaching other scholars who are mulling a change of career

At the heart of the debate about the global competitiveness of EU-funded research is the question of whether science should be a tool for industrial policy or a global power for good, says Jan Palmowski

Limits on free speech, funding cuts and political appointments at public universities risk squandering a golden opportunity to create a thriving higher education system, says Saikat Majumdar

Freedom of speech and student welfare concerns are also likely to influence whether staff flag potential extremism to authorities, says major study

From Coldplay to Queen, the world’s biggest bands often meet as students – yet universities are seldom mentioned in song. Jeremy Clay ponders why and unearths some lost exemplars – including a long-lost Dutch psychedelic paean to the University of Leicester

After tackling the challenges of accessing large and diverse survey samples, Phelim Bradley’s Prolific is moving into AI

Research funder investing in leadership capability to support academics and encourage collaboration across disciplines and sectors

If you want to get promoted in UK academia you will probably need to apply for an Advance HE fellowship. But there is widespread scepticism that this extended ‘box-ticking exercise’ improves pedagogy, says Amanda Goodall, while Martin Rich considers how the programme might be made fit for purpose

Training survivors of domestic abuse to become researchers could provide blueprint for public engagement, says King’s academic

When she was BBC Newsnight’s top booker, Sam McAlister persuaded Prince Andrew to give his infamous interview about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. She tells Jack Grove how academics can avoid shooting themselves in the foot and what TV producers want from expert guests

With a UK general election potentially less than a year away, there is no better time for academics to influence political thinking, says ex-MP Natascha Engel

Parents have been misled by UK universities about the support available to students, and Parliament must intervene, says Lee Fryatt

Aligning Kurdistan’s higher education system with European norms has given hope to Iraq’s students, but international help is still needed, say Aram Mohamad Qadir and Amanj Saeed

Historically black colleges offer a useful blueprint on how academic administrators can support progressive change, says John Silvanus Wilson Jr

With just 50 sub-Saharan journals listed in Scopus, it’s time to consider how citation indexes are holding back scholarly publishing in Africa, argue David Mills and Natasha Robinson

Having discussed the gender critical philosopher’s work with students, it’s hard to accept her gloomy assessment of silenced people, says Tony Lang

Economist Nicholas Barr, whose research shaped Labour’s 2006 fee policy, says mixed graduate tax and loan system can fix funding crisis

Buildings and academic positions endowed by the US family linked to US opioid crisis will be renamed

Success of Turing Scheme should not obscure lost benefits of deeper, reciprocal student exchange initiatives, explains House of Lords review

Alliances with university colleagues can be inspiring and life-affirming but may also be grounded in little more than ambition or survival instinct. Six writers reflect on the joys and challenges of having friends in academia

Document disappoints campaigners with lack of detail or targets after major funder promised overhaul during Black Lives Matter protests

Publishing giant announces list of more than 100 nations where open access charges will not apply

Projects that pose no risk to participants are being distorted or prevented by regulations designed for medical interventions, says Martyn Hammersley

Basing teaching around the fundamental challenges faced by society will benefit both the humanities and humanity itself, says Doug Haynes

Social scientist sees hand of ChatGPT in list of non-existent papers cited in peer reviewer’s rejection

Veteran university president appointed to lead Norwich institution through ‘period of change’

President of ‘leftist hotbed’ Wesleyan University reflects on run-ins with students and controversial efforts to increase intellectual diversity

‘Misinterpretation’ of Research Excellence Framework guidance on staff selection judged not to have materially benefited university

Ex-Birmingham v-c and Hefce chief exec tells MPs that England’s regulator lacks skills needed to engage properly with universities

The UK’s ‘rock star historian’ Peter Frankopan talks to Matthew Reisz about his ambitious follow-up to his Silk Roads chronicle and the perils of being seen as a modern-day sage

New guidelines on use of ChatGPT follows plagiarism concerns and authorship controversies caused by rise of generative AI

Those focused on dissecting pop culture face hostility from politicians, the media and fellow academics, but their work remains vital, ‘Kylie scholar’ Liz Giuffre tells Rosa Ellis

Disappointing results from pilot scheme indicate a focus on 10-credit modules, rather than 30-credit courses, is the way forward, says Annabel Kiernan

Eerie AI simulations of academic writing show why student essays must return to their more imaginative and freewheeling roots, says Colm O’Shea

Stian Westlake will take helm after two-year delay in appointing a permanent executive chair

Intense feelings of academic inadequacy and alienation can drive first-in-family students to self-destructive behaviour and thoughts of dropping out, reflects Malik Johnson on his difficult journey from the Baltimore projects to an elite private college

Forcing undergraduates to use AI chatbots as a learning tool will help students and educators, argues Dan Sarofian-Butin

A digitised form of America’s famous admissions exam will help level the playing field for university applicants across the world, says Cezar Wazen

While corporations and universities bowed to pressure to ban controversial BBC documentary, students showed freedom of speech and critical enquiry still matter in India, says Mukhtar Ahmad

AI-written essays have exposed the unambitious and unoriginal thinking that universities require from undergraduates, says James Warren

Jointly run open access publisher will offer lower cost route for Scottish researchers seeking to comply with new UKRI rules on monographs

Debates rage about the appropriateness of objects displayed in many anthropological exhibitions amid accusations they perpetuate poisonous imperialist narratives. However, Adam Kuper believes institutions should be wary of capitulating to activist demands, he tells Matthew Reisz

Sciences gain £145 million that would have gone to humanities and social sciences under old system

When her broadcasting career took off in her mid-fifties, Mary Beard became one of Britain’s best-known and most-discussed academics. Jack Grove speaks to the retiring Cambridge classicist about her eventful career, including her run-ins with sexist TV critics, Twitter trolls and Boris Johnson

With hostility from the Home Office over international student numbers, membership of Horizon Europe slipping away and heavy demands placed on institutions by regulators, UK university staff will be wondering how 2023 will play out. Patrick McGhee and Emma Rees read the runes

If those on both the Left and Right fail to examine basic assumptions, knowledge advancement is impaired, says Martyn Hammersley 

Liberal arts programmes should be revamped and rebranded to emphasise the competencies they provide graduates entering the workplace, says Costas Spirou

Helping students create climate-conscious start-ups would enhance campus learning and universities’ green credentials, says Robert Phillips