Social science

Although UK higher education faces formidable financial challenges, it has won hearts and minds like never before, says Russell Reader

Financial incentives for developing new mass-testing methods would be more effective than coordinating research centrally, says economist Paul Romer

Education secretary Gavin Williamson pressed on whether government wants to ‘pick and choose’ which universities to save

If contributing to knowledge is the name of the game, what is wrong with description, asks Michael Marinetto

Global recession may make public and policymakers think more about those ‘at the bottom of society’, says social policy academic

Jo Johnson tells Times Higher Education event that universities should ‘take advantage’ of crisis to build on experience of online teaching

Emma Hardy calls on government to underwrite HE funding during ‘unprecedented set of challenges’ posed by Covid-19

India’s newest universities are showing immense promise but may find it hard to stay independent from the corporate world, says Ganeshdatta Poddar

Neglect of fundamental research is not inevitable when universities focus on sustainability challenges, UN advisor tells Innovation and Impact Summit

Coronavirus-enforced lockdown is leading to some unexpected scholarly analysis of Ryder and his team of pups

Switching towards peer-to-peer assessment makes sense for distance learning but a longer-term transformation would benefit students, says David Carless

Katie Metzler would like to see the different disciplines become more than the sum of their parts

Unexpected numbers are tuning into doctoral and master’s defences, with shutdown likely to lead to longer-term reforms to vivas, says Dutch professor

Rolling Stone shows how improvisation in difficult circumstances can lead to memorable results, but scholars must also be honest about trade-offs caused by lockdown, say Bailey Sousa and Alexander Clark

Science minister announces new joint team of government departments to consider assistance for sectors

Radical changes may be on cards after stock market crash and interest rate cuts, say experts

Concerns raised over proposed UK open access rules that would require researchers to surrender copyright

New objective to support university finances during Covid-19 crisis suggests a new path for England’s higher education regulator

Despite boasting years of experience in industry, scholars with professional backgrounds can find it hard to get ahead

Scottish Funding Council review condemns how bumper payments to secure ‘orderly exit’ of Sir Ian Diamond were awarded

Proposals to mandate open access monographs from 2024 will make it harder to publish and will limit career chances, says professor

Proposals are likely to raise concerns over the future of longer-form academic publishing

Former editors-in-chief at European Law Journal say the departure of editorial boards raises issue about ‘who owns’ scholarly journals

Center for Open Science project will pass judgment on journals’ commitment to research transparency

A growing number of data detectives are on the hunt for sloppy science and dodgy statistics. Jack Grove examines the methods they use

Just 5 per cent of funding over past two decades went on studies examining how to change human behaviour to help tackle crisis, researchers find

Reverse culture shock is among the tricky situations that scholars may face when returning to their native country for research fieldwork, says Olga Burlyuk

Sussex philosophy professor on why she continues to speak out despite facing online abuse and ‘hostile environment’ at work

Coalition of publishers, scholars and funders believes that combating confusion on issue is the first step to finding a solution

Asian academics lend their own languages and experiences to the budding field of queer studies, says ‘godmother’ of the Taiwan LGBT movement

Some traditional marketing-focused courses replaced by programmes emphasising environmental studies and social responsibility

Economic and Social Research Council may provide four years of PhD funding amid concerns over stress caused by three-year model

Universities UK poll shows Britons value skills rather than income level when it comes to immigration

University of Texas at Austin scholar argues that the poor state of quantitative psychology makes replication impossible

Prince Andrew’s fall from grace a full decade after Jeffrey Epstein’s conviction underlines academia’s failure to probe modern power, says Jason Lee

Growing numbers of academics struggle to combine work and personal care responsibilities, according to research by Marie-Pierre Moreau, who explains how universities can help

Junior scholars have always needed to curry favour with their seniors, but quantifying research impact exacerbates the problem, says Jonathan R Goodman

Universities are rapidly expanding their student rolls, using their increased scale to invest, compete and insulate themselves against economic uncertainty. But at what cost, asks Ellie Bothwell

Lorenzo Fioramonti wants to ‘put his ideas to the test’ and end the country’s brain drain

Fees reform has not quelled popular anger over exploitation, but academics can play a key role in constitutional reform, says Robert Funk

£9,000 fees permitted per-student funding to rise even at the height of austerity, argues former minister David Willetts

More sharing of impact will improve understanding of how it can be promoted and evaluated, says Peter Tufano

Restrictions on loan access for university courses with low graduate earnings under consideration for Tory manifesto, though Augar-inspired cuts not ruled out

Former higher education minister will leave in December to seek consultancy and advisory positions

Would-be Brexit Party MP Kevin Yuill says he is encouraged by support for Leave party among staff and students

Analysis of publishing deals across Europe highlights different costs faced by country-level consortia

There is a vast universe of information about people’s online behaviour. But academics say social media firms are restricting access to it, leaving us in the dark about the web

The impact agenda is often portrayed a diversion from the real activity of research, but it can also provoke new lines of enquiry, says Alix Green

Harry Collins takes issue with an outdated account of the relations between science and society

Ever since it emerged from English departments in the 1970s, media studies has been routinely dismissed as the archetypal ‘Mickey Mouse’ degree. But in an era of fake news and media hegemony, has this multifaceted subject finally found its place in the zeitgeist?

New Social Democrat administration drops annual 2 per cent saving target, but could end teaching subsidy for humanities and social sciences

Graduates arranged workplace visits in major world cities as well as donations to cover travel costs, university alumni relations head tells conference

Trend for ‘shorter and closer’ overseas study options among Japanese students puts premium on demonstrating educational value, EAIE conference hears

France’s president responded to the gilets jaunes movement with a surprise plan to abolish the grande école ENA, reigniting debate about the country’s intensely hierarchical higher education system. John Morgan explores what lies behind the proposal and what it says about the role of exclusive institutions in a populist, anti-elitist age

The University of London’s new vice-chancellor reflects on her Canadian working class roots, leadership lessons from local government and her time in 10 Downing Street

Pension fund’s deficit is likely to be worse than feared rather than better, says Sir David Eastwood

There have been big declines in the proportion of humanities and social science papers published in Norwegian, conference told

A new survey of employers raises questions about the labour market value of higher degrees, says Tristram Hooley

Critical thinking is not enough. Students must be taught dynamics of social media, say Darren Linvill and Patrick Warren

A bold policy to internationalise Turkey’s universities by teaching in English should be abandoned, says Sinan Bayraktaroğlu