Dutch student financing flip-flop could increase growth pressure Return of grants after almost a decade of loans could create an enrolment surge in an already straining system By Ben Upton 25 November
Sector leaders doubtful of 2025 lifelong loan entitlement launch After government reaffirms LLE support, post-18 education review chair remains ‘apprehensive’ while OU v-c sees ‘big design challenges’ By John Morgan 25 November
Funding and regulation are slanted against Birkbeck, so we must adapt The need to rearrange academic units and, potentially, cut staff is the direct result of UK government policy, say David Latchman and Matthew Innes By David Latchman 25 November
India overtakes China as student migration to UK hits record high Arrivals in country soar following rollback of Covid-era travel restrictions By Patrick Jack 24 November
Better pay deal possible as coffers swell, insist striking staff On the picket lines in Cambridge, union members insist this year’s 3 per cent rise is nowhere near enough to contend with spiralling living costs By Jack Grove 24 November
Overseas researchers in limbo over UK security clearance delays Incoming staff and students risk losing jobs and funding over delayed checks in ‘sensitive’ fields By Jack Grove 24 November
Russian pseudoscience has fuelled the bloodshed in Ukraine Failure to expel crackpot social scientists from Russia’s academy has allowed dangerous dogma to dominate public discourse, says Andreas Umland By Andreas Umland 24 November
PhD students prefer in-person supervision, but online persists Postgraduate researchers respond positively to online-offline support packages but purely online contact is less valued, finds Advance HE survey By Jack Grove 24 November
Ucas personal statement ‘contributes to access inequalities’ Hepi report says long, free-form format is ‘incompatible’ with fair admissions code and calls for switch to short-response questions By John Morgan 24 November
Academic freedom is not freedom of speech for academics The UK’s Higher Education Bill could become a new global reference on academic freedom – if only it can get the definition right, say Liviu Matei and Shitij Kapur By Liviu Matei 24 November
Students skip lectures as cost-of-living crisis mounts Office for National Statistics survey shows students are also considering pausing their studies or switching to remote learning By Patrick Jack 23 November
Restricting UK post-study visas ‘would be catastrophic mistake’ Chris Skidmore urges universities to demonstrate how international students cross-subsidise course places for domestic classmates By Tom Williams 23 November
