Politics

As officials ward off questions about debt relief, tax office outlines the cost of changes to ‘grossly unfair’ repayment quirk

Applicants to institutions getting marked down face more processing delays

Funder’s director warns that disclosing records on information complaints could deter future reporting

University of Oxford professor Simon Marginson says populist targeting of higher education by Trump, DeSantis and others is finding favour with both graduates and non-graduates alike

Opposition scenting power urged to ‘show political leadership’ in face of Tory pressure to scrap or scale back post-study work route

The political maelstrom around US universities’ handling of pro-Palestinian protests reflects a right-wing campaign that is increasingly challenging higher education’s autonomy to determine its missions and run its affairs. Yet the sector appears to have no strategy to hold the line. Paul Basken reports

‘No less favourable’ provision a ‘major win’ for university staff or a handbrake on their salaries, depending on perspective

At their university’s first-ever Republican conference, campus leaders stress their belonging and the importance of controlling academia’s agenda

Students out of pocket as universities second-guess government policies designed to ‘reduce the net intake’

Falling birth rate poses ‘challenge’ for higher education sector, as focus shifts to quality and international recruitment

Academic leaders should stay out of politics to encourage debate and promote expertise, says Daniel Diermeier

The sudden imposition of political restrictions on recruitment causes students from countries such as Iran a lot of anguish, says Roohola Ramezani 

As the nation heads to 2024 elections, politicians expand the idea of setting aside science dollars for states – often conservative-leaning – that can’t win it on their own

Sub-inflation funding, Covid, domestic lack of interest and spiralling costs have pushed entire sector into deficit, minister told

Institutions say all major bachelor’s programmes will be available in Dutch and no new English-language courses will be in development ‘for the time being’

King’s vice-chancellor also argues there’s a long-term need to be ‘open to the idea’ of some universities charging higher fees than others

Tuition fee rise is ‘unavoidable’ due to ‘sustained inflationary pressure’ faced by Welsh universities, says education minister Jeremy Miles

Government signals willingness to move on fine points of Australian Research Council bill, as opposition insists on veto rights

Incongruous Australian indexation rules to see arts students paying A$17,000 a year, unless accord’s final report produces an overhaul

Senate committee overlooks warnings of unintended consequences from Australian Research Council reform, saying bill is ‘overwhelmingly’ supported

Reports by London Economics try to help solve the widespread misunderstanding of higher education funding, which is ‘so complicated it should be on Mastermind’

‘Blunt’ measures predicted as politicians ‘panic’ over population explosion

While accord recommendations that suit some universities might not suit others, overall benefit should be the litmus test, says new IRU chair

Conservative majority in House of Representatives backs idea of forcing universities to cover unpaid student loans, widening attack on academic foundations

Universities Australia’s budget pitch a departure from argument that fees ‘do not deter students from undertaking higher education’

International student recruitment comes under scrutiny for raising immigration figures, but it is also valued for fostering allies among future global leaders. Yet if it really does so, why are the West’s largest source countries, China and India, becoming less Western-friendly? Patrick Jack reports

Biden administration examining if favouring alumni families is a civil rights violation

Requirement for new applications to be accompanied by letters of attestation means limits are effective immediately, universities say

George Freeman says he could not cope with doubling of monthly bill on annual salary of £118,000

Plans to charge overseas students ‘return deposit’ must be tossed out, Constitutional Council rules

European University Association says being forced to disclose international funding could lead to institutions being wrongly ‘suspected of representing foreign interests’

Provinces promise action against private operators, but universities fear Trudeau is going too far, too fast, without consulting sector

A change in atmosphere has encouraged academics to return to the country where they were once maligned, but funding pressures and issues with polarisation continue

European Commission stresses that ‘with academic freedom comes academic responsibility’, aiming to ‘de-risk, not to de-couple’ scientific collaboration

Minister and NSFAS chair deny corruption claims, as fund struggles to get payments to students on time

As countries that are home to around half of the world’s population go to the polls, Times Higher Education journalists consider what role higher education will play in the campaigns, and how it might be reshaped by the results

Sandra Borch apologises for making ‘big mistake’ while completing her master’s thesis

Trudeau administration acts after long warning that it won’t tolerate abuses by private campuses and resulting housing shortages

Jamus Jerome Lim, who raised issue in Singaporean parliament, says diverse ideas must be ‘allowed to circulate and be subject to debate’

Campuses in urban areas of Ontario, British Columbia and Nova Scotia may be first to face federal cap on education visas

Creation of dedicated Whitehall office is yet to deliver on its goals, researchers feel

As Canberra considers reforms to make university enrolments more inclusive and abundant, key indicators are moving in opposite direction

Fears over Home Office seeking ‘back door extension’ to review amid debate over terms of reference and what ‘abuse’ means

Ewan Kirk, entrepreneur-in-residence at the University of Cambridge, says Westminster government is being ‘driven by the madness of the immigration debate’

Government says that higher education institutions manage their own events but that it might advise them to “respect…wider social norms”

New president introduces legislation that would allow universities to charge, but many may be reluctant to do so

‘University check’ would allow for issues to be resolved in the drafting stage, rather than once policies have been announced, says EUA

With Claudine Gay accepting debatable instances of plagiarism as final straw, faculty see odds getting hopeless for countering unified political and economic power

Restrictions would increase registration fees for non-EU learners, but plans to make international students pay returnable deposits for residence are already in doubt

Top-ranked Canadian institution calculates financial and reputational cost of premier’s move to penalise use of English, and wonders how it can survive

University leaders warn of ‘deepening pain’ from latest cuts, amid ‘concerning headwinds’ on international recruitment

Revised policy fails to address key causes of research career precarity, university leaders say

Long-frozen, loan-funded tuition fees are neither covering course costs nor, arguably, fairly recognising the benefits of higher education to society and employers. But is there an alternative that is politically and economically viable in a likely UK general election year? John Morgan reports

The former science minister talks to Jack Grove about his concerns over recent visa reforms and his ‘lonely battle’ to keep Britain in Horizon Europe

Prime minister’s drive for ‘political capital’ on net migration risks ‘long-term damage’ to international reputation, UK sector warns

While new salary threshold has been announced, clarity on level of discount applied for key roles in higher education is yet to come

Partial elimination of tuition fees could prove self-defeating by undermining the private universities that educate more than half of the country’s students

Universities in conservative region decline to add DEI component to their conditions of accreditation

LLE can overturn ‘mad idea’ that university must happen between ages 18 and 21, says David Latchman, stepping down as Birkbeck v-c after 21 years

Autonomy, tertiary sector integration and sustainable research funding are crucial to sector’s future, Brian Schmidt says, as he relinquishes leadership role