Politics

Ourania Filippakou and Ted Tapper consider whether they are heading for extinction

Bahram Bekhradnia warns of the clear and present dangers facing the UK academy

‘Uncontrolled’ growth in HNCs and HNDs may lead to university retrenchment

Coalition government policy to create a market in higher education has pushed England’s sector into “a terrible muddle, unmatched in the world”.

An independent Scotland would seek to continue to share research councils with the remainder of the UK, a new blueprint for independence has said.

Universities UK warns rights of religious speakers could be “curtailed unlawfully” if institutions insist on mixed seating

Business secretary talks of ‘significant advance’ in college higher learning

Peers criticise ‘ad hoc’ spending announcements on infrastructure

The Economics of Higher Education network aims to highlight neglected areas of economic research on the sector

‘Parliament of dons’ bypassed in decision-making process

Julia Droeber is humbled by the courage of everyday resistance

Corruption in the academy is being challenged by a ‘clean universities’ ranking and the power of press coverage, says Alina Mungiu-Pippidi

New shadow wants ‘much stronger paths’ between sectors, conference hears

David Willetts has confirmed that public spending on students at private providers trebled this year.

Film shows how Indian students successfully navigated the process

The Green Party is organising protests across the country against plans to sell off the student loan book.

Scrapped mission group was close to high-profile rebrand

Losing on the political stage has prompted public intellectual to change how he teaches

UCU protests over sacking of free speech champion

Feargal Sharkey tells GuildHE conference of hits, myths and the cost of ‘free’ in the Mooc era

Vince Cable has criticised the “qualification inflation” that means entrants to “very standard” professions such as nursing require a degree.

The immigration minister has accused universities of creating “a self-fulfilling prophecy for bad news” on student visas

“Right-on” lecturers and student campaigns cited as among the reasons, Commons event hears

Scotland risks losing its thriving research base if it becomes independent, analysis by Department of Business, Innovation and Skills has claimed

The 1994 Group of small research-intensive universities has decided to disband 19 years after being set up.

Report calls for overarching body to fill gaps in national ‘framework’

Privatisation of debt dubbed a ‘silly idea’ by critics

IFS: places, grants or remaining direct funding will have to be cut

Inflation means ‘something has to give’, leader tells Times Higher Education podcast

The University of Oxford has named a new building after the late Baroness Thatcher

People who attend university are less likely to commit crime, drink heavily or smoke, according to a new database of evidence on the social benefits of higher education

The capital element of the science budget should be ring fenced to avoid the peril of “announcement-based politics”, according to Labour’s new shadow minister for the sector.

The current regime can’t last for ever, says Andy Westwood

Experts discuss the development and legacy of the epochal report on its golden anniversary

Some in the academy believe it could

Domino theory may explain out of favour Blairite’s appointment

Blame the ‘father of the Constitution’ for the mess in the US, says Alan Ryan

The Office of Fair Trading is to examine England’s universities, including how they compete for students and set fees under the £9,000 regime.

UK universities have the equivalent of £2,083 per student invested in the fossil fuel industry, a new report has claimed.

David Willetts has warned of the need to expand the number of higher education places between the end of this decade and 2035 to cope with a growing young population

If the UK were to leave the European Union, the nation’s universities would be left in even greater “ideological thrall” to the US.

Student activists have tried to occupy Vince Cable’s constituency office in protest at Liberal Democrat backing for the sale of the student loan book

Reasons for withdrawal of legal action on eve of hearing remain unclear

How does the university calculate the real cost of undergraduate education?

Report warns of ‘market failure’ but critics say it doesn’t go far enough

With interest in Ralph Miliband’s work high after the Mail’s attack, could Marxism regain academic ascendency? asks Martin McQuillan

As the 2014 REF census date approaches, Paul Jump talks to the architects of previous rounds of assessment about how it all began and their views on the research excellence framework

Gareth Williams laments the decline of higher education research since its heyday following an influential report

The dramatic decline in part-time students will continue this year, according to a report that calls for an “urgent push” to promote such study.

London Metropolitan University has agreed to end legal action against the Home Office over the revoking of its licence to recruit overseas students.

Measures to tackle illegal immigration are “discriminatory” to international students and send the message that they are not welcome in the UK.

English system left vulnerable by lack of regulatory structure, commission warns

The Russell Group has backed the University of Oxford vice-chancellor after he urged the government to allow a rise in tuition fees.

Private providers, including universities’ own offshoots, have been pinpointed as a major risk to English higher education in a new report.

The real cost of a University of Oxford education is £16,000 a year and the fees system should be better related to such an amount.

Liam Byrne has been made shadow higher education minister in a reshuffle unveiled today by Labour leader Ed Miliband.

New government also aims to cut red tape

Minister points to ‘incremental’ removal and sounds warning over Labour fees policy

The insider’s outsider reflects a career at the heart of the higher education sector

A youth mentor has defended Oxbridge against charges of racial bias in admissions, earning a standing ovation at the Conservative Party conference.