New ideas and technologies are disrupting the way the world as we know it operates. Technological innovations that power strides in artificial intelligence, advanced manufacturing and autonomous vehicles are affecting the economies, lifestyles and demographics of the future. If we are to meet the challenges and opportunities these technologies present, we’re going to have to […] … learn more→

A few weeks ago – back when we used to teach and research rather than stand at picket-lines challenging the marketisation of the university – we discovered that we share something in common. As international staff our right to strike and participate in peaceful, collective action is limited by the Home Office. Days before the UK-wide universities strike we […] … learn more→

The indisputable success of the UK’s universities over recent decades has been built on four bulwarks: steady growth in student demand, relatively generous funding arrangements, protective and supportive regulation and sustained public and political goodwill. But all of those bulwarks are being seriously eroded by political and market currents. Since 2006, total UK university revenues […] … learn more→

The trio of financial support to students known as campus-based aid includes Perkins loans, Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (SEOG), and Federal Work-Study (FWS). Unlike more popular federal student aid programs, like Pell grants and the Federal Direct Loans, only students at participating institutions can receive campus-based aid, and funds are limited and typically awarded to […] … learn more→

Recent closures and transfers of university campuses and the University of Wollongong’s opening of a campus in Liverpool in southwestern Sydney reflect more general changes in Australian universities. This is affecting not only campuses but faculties, study modes and student groups. It may even have implications for some universities’ future. Australia does not have too many universities, overall. The median student […] … learn more→

  When the government shut down Corinthian, it was a complete disaster. Now, it wasn’t a disaster for the administration of Corinthian, they all got huge golden parachutes. It was an inconvenience for faculty, but they were all being paid starvation wages as adjuncts, so the loss of the minimal paychecks wasn’t so bad, and […] … learn more→

  “Today I got a date with my jury. So. Well. Pretty excited about it” I announced my impeding PhD thesis defence to a friend with these words. And yet, the feeling was much more complex than just excitement. It was difficult to find the right words to express the intricate mix of fear, excitement, […] … learn more→

Not every thesis has a section or chapter devoted to a theoretical framework. But a lot do. (It’s the Ph in PhD after all.) And these ‘theory chapters’ can be very tricky to write – and are often tricky for the examiner to read. Before starting to write your theory section/chapter it can be good […] … learn more→

Despite the UK’s desire to remain a world leader in technology post-Brexit, there is some uncertainty about how it will achieve this aim. Questions abound as to whether conditions are right for the UK to steal a march on the US and Asia, notably in groundbreaking areas of innovation such as artificial intelligence. However, some […] … learn more→

It’s no secret that some of our institutions of higher education have been taken over by, well, it’s hard to say what to call them. Much like the walking corpses on The Walking Dead, it seems every group has a different name for them. Bolsheviks, Leftists, Progressives, Bai Zuo…many choices. My own personal choice is […] … learn more→