Higher education tuition fees reforms in the UK

Following the successful vote in the House of Commons on changes to graduate contributions for 2012/13, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills Vince Cable said:


"Today's (9th December) vote has been an important step in turning the Coalitions commitment to deliver a high-quality university sector that is more responsive to the needs of students into a reality.


"Under our proposals no student will have to pay upfront for tuition and both parties in the Coalition have worked hard to develop a much fairer and progressive graduate contribution scheme. Graduates will only begin to repay the cost of their tuition and living support once they are in high earning jobs, with significant discounting for those on low and modest incomes."

New University for Derry - a stimulus for the future?

Derry's euphoria from winning the UK City of Culture 2013 has not yet died down.  Whether it will be a sufficient enough incentive to get university aspirants to consider Derry as a venue in the same way as they view either Belfast or Jordanstown remains to be seen! Allied to this is an ambitious plan drawn up various business and community leaders to create new university conditions in the city by 2020. The intention is to lift the city and the North West region, both academically, and importantly, economically as it sets about challenging decades of economic inactivity, high unemployment and few opportunities for higher skills development. Read more

'Avatar and The Bournemouth supremacy'

With so much educational press written of late on the importance of Science,Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) subjects and career opportunities, I particularly enjoyed Lucy Tobin's insightful article in the Guardian (6th March 2010) into the making of the recent sci-fi blockbuster 'Avatar.' The article considers the work done in the different departments of Bournemouth university where expertise is shared in the complimentary disciplines of computer technology and design technology to produce arguably the most talked about film of the year.Read more

The future of universities in a knowledge economy.

It is vital to the economy to have flourishing universities, as Presidents Obama and Sarkozy know.

Editorial The Independent 18.02.2010

Lord Mandelson, the secretary of state for business, innovation and skills is pushing universities to use 'contextual data' to accept students with lower graded A-levels, or none at all, if they show potential despite being held back by social disadvantage, poor health or a difficult home life. But how does this tie in with cuts to university budgets, restrictions on the number of students, unprecedented numbers applying for degree courses and soaring A-level results? It all adds up to intense competition for places and large numbers of disappointed applicants. The economic climate means more students will be likely to apply to university, while those who didn't get places last year may re-apply, and there will be less available to pay for them. Everything it would appear is being squeezed at the same time!

Are there benefits in studying abroad?

As we begin a new calender year, and with AS examinations complete, it is perhaps timely for the Year 13 student to focus on options post -18. Quite often careers teachers are asked about higher education opportunities abroad.

'We've got the WOW factor!'

When researching their degree choices students could be encouraged to examine the level of 'work readiness' as one of their desired selection criteria in either the university itself, or courses in particular. Liverpool John Moores (LJM) has no such worries on this front having taken the decision in 2007 to link up with some major companies in developing the WOW factor (World of Work skills) in their 421 courses.

Rebranding Bournemouth University

In the early 80's when my sixth form students were searching for a higher education course that would address their interest in the burgeoning tourism and leisure industries, many were drawn to the attractions of the Bournemouth course despite its polytechnic status back then.  Today, Bournemouth is a flourishing university on the sunny south coast - a World Heritage coastline. Such beauty is mirrored in its many high quality academic offerings.