New Zealand scientist leads research excellence framework review Former government science adviser Sir Peter Gluckman will lead international advisory body to examine reform of national research audit By Jack Grove 19 May
SDGs propelled our impact from the local to the global The United Nations’ global goals have enabled French institutions to broaden the scope of their sustainable development work, says Anne Beauval By Anne Beauval 19 May
University staff in Italy ‘most likely to have secure contracts’ Almost a third of university employees globally are on contracts lasting less than two years, according to THE data By Ellie Bothwell 19 May
Essex apologises to academics disinvited over gender views V-c admits university made ‘serious mistakes’ after external review finds it breached its free speech duties By John Morgan 18 May
Fudan Hungary campus branded geopolitical pawn as backlash grows Part of a nexus of deals between Hungary and China, the project has become a flashpoint in local politics after it emerged locals will foot the bill By David Matthews 18 May
Cambridge signals major shift towards online learning New short courses aimed at professionals come with £2,000 price tag By Anna McKie 18 May
Let’s give the UK’s new high-risk research funder a chance Changes to funding mechanisms can feel like a threat, but Aria will be a blast of fresh air for science and technology, says Tom Stephenson By Tom Stephenson 18 May
Plan to legislate on ‘low-quality’ courses alarms sector Government says it will give OfS powers to enforce ‘minimum expectations of quality’ before regulator responds to consultation on plan By John Morgan 17 May
UK union says final pay offer of 1.5 per cent rise ‘unacceptable’ Employers up their offer at final negotiations but UCU says they should ‘reward the extraordinary efforts staff have made’ during Covid-19 By Anna McKie 17 May
Marc Stears: like Labour, academics are disconnected from society Ex-Miliband adviser turned Sydney Policy Lab director discusses globalised academia’s decoupling from ‘everyday society’ By John Morgan 17 May
The return of in-person exams will be a relief – including to invigilators Online exams are unfair and hard to police, even with creepy levels of invasiveness, says Helen Soteriou By Helen Soteriou 17 May
Students in larger module groups ‘tend to get lower grades’ Effect also more pronounced for science subjects, according to study of class sizes at UK university By Simon Baker 16 May
