- 鈥淢e, ugly? My Jimmy Choos make me feel BEAUTIFUL,鈥 ran the headline in the Daily Mail鈥檚 Femail section on 9 May, above an article by Mary Beard, professor of Classics at the University of Cambridge, in which she confessed to being 鈥渁 shoe addict鈥. Professor Beard disclosed that 鈥渂uying shoes is such a wonderfully un-stressful treat鈥, adding that she once spent 拢300 on a pair of Jimmy Choos 鈥渨ith a galaxy of silver stars all over them鈥. She also revealed: 鈥淚 even spotted a student tweeting about Mary Beard wearing Hi-Top trainers in a lecture. How cool is that?鈥 So cool that hopefully the Mail will soon launch a regular series of 1,500-word articles on academics and their footwear.
- In a week when the Conservative Party has been riven by rows about Europe, higher education has done its bit to arouse some Eurosceptic fervour. The UK鈥檚 Student Loans Company has hired private investigators 鈥渢o claw back its money after the amount owed by European Union graduates who are not repaying their tuition-fee loans rose to more than 拢50 million鈥, The Independent on Sunday reported on 12 May. Borrowers accounting for 拢41 million have not supplied information about where they are living and how much they are earning. A spokesman for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills said that 鈥渁ll borrowers need to know that they cannot evade their obligation to repay simply by moving overseas鈥, perhaps hoping that saying it will somehow make it true.
- The University of Bristol is considering plans to give state-school pupils 鈥減riority over candidates from fee-paying schools鈥, The Sunday Times reported on 12 May. Attendance at state school should be deemed 鈥渁n indicator of disadvantage鈥, Bristol鈥檚 Tony Hoare is reported to have said in documents obtained by the newspaper under the Freedom of Information Act. Mr Hoare is 鈥渄irector of what the university calls its 鈥榳idening participation research cluster鈥欌, the newspaper said while holding its nose and dangling the offending job title at arm鈥檚 length. 鈥淚n 2002 Bristol was boycotted by leading independent schools, which were convinced that its admissions policy discriminated against them,鈥 The Sunday Times added. Despite this, the institution still took 40 per cent of its students from private schools in 2011-12 - the fourth-highest level of any university in England.
- In David Moyes, Premier League champions Manchester United have clearly appointed a manager who understands the value of higher education. Mr Moyes, who leaves Everton for Old Trafford in the summer, answered questions at the Cambridge Union on 13 May, making a return to the city where he used to play for Cambridge United. Mr Moyes praised Wayne Rooney as a 鈥済reat street player鈥 and German football for keeping ticket prices low. Whether he touched on higher education was not reported. But David Willetts, the universities and science minister, already receives plenty of guidance from a Scot with a tendency to speak his mind, and will no doubt continue to do so until Sir Alan Langlands hands over the reins of the 糖心Vlog Funding Council for England in the autumn.
- 鈥淪ome of England鈥檚 leading universities will benefit from a 拢50 million investment in cutting-edge research and innovation projects to drive growth,鈥 the 糖心Vlog Funding Council for England and the government announced on 15 May. Sixteen schemes at universities have been allocated a share of the money by Hefce鈥檚 Catalyst Fund. David Willetts, the universities and science minister, said the cash 鈥渨ill harness the potential for growth across the regions, focus on our world-class industrial sectors and create a skilled workforce for the future鈥. Among the projects to be funded is the development of a National Centre of Excellence for Food Engineering, which aims to deliver 拢1 billion in gross value added to the food and drink industry, as well as encourage more graduates to consider a career in the sector. Horses for courses? Hopefully not.
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