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Extra-curricular activities now ‘more important’ to university applications

Most admissions staff believe achievements outside the classroom are more important to gaining a university place than 10 years ago, a new study says

THE podcast: 15-21 January 2015 issue review

Download the podcastInternational student recruitment, academic free speech and career paths (or the lack of them) for fledgling academics are all discussed in this week’s ����Vlog...

Sheffield Hallam head Philip Jones to retire

The vice-chancellor of Sheffield Hallam University, Philip Jones, has announced that he is to retire next spring

15 January 2015

Entering academic orbit - How to give the next generation of scholars a career boost

Anselm Citron, 1923-2014

A pioneer of accelerator technologies who was among the first scientists to work at the European Organisation for Nuclear Research (Cern) has died

Academic regrets? I’ve got a few worth mentioning

A professor with two decades of experience reviews his career highs and lows

News in brief - 15 January 2015

Higher education funding and loansMPs call for sustainable financesMPs have passed a motion urging the government to outline proposals “that will sustain funding” for higher education “while...

World in brief - 15 January 2015

Source: GettyUnited States‘Sober squad’ to patrol fraternity partiesThe University of Virginia has introduced new safety rules for fraternities in a bid to monitor behaviour at parties. The move...

Grant winners - 15 January 2015

National Institute for Health ResearchEfficacy and Mechanism Evaluation ProgrammeAward winner: Colin BerryInstitution: University of GlasgowValue: £2,203,509A randomised parallel group double-blind...

Winter sun

My gloom at returning to work (and the tsunami of marking) was considerably alleviated when I realised that there was a quiz hidden in the map in the Campus Close-up article (News, 8 January).Instead...

Second chance to engage

The new National Networks of Collaborative Outreach programme is an opportunity that the sector cannot afford to waste again (“Aimhigher revisited? New national outreach project launched”, www....

Make sense of science

The Royal Society has recently published guidance on the career expectations of doctoral students in the sciences (“Dispel illusion of PhDs leading to jobs for life, says Royal Society”, News, 18/25...

Awkward allocations

I take issue with the headline attributing a claim of “ineffectiveness” against the Economic and Social Research Council to me (“REF analysis highlights ESRC’s ineffective grant allocation, says...

Pension outsiders

Eminent doctors and infectious disease experts have, rightly and courageously, taken the lead in the efforts to deal with the Ebola outbreak. Imagine if vice-chancellors or employers’ human resources...

Piled Higher and Deeper, by Jorge Cham - 15 January 2015