In-depth

As Australia’s general election looms, many in university circles may be hoping that Scott Morrison’s coalition is voted out. But is it true that conservative governments and universities are natural antagonists? And how much better would the sector fare under a Labor administration? John Ross reports

Just as campaigns to promote societal benefit show strength, activists admit setbacks in wider battleground for basic academic freedom

Well-meaning initiatives that prioritise student satisfaction over educational objectives deny students access to the type of rich learning experience that universities were designed for, argue Rebekah Wanic and Nina Powell 

Universities’ intellectual property is seen as key to successful knowledge economies. But what is the best way to turn ideas into marketable products? Is it realistic to expect major commercial success? And how much of a stake should universities take in the process – and the proceeds? Jack Grove reports

The Great Resignation, remote working and rapid changes in the graduate employment market are all forcing US higher education institutions to evolve – fast. But are institutions that have spent two years managing Covid-19 ready to take up another challenge? Paul Basken reports

The president of Harvey Mudd College discusses smashing glass ceilings and how to get more women into STEM subjects 

After decades operating in a largely low-inflation environment, Western universities are seeing rising energy costs and war in Ukraine push prices up. How exposed is the sector?

The UK government’s bill to tackle university cancel culture would give it unacceptable powers to control academic debate and student protest, says George Letsas

Despite incremental reforms throughout Emmanuel Macron’s first term as president, France still has one of the most centralised higher education systems in Europe. As the election looms, Ben Upton examines attitudes towards institutional autonomy and asks whether its supposed effects on equality and academic freedom are limiting appetite for more

War in Ukraine may reshape university internationalisation, but most academics do not expect a knockout blow

Thirty years after his breakout book declared democracy to be an unstoppable force, the End of History author explains to Matthew Reisz why a new defence of liberal values is urgently needed, and why scholars must share some responsibility for destabilising them

Three decades after the abolition of the binary divide between universities and polytechnics, some commentators still lament the supposed loss of locally focused vocational education. But even as the political winds buffet them, do post-92s offer the solution to the UK’s skills problem? John Morgan reports

The Ukraine war has led to unprecedented curtailment of academic ties, but could breaking off all relations with Russia cause further problems?

Obsessed with graduate employment, US universities are doing little to improve students’ ability to think independently, a major new study has concluded. Paul Basken speaks to the Harvard academics behind the decade-long investigation and hears how student learning can be repaired

All academics have had that anxiety dream about standing up to give a lecture, only to realise they have forgotten to prepare anything – or to put on any clothes. But real teaching failures are rarely so disastrous – and many are teachable moments. Seven academics tell us their hard-earned lessons

Lawmakers moving to block lessons on race and politics after successful efforts to police school curricula

As politicians begin to confront America’s student debt crisis, Charlie Eaton explains how public opinion turned so decisively against the financialisation of US higher education and why full loan cancellation is now on the cards

The grip of Silicon Valley on commerce and culture is huge and ever-growing. But as concerns mount about tech firms’ ethics, is there anything that universities – with vastly lower research and salary budgets – can do to put them on a more responsible trajectory? Four experts give their views

OECD data show that there are nations that have achieved more balance between major cities and other regions

With both Oxford and Cambridge seeking new vice-chancellors, Rosa Ellis examines the unique pressures of leading these prestigious universities and the qualities that successful candidates will need to do the job

Border restrictions, differing national Covid strategies and changing demographics have all made significant impacts on overseas recruitment over the past two years. Simon Baker examines the latest data from five major recruiting nations and considers what they might presage for the future

Financial accounts for 2020-21 suggest tension may now grow between saving money and investing in staff and facilities

A recent survey confirms that higher education continues to offer a safe environment for a certain kind of abuser: the successful professor who brings in large grants, say Nanna Haug Hilton and Susanne Täuber

As the pandemic increases public scrutiny of science, the UK Parliament is holding another inquiry into the long-running issue of reproducibility. Five of its contributors give their views on how sloppy science can be eliminated and trust be more firmly rooted 

Facing lower tolerance for free speech, academics and students share their approaches on retaining autonomy and avoiding unwanted scrutiny

Students who escaped the chaos in Kabul are beginning their second terms at overseas universities. But can they concentrate on their studies amid trauma, worries about their families and uncertainty about their future prospects? Pola Lem considers what more universities can do to help

Teaching modules intensively, rather than in parallel, has had positive results at the handful of institutions that have tried it. But would it work for all students and all subjects? And would academics trade autonomy in course design for more research time? Anna McKie reports

In John Gilbey’s seasonal tale, life imitates on-screen romance when a film crew is duped into choosing the distinctly unphotogenic University of Rural England as the location for its next blockbuster

As the season of goodwill comes around again, warm words about collegiality and fellowship have been dutifully corralled into all-staff missives from university leaders. But in an era of management, metrics and industrial unrest, does the image of the academy as a commonwealth of scholars still bear scrutiny? Seven academics have their say 

Coyness, contention and competing agendas all hamper historians and sociologists of sex. Matthew Reisz speaks to those who choose, nevertheless, to probe this most sensitive and intimate of subjects

A push to end the habit of assessing researchers by their publication metrics is gaining momentum. But are journal impact factors really as meaningless as is claimed? And will requiring scientists to describe their various contributions really improve fairness and rigour – or just bureaucracy? Jack Grove reports

As ministers prepare White Paper, South Yorkshire Futures programme reaching neglected suburbs and towns could be model for putting policy into practice

On 15 October 1971, the first edition of The Times Higher Education Supplement was published. In the five decades since, the publication now known as Times Higher Education has charted the expansion and marketisation of the UK sector while taking an ever more global perspective. Three editors reflect on their time at the helm

Saikat Majumdar surveys developments from the Gulf to South Korea in light of the closure of Yale-NUS College

Amid concern on graduate employment in Westminster and across West, looking at funding systems that put labour market demand at centre is instructive

In the first of our new ‘talking leadership’ interview series, Rosa Ellis meets the Johns Hopkins University president to discuss how he is realigning the institution to educate students about democracy and encourage them to contest ideas

New Zealand’s embrace of Māori vocabulary goes hand-in-hand with the incorporation of Māori understandings into curricula. But is a debate about the unintended consequences of this move being stifled by fear of speaking out? John Ross reports

Scholarships can be important, but the risk of brain drain must be borne in mind, say experts 

Any move to limit higher education participation would be judged against policies of rival advanced economies – and by public opinion