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If businesses regard upskilling their middle managers as a high priority, universities should not be criticised for meeting that need, says Alec Cameron

Political efforts to silence academic critics are unlikely to end despite clarification that universities are not obliged to ban them, says Pushkar

Matthew Reisz praises the researchers who go way beyond the call of duty in investigating the world for us all

If you want your manuscript to be accepted, pepper it with formulaic neologisms, irrelevant but impressive references and suitably indented vulgarity, advises Janelle Ward

If women in particular must watch what they say for fear of a social media mauling, public scholarly fora will be the poorer, warns Charlotte Galpin

The international stars in the Boston Red Sox and the city’s stellar universities highlight why Trump’s xenophobic rhetoric is so out of step with a ‘winning’ part of America, writes Jack Grove from Boston

Political uncertainty and growing domestic enrolments mean a quality postgraduate experience is more important than ever, argue Jason Leman and Jonathan Neves, who also discuss the results of Advance HE’s postgraduate taught experience survey 

Matt Waddup considers the bizarre situation in which the UK universities regulator will allow the demise of its own sector

The chair of the Office for Students has declared that it would be irresponsible to bail out struggling institutions, but John Gill argues that institutions are facing financial challenges beyond their control 

Even if costs are rising, keeping a university afloat is always the best option, says Andrew Burn

The Australian government has released three major data sets unusually back-to-back and full of mistakes, leading John Ross to ask: why so much, why so fast and why so erroneous?

Government, industry and universities need to foot the bill for more invaluable work experience opportunities, says Jackie Carter

Encouraging students to develop a civic mindset while at university could lead to a lifetime of informed participation in politics, says Will Miller

With the US’ affirmative action policies once again thrust to the centre of public debate, Patricia Gándara reflects on the measures used to deem students deserving of entrance to leading universities

The All Souls fellowship exam confirms everything you already knew about Oxford, yet the brilliance isn’t in the answers but in the institution itself, writes Arabella Byrne

The possibility of a university failing as it is exposed to commercial forces could have consequences that ripple out far beyond campus

China’s growing presence in Africa is causing many students to head to Asia rather than Western universities, says Zahir Irani

The University of South Australia’s merger with its prestigious Adelaide neighbour may be off, but the fact that it was even considered illustrates how much can change in 30 years, says Adam Graycar

Academics should not be afraid to challenge the wisdom of requiring institutions to make financial amends for their past links to slavery, says Robert Dingwall

After a rare, chance encounter with an enthusiast for one of his books, Felipe Fernández-Armesto reflects on why so few academics gain any sort of celebrity 

Nobel laureate Donna Strickland may not have experienced the same inequality as other women working in science, but she has a duty to fight against it, says Anna Notaro

If we want to transform the research and development intensity of the UK economy, we need an outstanding workforce, says John Kingman 

Research-funding decision processes and rejections should be open and transparent, but this time they weren’t, say Libby Lester and Brett Hutchins 

Higher education can play a lead role in mending past injustices in innovative and sustainable ways, says Joanna Newman 

Universities have told the BBC that all is well as far as free speech is concerned. Then again, they would say that, wouldn’t they? argue Dennis Hayes and Bryn Harris 

An artificial winning mindset has permeated UK higher education, says Peter Larcombe 

All campus life is here

UK higher education invites trouble if it conveys an impression that students and staff matter only in transactional terms and that diversity is not valued

Vishal Vora won compensation from Soas over a claim for poor support in his doctoral studies. He explains the steps others can take if they have a similar complaint

Degrees focused on specific careers need be no less rigorous or innovative than other graduate qualifications, say Sandro Galea and Lisa Sullivan

Early career academics on temporary contracts must put aside personal hopes of a better future and unite to improve their current lot, says Steven Parfitt

Increasing the amount of money employers are expected to pay in to the Teachers Pension Scheme will harm the social mobility missions of post-92 institutions, says Greg Walker 

‘Sorry, you need some REF publications’ is becoming commonplace in rejection letters, says Robert Hesketh

The UCU is in a unique position of strength and reflection â€“ the low turnout for the pay dispute ballot doesn't change that, says Michael Carley 

While universities install strict plagiarism rules for students, more measures should be in place to fight plagiarism among academics, argues Ken Masters 

At a time of heightened tensions on campuses in the US, now is the time to increase protection of academic freedom, says Rob Quinn

On the eve of Open Access Week, Bill Hubbard argues that we must not forget university repositories as the bedrock of open research

The ‘canon’ of political thought is a myth and we owe it to our students to let them choose which theorists they engage with, says Gemma Bird

Universities owe it to students to create a transparent and fair higher education funding model, argues Anthony Forster

What constitutes truly excellent teaching, and its oft-neglected relationship with research, are among the most urgent concerns in higher education

John Raftery reflects on the measures he took to pull London Metropolitan University out of crisis

Justifications of suicide may risk promoting it, but censoring one side of an ancient argument would shortchange students, says David Baumeister

The withdrawal of funding for Ontario’s basic income pilot highlights the perils of working on politically funded research, says Evelyn Forget

The relaxation of the research excellence framework’s submission rules could see research-intensive universities clustered on near-maximum scores, warms Dominic Dean

Seeking a greater share of imagined profits from commercialisation would undermine technology transfer, says David Secher

On the International Day of Action Against Contract Cheating, Chris Husbands urges more university leaders to lobby the government to put an end to the pervasive practice

Being forced to do more with increasingly scarcer resources actually has been beneficial to universities, says Thomas Estermann 

Universities must do more to counter Euro-white supremacy in their own operations if they are going to effectively support decolonisation of disciplines, argues Heather McLean

A number of competing priorities are on the table as European lawmakers decide on the next phase of the continent’s research funding programme, but finding the right balance among them is crucial, says Jan Palmowski

University leaders have said that they expect to work more closely with industry in the future, but universities need to make clear how those links will benefit graduates, says Ronel Lehmann 

Online learning platforms can provide the future workforce with necessary upskilling that will complement traditional higher education degrees, argues Stephen Somerville 

New assessment criteria for the research excellence framework aim to ensure that the synergy and balance in interdisciplinary research is recognised, says Athene Donald

In an unpredictable, increasingly digital age, Singapore’s universities are rethinking how to equip alumni with relevant skills throughout their lives

Ucas is attempting to get a clearer perspective of equality in higher education admissions by taking into account students’ sex, ethnic group, environment and free school meal eligibility, says David Best

Many retired academics embrace the freedom to fully embody their view of the serious scholar, says Bruce Macfarlane

Academia’s exacting standards on attribution are spot on. It is their inconsistent implementation that is the problem, says David Sanders

Scholars should not be walled off from mainstream biography’s playground of unlicensed fun, says Richard Bradford

A landmark analysis of several government data sets will help policymakers make more effective interventions, says Roger Smyth

Domestic league tables in the UK don’t capture the quality and accessible higher education Birkbeck provides to non-traditional students, says David Latchman 

On World Mental Health Day, Matthew Flinders calls for more open discussions about mental health struggles and their modern-day provocations