International
World-class or flagship – Which way for universities? | In the search for authentic, leading and competitive African universities should we not be talking about ‘flagship’ rather than ‘world-class’” universities?
Labour market report highlights need for more STEM skills | The “improvement of education and skills levels” are among five key recommendations contained in the Skills Supply and Demand in South Africa report released last month by the Labour Market Intelligence Partnership project.
Is simultaneous mobility the future for PhD holders? | Evaluating the scale of doctoral holders’ mobility and identifying their main mobility destinations are one of the main aims both of the international study Careers of Doctorate Holders – a joint project by the OECD, UNESCO Institute for Statistics and Eurostat – and of the related Monitoring of the Labor Market for Highly Qualified R&D Personnel – carried out at the HSE Institute for Statistical Studies and Economics of Knowledge, National Research University Higher School of Economics in Russia, under the HSE Programme for Fundamental Research.
Curro talks up state gains as it lays plans for private universities | Curro CEO Chris van der Merwe said it intended to accelerate the growth of its private higher education institutions because there are 50,000 eligible students who cannot find places in public universities.
Financing higher education | India urgently needs to focus on higher education… The government aims to increase the gross enrolment ratio (percentage of people aged 18 to 23 in higher education) from 19.4% (All India Survey of Higher Education 2013, AISHE) to 30% by 2020-21. This means—accounting for population growth—adding about 19 million to the 28 million currently enrolled in higher education programmes.
The enchantment with outcomes | I earlier wrote about the imperiousness of regulatory agencies in Philippine education. And by virtue of a memorandum order, the Commission on Higher Education has all but made “outcomes-based education” the mandatory paradigm for all of higher education in the Philippines, state or privately administered.
U.S. National
Expert: Non-Whites Must Flex Growing Political Muscle Now | Pointing out how projections show that non-Whites will constitute a majority in the United States by the year 2045, Browne-Marshall said people of color should consider the political clout that will come about as a result. “We have to think about it now because other people already have,” Browne-Marshall said during a recent “book rap” at the National Press Club.
Student Debt May Be Contributing to Racial Inequality | The pursuit of higher education may be exacerbating gaps in financial well-being between blacks and whites, rather than narrowing them. Black Americans who recently graduated college owe close to twice as much on their student loans as whites, a racial gap that has climbed nearly 14-fold over the past 15 years.
Borrowing Falls as Prices Keep Climbing | Prices followed a continuing pattern of slowing growth between 2015-16 and 2016-17 while still increasing more quickly than financial aid availability and family incomes, according to two College Board reports released Wednesday, “Trends in College Pricing” and “Trends in Student Aid.” Meanwhile, total education borrowing decreased for the fifth consecutive year as undergraduates relied less on loans to finance their education.
More Than 100 Researchers and Policy Organizations Call on the U.S. Department of Education to Release Better Federal Student Aid Data | Today, the Center for American Progress led a broad coalition of more than 100 leading researchers and policy organizations on a letter calling for the Department of Education to release better data on federal student aid. Every year, the Department of Education hands out approximately $116 billion in federal financial aid, but policymakers, students, and the public are in the dark about the outcomes of this vital investment.
Examining Obama’s Higher Ed Legacy | Over the course of eight years, the Obama Administration has worked to promote affordability, access, cost management and transparency in higher education. But many of those initiatives have created mixed messages and outcomes for families about the value of education, versus the education as a value add to workforce development.
College Board’s Trends in Higher Education (Reports) | Trends in Student Aid and Trends in College Pricing provide the latest data and information on trends over time in student aid, tuition, and other expenses associated with attending college.
Report Underscores Racial, Class Disparities in College Degree Attainment | for high school graduates from the Class of 2009, 45 percent of students from higher income high schools had obtained a college degree within six years of graduation, compared to 24 percent of students from lower income schools—a difference of 21 percentage points… That statistic comes by way of the fourth annual “High School Benchmarks” report from the National Student Clearinghouse…
U.S. States
Governor Hickenlooper visits campus, discusses state budget, higher education | Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper and members of his cabinet hosted a town hall meeting on Friday, Oct. 21, at the Lory Student Center of Colorado State University.
University presidents: Higher education creates path to prosperity | Analysts predict that by 2025, 65 percent of working-age adults in Ohio will need a postsecondary degree to meet the workforce needs of the state’s employers. Unfortunately, at the current rate, only 43 percent of working-age Ohioans will attain the needed degree by 2025, a gap of 1.7 million.
State System classes to resume as 3-day strike ends | Such scenes played out just after 4 p.m. across Pennsylvania’s 14 state-owned universities as the first faculty strike in the history of the State System of Higher Education ended with a tentative agreement on a three-year contract with the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties.
College Affordability Fund takes big hit, impacting students | Along with the five percent cut to the higher education budget passed during the legislative special session, New Mexico lawmakers also took $5 million out of the $6 million in the College Affordability Fund, according to Bill Jordan, government relations officer With New Mexico Voices for Children.
Institutional
Doubts About Data: 2016 Survey of Faculty Attitudes on Technology | Most faculty members say data-driven assessments and accountability efforts aren’t helping them improve the quality of teaching and learning at their colleges and universities, according to the 2016 Inside Higher Ed Survey of Faculty Attitudes on Technology. Instead, instructors and a large share of academic technology administrators say the efforts are mainly designed to satisfy accreditors and politicians — not to increase degree completion rates.
Stakeholders Cite Leadership Instability, Finances as HBCUs’ Greatest Challenges | The comparatively rapid turnover among HBCU presidents compounds fiscal problems, Lezli Baskerville, president and CEO of NAFEO, said at the Town Hall. On average, HBCU presidents stay at their institution for three years. By contrast, presidents at predominantly White institutions stay for an average of seven years, she said, adding that the instability in leadership poses challenges to consistent governance.
Tough Love or Hazing? | The State University of New York at Albany is facing criticism over how students are treated during the summer orientation of its Educational Opportunity Program, which provides admission, discounted tuition, free tutoring and other opportunities for economically and educationally disadvantaged students.
3 Easy Ways to Embrace High-Impact Learning | We know from high-impact-learning experiences such as internships, study abroad, and undergraduate research that students learn when they are challenged to live with, and make sense of, complexity. If focused, immersive engagement, rather than seat time, is important for learning how can we introduce high-impact experiences into our traditional course settings, working within or around the traditional credit hour?
HBCUs are America’s National Treasures | The legacy of historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) is one of significant courage and steadfast determination. HBCUs are among America’s national treasures that must be preserved and protected for future generations.
Jackson State University President Carolyn Meyers Resigns | Over the last five years, JSU’s cash on hand has plummeted from $37 million to $4.2 million as of June 30. Meyers has defended her spending decisions, citing growth and upgrading facilities as the biggest expenditures.