An admissions dean seeks to take the worry out of applying for college when traditional things like grades, standardized tests and extracurricular activities have been disrupted by COVID-19.
Life for graduate students can be hard work and often isolating, and COVID-19 piled on the pressures. That’s when having an academic leader and program dedicated to supporting them proved its worth.
Academics should speak out against a ranking process that positions all universities across the world as striving to be identical and competing for the greatest share of the market.
Higher education is facing painful disruptions and challenges from online providers, but the emerging need to monitor and continually update knowledge also offers opportunities.
Online learning can create problems for students, particularly those with disabilities, unless platforms and content are designed with accessibility and inclusion in mind.
Universities hold valuable information but are large and porous communities, with legacy IT systems often adding to the risks. But following a few basic rules can help counter cyber attacks.
Decades of legislative change made the councils that govern universities more like corporate boards and less accountable to academic communities. The problems this created are coming home to roost.
Taxpayers, including those paying tuition fees with FEE-HELP loans, can claim a deduction for self-education expenses that relate to the work they do. But graduates with a HECS-HELP debt can’t claim.
Students in Australia and overseas are actively comparing their experiences during the pandemic. Countries that support them well will gain an edge in a competitive global education market.
The early and mid-career researchers who bear most of the teaching and research workload are exhausted and underpaid. Many won’t survive the funding squeeze, but Australia can’t afford to lose them.
Many people feel some form of anxiety when speaking in front of others. That includes taking part in video hook-ups for work or study thanks to coronavirus restrictions.
The campaign for ‘free speech on campus’ mimics US and UK tactics of using a manufactured crisis to further the goal of increasing conservative political influence in universities.
Australian universities face a huge revenue hit from falling international student numbers due to COVID-19 and tensions with China. Some institutions should consider merging rather than downsizing.
Holding classes inside college classrooms puts students and faculty members at risk. A handful of colleges and universities are finding innovative ways to hold classes outdoors.
Students who fail units are highly likely to fail again without targeted assistance. But when universities intervene early to support these students, their rate of failure has been nearly halved.
Director of Centre for Postgraduate Studies, Rhodes University & Visiting Research Professor in Center for International Higher Education, Boston College, Rhodes University