This week on the podcast Keir Starmer has U-turned over student fees and finance - but what should Labour’s policy be if not free education? Plus support for PGRs is in the news, universities are frantically fundraising in a period of fiscal constraint, and disadvantaged students go on to be lower earning graduates - why? With Selena Bolingbroke, Director at Sighthound Consultancy, Ben Ward, Chief Executive at University of Manchester Students’ Union, Michael Salmon, News Editor at Wonkhe and pr...
May 05, 2023•50 min•Season 14Ep. 3
This week on the podcast there’s new data on the financial health of universities - we discuss how higher education is coping with inflation and frozen fees. Plus we discover how much students are getting from universities in financial help, universities are leaving the CBI just as soon as people realised they were members, and there’s a new commitment out on improving accessibility for disabled students. With Anton Muscatelli, Principal and Vice Chancellor of the University of Glasgow, Mary Stu...
Apr 27, 2023•41 min•Season 14Ep. 2
This week on the podcast the Office of the Independent Adjudicator has published its annual report. Should we worry that it’s handled a record number of complaints? Plus the Lords have beeling listening in on an apparent absence of student voice in the Office for Students, and the question of whether quality-related (QR) funding needs a root-and-branch review is in the air. With Anthony Finkelstein, President at City, University of London, Smita Jamdar, Partner at Shakespeare Martineau, James Co...
Apr 20, 2023•48 min•Season 14Ep. 1
In our final show before the Easter break, OfS has published the first Equality of Opportunity Risk Register for English HE. But are there some big risks missing? Plus UCAS says we’ll soon have a million applicants, Wales is working towards better mental health and in response to news from Turnitin, plenty of people seem to want to turn it off. With James Purnell, Vice Chancellor at University of the Arts London, Anne-Marie Canning, CEO at The Brilliant Club, David Kernohan, Deputy Editor at Won...
Mar 31, 2023•46 min•Season 13Ep. 12
This week on the podcast there are new numbers out on the size and shape of higher education providers - is the sector growing international PGT too quickly? Plus the robots are coming for our jobs and souls, and we mark neurodiversity celebration week. With Nicola Dandridge, Professor of Practice in Higher Education Policy at University of Bristol, Joseph Cooper, Director of People and Culture at University of East London, Debbie McVitty, Editor at Wonkhe and presented by Mark Leach, Editor in ...
Mar 23, 2023•37 min•Season 13Ep. 11
This week on the podcast we’re live at our Secret Life of Students event in London where we hear from the Office for Students' Director for Fair Access and Participation John Blake, discuss belonging and community and its relationship to the rest of the student experience, and consider the impact of the cost of living crisis on different groups of students. With Sally Burtonshaw, Associate Director (Education) at Public First, Mike Ratcliffe, Academic Registrar and sector historian, Eve Alcock, ...
Mar 16, 2023•45 min•Season 13Ep. 10
This week on the podcast we’re getting a complete overhaul of student finance in England - but is there enough demand for modules of debt? Plus the government has published its independent review of the research, development and innovation organisational landscape, there’s new polling on the public’s attitude to international students, and we’ve been working out where they’re living. With Marian Hilditch, Academic Registrar at University of Bradford, Mark Bennett, Director Audience and Editorial...
Mar 09, 2023•43 min•Season 13Ep. 9
This week on the podcast 46 per cent of people would only choose to invest more in R&D when the UK economy is in better shape – does the fragility of public support matter? Plus international student visas are up again, and so are dependants, and the Lords have been interrogating universities’ engagement with autocracies. With Martin Jones, Vice Chancellor at Staffordshire University, Jess Lister, Associate Director Education at Public First, Michael Salmon, News Editor at Wonkhe, James Coe,...
Mar 03, 2023•51 min•Season 13Ep. 8
This week on the podcast the Office for Students has new proposals out on harassment and sexual misconduct – but will they work in the way intended? Plus Tony Blair and William Hague have ideas out on science and technology, there’s a new student living strategy in Nottingham and we explain the reclassification of FE colleges into the public sector. With Paul Greatrix, Registrar at the University of Nottingham, Selena Bolingbroke, HE consultant, Debbie McVitty, Editor at Wonkhe, Andrew Bush, Dir...
Feb 23, 2023•46 min•Season 13Ep. 7
This week on the podcast Nicola Sturgeon has resigned as leader of the SNP and Scotland’s First Minister - what kind of higher education legacy does she leave? Plus student engagement with their studies may or may not have bounced back, and there’s a call to extend rather than cut the post-study work visa for international students. With Mary Curnock Cook, Chair of the UPP Foundation’s Student Futures Commission, Jonathan Simons, Partner and Head of the Education Practice at Public First, Sunday...
Feb 17, 2023•36 min•Season 13Ep. 6
This week on the podcast the government has published its review of the Prevent counter-terrorism strategy. Are campuses really a breeding ground for extremism? We also discuss this week’s reshuffle and its implications for HE, a new report on graduate outcomes and earnings, and try to understand what’s going on with the government’s short courses trial. With Vivienne Stern, Chief Executive at Universities UK, Julie Sanders, Principal at Royal Holloway, University of London, David Kernohan, Asso...
Feb 09, 2023•42 min•Season 13Ep. 5
This week on the podcast there's new polling out on the public perception of universities. Does it explain funding woes and what can be done to turn around voters’ views? Plus new HESA data shows a dramatic rise in international students, there’s a new survey out on students and sex, and David Kernohan reads the Lifelong Learning Higher Education Fee Limits bill so you don’t have to. With Helen O’Sullivan, Deputy Vice Chancellor and Provost at the University of Chester, Johnny Rich, CEO at the E...
Feb 03, 2023•39 min•Season 19Ep. 4
This week on the podcast we interrogate UCAS end of cycle data - what is going on with demand for higher education? Plus the Sutton Trust has new research out on the impacts of the cost of living crisis on students, and the Lords are leaping over student loan reform. With Clare Marchant, Chief Executive at UCAS, Amatey Doku, Consultant at Moorhouse Consulting, Sunday Blake, Associate Editor at Wonkhe and presented by Jim Dickinson, Associate Editor at Wonkhe. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/priva...
Jan 26, 2023•45 min•Season 19Ep. 3
This week on the podcast new universities minister Robert Halfon has written to vice chancellors with new priorities, and our guests analyse the content. Plus UCU have announced 18 days of strike action, and sector mission groups are calling for a review of the Office for Students. With Mary Stuart, Director of Leadership Development at Minerva, Andy Westwood, Professor of Government Practice at the University of Manchester, Debbie McVitty, Editor at Wonkhe and presented by Mark Leach, Editor in...
Jan 19, 2023•47 min•Season 19Ep. 2
This week on the podcast we’re in Münster, Germany for the Wonkhe SUs study tour. Jim and guests from the bus trip discuss the HE policy year ahead, drugs on campus, and what we might learn from Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany. Plus DK dives into the UCAS end of cycle data. With India Ellis, President at Lancaster SU, Alexander Robinson, President at the SU Bath University, Gary Hughes, CEO at Durham SU and presented by Jim Dickinson, Associate Editor at Wonkhe. Hosted on Acast. See acast.c...
Jan 13, 2023•28 min•Season 19Ep. 1
This week in a special seasonal episode of the show we travel to Toronto, Canada to meet with sector experts Higher Education Strategy Associates. Alex Usher and his team chat international students, student mental health, predictions for 2023 and the collapse of a university - and how to avoid it happening again both in Canada and in the UK. With Alex Usher, President at Higher Education Strategy Associates, Tiffany McLennon, Research Analyst at HESA, Jonathan McQuarrie, Manager Academic Planni...
Dec 28, 2022•50 min
This week on the podcast student finance is back up for debate and there’s new guidance out on student suicide. Plus we talk research assessment, PGR supervision, and Disabled students - and there’s a bonus Wonkhe Christmas song at the end too. With Pete Quinn, inclusion consultant, Michelle Morgan, Dean of Students at the University of East London, David Kernohan, Acting Editor at Wonkhe and presented by Jim Dickinson, Associate Editor at Wonkhe. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more ...
Dec 15, 2022•53 min•Season 18Ep. 15
This week on the podcast the Free Speech Bill has cleared report stage in the Lords and NDAs have been banned in the process - we discuss what happens next. Plus Gordon Brown’s review of devolution has implications for HE, and we wonder whether Chat-GPT will kill the essay as an assessment tactic. With Nicola Dandridge, Professor of Practice in Higher Education Policy at University of Bristol, Jonathan Grant, Director at Different Angles, Sunday Blake, Associate Editor at Wonkhe and presented by...
Dec 08, 2022•44 min•Season 18Ep. 14
This week on the podcast we consider the fall out from last week’s immigration figures. Is a crackdown on international students really on its way from government? Plus we chat China amid growing concerns about the superpoower’s relationship with HE, this year’s PTES suggests rapid expansion might need more careful management, and HESA is helping us understand brain drain. With Lucy Van Essen-Fishman, Lead Policy and Research Analyst in Data and Innovation at HESA, Jonathan Simons, Partner and H...
Dec 01, 2022•59 min•Season 18Ep. 13
This week on the podcast the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has new stats on students and cost of living. Will more support for students ever come? Plus Rishi Sunak declares the UK an innovation nation, strikes have begun across the sector, and Hidden History looks back at the end of the binary divide between universities and polytechnics in 1992. With Richard Brabner, Director at the UPP Foundation, Smita Jamdar, Partner and Head of Education at Shakespeare Martineau, Sunday Blake, Associ...
Nov 24, 2022•45 min•Season 18Ep. 12
This week on the podcast the Quality Assurance Agency has “gone woke” – or has it? New minister Robert Halfon has set out his priorities in the role. Plus there’s a Plan B for research, some new equality data and DK reviews the Chancellor’s autumn statement. With Osama Khan, Pro-Vice-Chancellor Academic at University of Surrey, Jenny Shaw, Higher Education External Engagement Director at Unite Students, James Coe, Associate Editor at Wonkhe, David Kernohan, Acting Editor at Wonkhe and presented ...
Nov 18, 2022•48 min•Season 18Ep. 11
This week on the podcast there’s a new report out on regulation - are small and specialist providers at a disadvantage? Plus new figures show that a quarter of providers had no governors from a minority ethnic group, we’ve been debating the Dearing review 25 years on, and there’s a new review of OfS’ statement of expectations on harassment and sexual misconduct. With Debbie Holley, Professor Of Learning Innovation at Bournemouth University, Ursula Kelly, Director at Viewforth Consulting, David K...
Nov 10, 2022•47 min•Season 18Ep. 10
This week on the podcast the free speech bill reaches committee stage in the Lords, and the NUS President has been terminated. What are the implications for culture on campus? Plus there’s a new report out on estranged students, and we discuss the final question set for the new National Student Survey. With Jess Lister, Senior Policy Manager at Public First, Sunday Blake, Associate Editor at Wonkhe, Mike Ratcliffe, Academic Registrar and sector historian and presented by Jim Dickinson, Associate...
Nov 03, 2022•47 min•Season 18Ep. 9
This week on the podcast Rishi Sunak has been reshuffling his team of ministers - what could the impacts be for higher education? Plus we have the results of UCU's ballot on industrial action, applications appear to be in decline and students seem to have been forgotten about in the cost of living crisis - again. With Carole-Anne Upton, Deputy Vice Chancellor at Middlesex University, David Kernohan, Acting Editor at Wonkhe, Jim Dickinson, Associate Editor at Wonkhe, Mike Ratcliffe, Academic Regi...
Oct 27, 2022•48 min•Season 18Ep. 8
This week on the podcast Suella Braverman is gone - but has the threat of a crackdown on international students gone with her? We’ve launched new research on belonging and we look at the implications for universities. Plus there’s a new review out on blended learning and hidden history looks at the origins of UCL. With Heidi Fraser-Krauss, CEO at Jisc, Ian Dunn, Provost at Coventry University, Sunday Blake, Associate Editor at Wonkhe and presented by Jim Dickinson, Associate Editor at Wonkhe. Ho...
Oct 20, 2022•48 min•Season 18Ep. 7
This week on the podcast OfS is to survey the scale and nature of sexual misconduct affecting students - we discuss why and what next. Plus the UK has accidentally hit the 2.4 per cent of GDP target for research and development spending, and we consider the culture of debate on campus through two new reports. With Shân Wareing, Deputy Vice Chancellor at University of Northampton, Nick Hillman, Director at the Higher Education Policy Institute, James Coe, Associate Editor at Wonkhe, Mike Ratclkif...
Oct 13, 2022•50 min•Season 18Ep. 6
This week on the podcast the team has been at Conservative party conference - is a crackdown coming on international students? Meanwhile OfS has published data on student experience and outcomes, and there’s interesting new guidance out on students undertaking a placement. With Andy Youell, Executive Director Regulation at UCEM, Selena Bolingbroke, Director at Sighthound Consultancy, David Kernohan, Associate Editor at Wonkhe, Mark Leach, Editor in Chief at Wonkhe and presented by Jim Dickinson,...
Oct 07, 2022•46 min•Season 18Ep. 5
This week on the show we’ve been to Labour Party Conference. Was anything of interest for higher education announced? Plus the Office for Students has been revising its approach to access and participation, there’s new research out on perceptions of free speech among both students and the wider public, and UCU has a report out on staff and social class. With Claire Taylor, Deputy Vice Chancellor at Wrexham Glyndŵr University, Andrew Bush, Director of Higher Education Internal Audit and Advisory ...
Sep 29, 2022•39 min•Season 18Ep. 4
This week on the podcast we're at the end of the 2022 applications season - has there really been a crunch on university places? We also consider if the sector and its students have the energy for the year ahead, and there's a new pamphlet out on academic freedom calling for better education on the concept. With Smita Jamdar, Partner at Shakespeare Martineau, Gavan Conlon, Partner at London Economics, Sunday Blake, Associate Editor at Wonkhe and presented by Jim Dickinson, Associate Editor at Wo...
Sep 22, 2022•49 min•Season 18Ep. 3
This week in a special edition of the podcast, academic registrar and sector historian Mike Ratcliffe reflects on the history of the relationship between the royal family and higher education, as well as the fight between Oxford and Cambridge over who is the oldest university and the origins of a student-centred approach to governance. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Sep 15, 2022•18 min•Season 18Ep. 2
