Opinion

South University of Science and Technology of China wanted to buck the system. Did it succeed? asks Hong Bing

A physicist on the ‘shameless exploitation’ of low-pay sessional lecturing that leaves his family officially classed as ‘poor’

Labour’s proposal to cut tuition fees will be funded by removing a perk from the UK’s super-rich, writes the professor of geography

Creative writing, often seen as a heretical branch of English studies, is split into sects. But such schisms are no sin, says Jonathan Taylor

Labour has given birth to its £6K tuition fees baby but doubts still remain about the costs and benefits of the policy

University examinations teach students how to compete but teamwork is the vital life skill, says Kevin Fong

Judith Ackroyd and Jill Robinson explain why they are dramatising material from confidential interviews with university leaders

As Ed Miliband announces Labour’s policy on university tuition fees, the shadow universities minister sets out his party’s plans for higher education

We need an honest conversation about unconscious prejudices and how they can hold back individuals and their work

John Warren and colleagues warn of the serious decline in graduates with sound identification skills

Paul Ashwin unpicks some cherished nostrums, from Hollywood-style star turns at the podium to the much-exaggerated death of the lecture

Les Ebdon explains the thinking behind a new strategic aim for the Office for Fair Access

Universities have a vital role to play in recognising complex sexualities, says Deborah D. Rogers

Discussions and activities on University Mental Health Day

The AQA decision to end a promising trial of the subject does a disservice to students, the discipline and the UK, says Joy Hendry

Deifying young fashion designers does them no favours and slights the many who make their work possible, says Sally Feldman

Nick Hillman’s knowing nod to punk in a Hepi report prompted a flurry of rock’n’roll quips on Twitter

Fear of offending makes a pig’s ear of free speech, says Christopher Bigsby

A summit in Qatar is a chance to determine the meaning of excellence in the Middle East and North Africa, says Cesar Wazen

Academics should be banned from damaging sexual liaisons with students, postgraduates in particular, argues Luke Brunning

The use of recruitment agents is rising, but are universities putting their reputations at risk as competition hots up?

The University of Manchester could not have chosen a worse time to consider closing Middle Eastern language courses, writes Hugh Williamson

Northampton is revolutionising financing by going to the market for the money it needs to ‘future-proof’ itself, says Nick Petford

A project at the University of Warwick is aiming to tackle huge challenges crippling South African schools, writes Laura Jackson

Institutions splashed the cash to stay competitive, resulting in a REF price tag that may be far higher than the official estimate

American football is a contemporary moral equivalent of war, says Alan Ryan

Has the Chinese government’s sophisticated message to its higher education sector come at the cost of clarity? asks Mike Gow

A report on university course changes by the consumer watchdog caused a stir this week

Their lack of protest over reforms means that universities have lost the chance to transform the sector, laments Anthony Kelly

The UK university sector’s digital network is unique in the world. It’s not just cost-efficient for subscribers but priceless, says Martin Hall

Public funding in these subjects would be better spent on teaching, argues David Oldfield

Attempts to shut down debate highlight a worrying trend on UK campuses, writes Yiftah Curiel

Liz Marr on the role social partnerships can play in extending educational opportunities and giving adult learners a ‘second chance’

Is the sector placing too little trust in academics and too much in performance management techniques?

Excellent teaching shouldn’t cost the earth, even in a market where price is used as a proxy for quality, argues Carl Lygo

Foreign flavours enrich the English tongue, says Felipe Fernández-Armesto

Efforts to trumpet the value of social science can misrepresent important controversies and subtleties, says Martyn Hammersley

Academics’ tendency to feel they have not ‘done enough’ needs to be tempered by an appreciation of colleagues’ achievements

A professor giving students one-on-one help to understand their subject raises questions about the nature of university teaching, says Brian Bloch

The standards of research and teaching would be best protected by department-based reviews, argues Roger Brown

David Phoenix explains why his institution is moving away from the model of big multidisciplinary departments

Financing options fail to live up to the promises made by politicians, says Alan Ruby

A Dutch-born scholar and research administrator wonders if the British class system plays a role in views about division of labour

Enrichment of university life by academics’ ancillary activities is threatened as the workforce is pushed towards casualisation

A rift will always separate digital natives from others, Shahidha Bari believes

An academic’s conviction as a paedophile was kept under wraps in the 1990s. Would a cover-up happen today, asks Geoffrey Alderman

Why are today’s students so preoccupied with protecting themselves from potentially ‘harmful’ ideas, asks Tom Slater