news summary

(1) The Times Higher reports (1) that university staff unions in the UK are threatening large scale industrial action should a 3-year 20% pay increase not be agreed. They argue that a substantial part of the additional funds being brought into the sector in the form of top-up fees (in England at least, but with pay scales on a UK basis) should be allocated to salaries.

(2) In the same issue an article (2) reveals that Oxford and Cambridge are about to build housing for academics in an attempt to deal with the lack of affordable accommodation for those on university salaries.

(3) The Higher Education Academy has a one-day seminar in association with the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, in London on Feb 9th entitled: "From life crisis to lifelong learning. Rethinking working-class 'drop out' from higher education" (3).

(4) Meanwhile, there is a current call (4) for proposals for presentations or workshop sessions at the Academy's annual conference in July. The deadline for submissions is 30th January.

(5) The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA-UK) has revealed (5) that the numbers of students being awarded first class honours degrees in the UK continues to rise with a 5% increase last year from the previous year.


Links/references:

(1) http://www.thes.co.uk/current_edition/story.aspx?story_id=2027169
(2)http://www.thes.co.uk/current_edition/story.aspx?story_id=2027184
(3)http://www.heacademy.ac.uk/events/List_3931.htm
(4) http://www.heacademy.ac.uk/events/conference.htm
(5) http://education.guardian.co.uk/higher/news/story/0,9830,1683194,00.html