by Becca Bashford | Aug 22, 2020 | A-levels, Admissions, Casual staff, Covid-19, Further education, Government, In the News, Marketisation, News round-up, Ofqual, Opinion, Uncategorized, Unconditional offers, Widening access
After thousands of A-level and BTEC students were downgraded on results day, Gavin Williams and Ofqual – in a highly predictable U-turn – scrapped the algorithm and allowed students to use Centre Assessed Grades (teachers’ predictions) instead,...
by Becca Bashford | Aug 17, 2020 | A-levels, Admissions, Covid-19, Further education, Government, In the News, Ofqual, Uncategorized, Universities UK
Statement from the Council for the Defence of British Universities on A-level results. English universities have been remarkably silent about the fiasco over Ofqual’s determination of A-level grades. Universities UK issued an extraordinarily misjudged...
by Becca Bashford | Jul 10, 2020 | Admissions, Boris Johnson, Casual staff, Covid-19, Employability, Further education, Government, Humanities, In the News, Marketisation, News round-up, Opinion, REF, Scotland, Uncategorized
Ucas recently announced that UK universities had received a record number of applications over the lockdown period, despite growing concerns about the impacts of coronavirus on the higher education sector. Many universities are pushing ahead with devastating cuts, and...
by Becca Bashford | Jun 25, 2020 | Admissions, Casual staff, Covid-19, Government, Guest blog, Humanities, In the News, Marketisation, News round-up, Opinion, Racism, Scotland, Uncategorized
This week, LSE launched their ‘SHAPE’ campaign which strives to promote the humanities and social sciences, students and staff joined forces to condemn the closure of the Philosophy programme at the University of the West of England and devastating cuts to...
by Becca Bashford | May 29, 2020 | Academic freedom, Admissions, Casual staff, CDBU Updates, Covid-19, Further education, Government, In the News, Marketisation, National Union of Students, News round-up, Opinion, Scotland, Uncategorized, University funding, University governance, Wales, Widening access, Workplace stress
This week, universities continued to come to grips with the prospect of shifting online, raising questions about quality and accessibility. CDBU also expressed their support for disabled students who feel left behind amid Covid-19 chaos, and we have issued a call for...
by Becca Bashford | May 15, 2020 | Admissions, Casual staff, Covid-19, Further education, Government, In the News, Marketisation, National Union of Students, News round-up, Scotland, Tuition fees, Uncategorized, University funding, University governance
The government’s rejection of the multi-billion pound bailout needed to save universities has raised serious concerns for the future of higher education. Voluntary severance schemes have been introduced, graduate prospects look bleak, and the shift to online...
