WE REGULARLY PUBLISH IN-DEPTH REPORTS AND ARTICLES ON TOPICS OF INTEREST TO HIGHER EDUCATION

(Published in Campus Morning Mail on August 13)
Changes to university acceptance processes, rapid vaccination and student demand means the UK Higher Education sector is surging ahead in the Covid-19 recovery

Given the release of the recent IPCC report, are HEIs doing enough? We looked at some recent research which found universities are in their infancy for carbon footprinting. 

The Quality in Learning and Teaching indicators (QILT) are published annually, following a national survey where students rate their experience in higher education.  We were expecting to see a drop in student experience for 2020, no doubt about it. Since 2012 the largest variation in overall student experience has been 2%, last year there was a 9% drop.   However, some areas saw much sharper declines. We’ve highlighted a couple of interesting points.
 

As campuses re-open, outbreaks are inevitable. Young people have some of the highest transmission rates of Covid, this coupled with shared living conditions means it is impossible for outbreaks not to occur. There has been much criticism that the risks are known, but universities will not survive without the income so campuses are re-opening and dealing with outbreaks as they occur.

How long it will be, if ever, until higher education returns to some semblance of normality is unclear. What is important though, is that universities continue to deliver not just education, but the social and bonding experience that comes with higher education. In this report we look at the challenges of creating a sense of belonging pre-Covid, and what factors should be the focus going forward to assist in the recovery effort and build a resilient student experience. 

Whilst students do want life to return to normal and be back on campus, are their expectations based on a university life that we may never see again?

Institutional mergers come in various shapes and sizes, but successful examples are never ‘quick fix’ options. In this report we examine examples of international HEI mergers. We discuss the drivers and success factors in a merger process. 

In a few short weeks, the Covid-19 pandemic has rocked the global higher education system.  The world is facing a huge downturn in economic activity and restrictions on international movement that will have significant ramifications on the sector. In this report we review the impact of past shocks on HEIs, their responses, long term impacts and the roads to recovery.