The HEPI Blog aims to make brief, incisive contributions to the higher education policy landscape. It is circulated to our subscribers and published online. We welcome guest submissions, which should follow our Instructions for Blog Authors. Submissions should be sent to our Blog Editor, Josh Freeman, at [email protected].
In order to overcome the shortage of medical practitioners, Rishi Sunak has announced support for moving from standard five or six-year medical degrees to a compressed four-year degree programme. The duration of other health science courses, like nursing, could also be shortened. Many fret over whether this is possible without…
As university libraries prepare for an influx of new students, we spoke to Benjamin Veasey, University Librarian, and Adam Robinson, Content Manager, about the innovative schemes implemented by the University of Derby to ensure a truly excellent experience for the new starters. What are the challenges that first-year undergraduates face…
Changes in the global market mean employers are increasingly aware of the need for staff who can blend their specialist knowledge and skillsets with experts from different fields, so as to achieve broader objectives. More than ever employers value, and expect, graduates who can demonstrate interdisciplinarity from day one, working…
The UK and the European Commission finally reached an agreement for the full participation of UK-based researchers and organisations in Horizon Europe, the most ambitious Research and Innovation funding programme to date. This puts an end to almost three years of restricted access since the start of the programme and…
How to Enable the Employability of University Graduates, edited by Saskia Loer Hansen and Kathy Daniels, presents a compilation of best practices for enabling employability within higher education (HE). In an era characterised by unprecedented trends such as record numbers of under-18s going to university, rapid advancements in artificial intelligence,…
As the world becomes more interconnected, the role of international students in higher education institutions has never been more vital. As well as providing a significant economic boost to the UK economy to the tune of £41.9bn per annual intake, these diverse individuals bring unique perspectives, experiences and ideas to…
This summer we have been commemorating 75 years of the NHS, the first universal health system in the world to be available to all, free at the point of delivery. Most Britons were born in an NHS hospital, and nearly everyone living in the UK has benefited at one time or…
Challenges and concerns for women post-pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis were the focus of an event held in Parliament, organised by Right to Learn, the national campaign which brings together further education, higher education, skills, and lifelong learning to look at new ideas and policies to drive the economy, social…
Right now, with the start of another academic year only a few weeks away, a new cohort of students are preparing to embark on their intellectually most significant academic journey. The award of a PhD as the result of several years as a doctoral student is seen as the pinnacle…
Since HEPI was founded in 2002, it has published around 160 Reports (blue books), 50 Policy Notes and over 30 Debate Papers (red books, but originally yellow Occasional Papers) as well as over 1,500 blog posts. This is not anything like a complete record because some of HEPI’s written output,…