“Not really capable of graduating”
Adam Tickell, vice-chancellor of the University of Birmingham, has called for a review of student loans for entrants without A-levels, saying money is being lent to people who are not really capable of graduating. It is a striking intervention from a Russell Group leader, and it cuts against a decade of access policy built on the principle that qualifications other than A-levels — BTECs, access courses, foundation years — are legitimate routes in.
Where rent is highest, and where rooms are hardest to find
Two rankings this week: the twenty university cities where student rent is most expensive, and the cities where finding any room at all is hardest, with Leeds now among the worst. They are different problems — price and supply — and a city can have both. If you are choosing next year’s house under the new 1 March rule, the supply list matters more than the price list. Finding student housing covers searching late.
Stop treating international students as transit passengers
An argument that the UK’s model — recruit, teach, send home — no longer fits a world where students weigh post-study work, cost and stability before applying. It is written for the sector, and the student-facing version is simpler: the countries offering a route to work after graduation are the ones gaining applicants.