A town, a bus route, and access to a degree
The first in a week of analysis on commuter students argues transport policy is educational access policy: where buses do not run at the times teaching happens, the students affected are the ones who could not afford to move. With “close to home” now the fourth biggest factor in choosing a university, this shapes admissions as much as grades do. Commuter students covers making it work.
What applicants expect before they arrive
A new applicant index finds prospective students expect to work paid hours during their degree while remaining ambitious about independence and opportunity. The gap between those two expectations is where most first-year disappointment sits, and it is worth being honest about before September. Budgeting covers the arithmetic.
A mental health movement started from a year abroad
An Edinburgh student has launched a mental health movement while on exchange in Melbourne. Student-founded campaigns of this kind are how most university wellbeing initiatives start, and unions have funds for exactly this — usually unspent. Student mental health covers the services alongside them.