By Ben Johnson. Today marks the start of Open Access Week, the global annual event designed to promote Open Access (OA) as ‘a new norm in scholarship and research’. For those that are not aware, OA is simply a new way to talk about a very old idea: that new knowledge should be shared freely, for the benefit of all. The principle that researchers should do this is not new; for centuries researchers have published their work in academic journals and books to give it the greatest chance of being read, and by extension, of making a difference to the world. More...

By Kim Hackett. When I first heard the idea of expanding the Research Excellence Framework (REF) overseas, I was sceptical. I started out at HEFCE in the REF team, becoming quickly embroiled in the mass of administrative effort it involves: convening the panels, developing the guidance, building the systems. More...

By Sarah Howls. The university also provides a pro-bono law clinic to the local community with the dual benefits of providing a highly valued service to local people as well providing invaluable real-life learning opportunities for its students. More...

By Sarah Howls. On Monday this week, the Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission published its second state of the nation report, ‘Social Mobility and Child Poverty in Great Britain’. Chapter 6 was of particular interest to me since it focuses on the role of higher education (HE). Therefore, my comments here are based on Chapter 6 rather than a detailed reading of the full report and on how it relates to HEFCE’s work. More...

By HEFCE Analyst. According to figures from the last two years, 17 per cent of graduates in 2013 intended to pursue a postgraduate qualification, but only half of them actually did so. Here we look at some of the data that might make the Government’s plans to offer greater financial support for postgraduate taught students look a lot like welcome news. More...

By Stephen Butcher. When I walked up to the Kensington Olympia yesterday, just before 9, I was staggered to see queues of people waiting to be let in to the venue. Was I in the wrong place? This is the wrong month for Wimbledon. It was a showcase for higher education and further education with trade stands and guest speakers. I was told by one of the organisers that over four and half thousand people had booked to attend.  How times are changing. More...

By Stephen Butcher. One of our Cost Sharing Group projects is the Benefits Realisation Analysis and Modelling project (BRAM) which is run out of Falmouth Exeter Plus (FXPlus) in Cornwall. FXPlus is the service partner which is jointly owned by the universities of Falmouth and Exeter to manage the combined campus at Penryn. More...

By Alex Herbert. The results are out. They will be pored over by thousands of academics, administrators, journalists, policy makers, critics and friends of the REF. They will be interpreted in many ways and used for purposes beyond the original intentions of the four funding bodies that steer and sponsor the exercise. More...

By Jude Hill. HEFCE is currently project managing an Independent review of the role of metrics in research assessment and management. From the outset, the project’s steering group has been well aware that views on the use of metrics in these contexts are both diverse and heartfelt. More...