By Jack Grove. Six Russell Group universities are among the 20 higher education institutions who will take part in a pilot of US-style degree classifications.
The universities of Birmingham, Edinburgh, Leeds, Nottingham, Sheffield and Southampton are among those who will test a grade point average system in a project run by the Higher Education Academy.
The “national GPA system” will provide an average from grades achieved throughout a student’s course, as distinct from the traditional honours degree classifications, such as a First, a 2.1 or a 2.2. More...
Businesses turn to local universities for customized degree programs
By Mark Sanchez. Customization is entering a new arena in higher education. After designing an MBA degree specifically to help Spectrum Health develop a new generation of executives, Grand Valley State University wants to see where else it can take the concept of customized academic programs. The Seidman College of Business hopes to use the new partnership with Spectrum Health for a health care executive MBA to forge similar ventures with other large employers or a consortium of employers in the region — if it can achieve the scale needed to justify the costs involved. Future offerings could come in the form of customized degree programs or professional certification courses tailored to a specific employer’s needs. More...