By Audrey Watters. In this week's education news, the US federal government shut down because Congress is full of assholes. Oh sure, there were some MOOC related stories. There always are these days. And some startups raised funding. And some "research" made headlines. But mostly I'm pissed off about the government, as I just moved to DC and damn. More...
MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOCs
The French Ministry of Higher Education says it’s adopting edX’s open source platform to build a “national portal for MOOCs.” It’s 2013 and we’re building portals for courseware and not for space travel. Technology, you disappoint me.
But I guess a couple of universities in France didn’t get the “open source portal” memo. École Normale Supérieure and HEC Paris are joining Coursera.
The Brazilian online education company Veduca has launched what it calls the “world’s first open online MBA.” The online video classes are free, but those wanting a certificate will have to pay a fee and take their exams in-person.
A survey of administrators and professors who’ve taught MOOCs are optimistic about MOOCs. Shocking.
The MOOC Research Initiative has announced the winners of its research grants. Winners will present at “the greatest MOOC conference in the history of MOOCs.” Be there (there being the University of Texas Arlington December 5–6). More...

By Liz Koblyk. Careers Café has recently had a fork-in-the-road theme, so – what the heck – I’m adding another fork and a personal post.
I recently had to ask myself the sorts of questions that I prefer asking clients: about what matters to me, what my definition of success is, how I’ll find meaning in work, and how I’ll shape my working life so that it allows me to make the impacts I want to make in other areas of my life. Nothing like a good health scare to prompt the bigger questions. More...

By Léo Charbonneau. The Canadian Association of Postdoctoral Scholars released this morning the results of a new national survey of postdocs. The survey captured not only demographic information – who are postdocs in Canada? – but also their primary concerns. (The full report is here and we also have a news story on the survey on our website here). More...

By Jennifer Polk. UPDATED The original post included incorrect information. Streuber is an adjunct at Valparaiso’s Graduate School and Continuing Education division, not the College of Adult Scholars. More...

By David Kent. Last week was the culmination of an incredible amount of volunteer labour through the CAPS-ACSP group who produced their 2013 Survey of Canadian Postdoctoral Scholars. Done in collaboration with Mitacs, a not-for-profit group aimed at facilitating the transition from academia to industry, the survey emphasizes the need for urgent action at universities and research institutes in order for Canada to remain competitive on the world stage.
Many articles have been written already about the survey, including great pieces from University Affairs’ Leo Charbonneau and Beryl Lieff Benderly at Science, highlighting administrative ambiguity, poor remuneration and benefits, and low access to career development training. More...