By Matthew Tabor. We think of the cost of higher education as a series of massive bills — typically twice a year — for a semester’s worth of classes. But could that model be replaced by pay-as-you-go pricing that fits personal budgets better than going into massive debt and finding a way to haul yourself out of it?
New Charter University is experimenting with a subscription plan that mimics what is already familiar to consumers — it’s not unlike a cellphone plan. For $199, a student has access to a month of New Charter’s offerings.
They’re not the only ones changing pricing models. StraighterLine, another ed provider, sells access for $99 per month and an additional $49 per class. Read more...

By Matthew Tabor. In the United States, medical school is a major commitment. After 13 years in K-12 education, a doctor-to-be must first complete a 4-year Bachelor’s degree. Then, once admitted to medical school, it takes another four years — for a total of 21 years of formal education, the last 8 of which can be, depending on the institution, incredibly expensive.
Is it possible to make the path to becoming a doctor both shorter and less expensive?
New York University and other institutions with medical school programs think it’s possible to reduce the last stage of medical education from four years to three, resulting in jumping into practice sooner without compromising training, but also saving up to $50,000. NYU’s plan is to streamline curriculum and clinical training, as well as taking advantage of summer months that currently are used suboptimally. As Anemona Hartocollis writes in the New York Times, NYU is confident, but schools are easing into 3-year programs slowly. Read more...

By Tim Ross. Controversial admissions rules intended to force leading universities to take more students from state schools are to be reviewed after protests.
Under rules introduced last year, universities wanting to charge higher tuition fees of up to £9,000 a year are expected to recruit more low-income students, with their attendance at state school being one of the major criteria.
Nick Clegg, the Deputy Prime Minister, suggested that tutors should be willing to offer places to students from state schools on the basis of lower
A-level grades than they would require from privately educated candidates. The reforms provoked protests from elite universities and leading independent schools. Head teachers accused the Government of pursuing a “Communist-style” agenda of social engineering, while about half of Britain’s leading universities boycotted the state school target this year.
Critics said it was not possible to make a “crude” judgment that the poorest pupils always attended state schools while the richest were privately educated. Read more...

The introduction of tuition fees is not enough to restore the standard of university teaching – we need to encourage academics to take it seriously, argues Gervas Huxley.
Last year’s furious student protests reminded us that few political debates are as divisive as the battle over tuition fees.
But if the warring parties can agree on anything – optimistic as that sounds – it’s surely that tuition fees should at least benefit the students who pay them. In other words, funding provided by undergraduates should mean better-quality teaching.
Unfortunately, that simply hasn't happened. Why? Because the lack of resources which tuition fees were designed to solve was only ever one part of the problem. So long as higher education does not provide incentives for academics to prioritise teaching, standards will continue to suffer.
Tuition fees were introduced in 1998 in response to a fall in revenue per student from around 1980, itself driven by the desire of successive governments to increase participation in higher education without bothering to actually pay for it. Read more...

The internationalisation of Higher Education - UK competitiveness, student mobility and the development of overseas campuses. Thursday, 21st March 2013 Central London.
Guests of Honour: Maddalaine Ansell, Head of International Knowledge & Innovation Unit, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and Professor Colin Riordan, Chair, UK Higher Education International Unit (UKHEIU) and Vice-Chancellor, Cardiff University.
This seminar will bring together key policymakers with senior stakeholders from across the HE sector to discuss the emerging challenges and opportunities presented by the increasing internationalisation of Higher Education, as well as the next steps for government policy in this area.
Central to discussion will be the competitiveness and attractiveness of UK universities in the globalised higher education market, particularly given recent non-EU student visa reform and growing competition for domestic students from European and American universities. Sessions will also cover the next steps for building UK students' involvement in the Erasmus programme and student exchange in general, as well as the increasing trend for UK universities to open campuses overseas.
We are delighted that Maddalaine Ansell, Head of International Knowledge & Innovation Unit, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills; Professor Andrew Coats, Joint Academic Vice-President and Director of Strategy, Monash Warwick Alliance; Dr William Lawton, Director, The Observatory on Borderless Higher Education and Professor Colin Riordan, Chair, UK Higher Education International Unit (UKHEIU) and Vice-Chancellor, Cardiff University have agreed to deliver keynote addresses at this seminar.
At this early stage, Professor Christine Ennew, Provost, University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus (UNMC), Pro Vice Chancellor for Internationalisation and Professor of Marketing, University of Nottingham; Sam Harris, Projects and Training Manager, International Society; Professor Alexandra Hughes, Pro-Vice-Chancellor External, University of Kent; Dr Fiona Hunter, International Director, Università Carlo Cattaneo, Italy; John Shaw, Pro Vice-Chancellor International, University of East London; Glynne Stanfield, Partner, Education Group, Eversheds; Daniel Stevens, International Students' Officer, NUS; Simon Sweeney, Director of Postgraduate Programmes and International Political Economy and Business Lecturer, The York Management School, University of York and UK Bologna Process Expert, British Council; Karina Ufert, Chairperson, European Students' Union (ESU) and Geoff Webster, Business Development Director, INTO University Partnerships have also agreed to speak, together with speakers confirmed from KPMG and the QAA.
Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve, Professor Emeritus, University of Cambridge has kindly agreed to chair part of this seminar.

Par La Page de l'Emploi. De nombreux actifs français aspirent à vivre en province. Dans une région qui jouit d’un climat plus que favorable et d’une situation géographique particulièrement attrayante, les cadres et agents de maîtrise se bousculent avec l’espoir d’une vie nouvelle. La qualité de vie, qui constitue le premier argument évoqué par les candidats à la mobilité ou résidents de la région PACA, est néanmoins souvent idéalisée par ceux qui ne sont pas originaires de la région. Suite de l'article...

Par Estelle Raoul. Changer de carrière c’est possible mais une vraie réflexion s’impose avant de franchir le cap! Sans compter qu’une reconversion professionnelle demande à la fois beaucoup d’énergie et de confiance en soi. Il faut avant tout se poser les bonnes questions. Pourquoi voulez-vous changer de carrière? Pour vous orienter vers quoi exactement? Voulez-vous simplement changer d’entreprise ou réellement de métier? Les deux?
La volonté de changer peut répondre à différents besoins: celui de quitter à tout prix son travail ou son entreprise ou, au contraire, celui de se diriger vers un tout autre métier ou une autre entreprise. Dans le premier cas, il est important de savoir ce qui suscite le besoin de changement, ce qui vous pousse à partir. Quels sont ces éléments qui vous font fuir, ces tâches que vous ne voulez plus effectuer? A partir de cette réflexion, vous pourrez réfléchir à votre orientation. Dans le second cas, vous savez ce que vous voulez faire et c’est cela qui vous pousse au changement; reste alors à savoir comment faire pour y parvenir...
Où se renseigner pour faire ses choix en connaissance de cause? Rendez-vous par exemple à La Cité des Métiers de Paris. Il est possible d’y rencontrer des conseillers spécialisés dans l’insertion et l’orientation professionnelle sans rendez-vous et de manière anonyme même le samedi matin. Les sites Le réseau des Cités des Métiers, Les métiers.net (200 vidéos de métiers pour mieux vous familiariser avec celui que vous voulez pratiquer) ou encore Net Guidance sont d’excellentes adresses d’aide à l’orientation. Sur ce dernier site, vous trouverez tous les métiers par secteur: les vingt-trois métiers de l’auto, par exemple, ou les soixante-dix-sept métiers du multimédia, avec une fiche métier pour chacun d’eux et toutes les informations formation dont vous pourriez avoir besoin. Suite de l'article...

Par Benoît Floc'h. Faut-il y voir un effet de la crise? Alors que les universités des pays européens secoués par la tempête économique subissent de sévères coupes budgétaires, les étudiants espagnols et italiens arrivent en masse dans les établissements d'enseignement supérieur français. Selon les chiffres donnés par Campus France, l'organisme public chargé de promouvoir l'enseignement supérieur français à l'étranger, en citant des statistiques publiques, le nombre d'Espagnols suivant leurs études en France a progressé de 17% depuis le début de la crise, en 2009 (ils étaient 5 740 en 2011-2012 contre 4 904 en 2009-2010). Quant aux Italiens, la progression est de 13% (à 7 954). Suite de l'article...

Dé Máirt, 11 Nollaig sa Bhruiséil, thíolaic an Tánaiste agus Aire Gnóthaí Eachtracha agus Trádála, Eamon Gilmore agus an tAIre Stáit do Ghnóthaí Eorpacha Lucinda Creighton, clár oibre an 'Tréréid' d'Uachtaránachtaí AE sna 18 mí atá romhainn.
Ní mór dúinn díriú sna 18 mí atá romhainn ar chobhsaíocht eacnamaíoch a thabhairt ar ais ar fud na hEorpa
Ag labhairt dó ag an gcur i láthair d'Airí an AE ag Comhairle Gnóthaí Ginearálta an lae inniu, dúirt an Tánaiste nach mór dúinn díriú sna 18 mí atá romhainn ar chobhsaíocht eacnamaíoch a thabhairt ar ais ar fud na hEorpa agus bonn láidir a thógáil d'fhás eacnamaíoch buan agus poist inbhuanaithe.
Leagfaimidne in Uachtaránacht na hÉireann, tosaíocht ar na réimsí atá in ann torthaí inbhraite do dhaoine ar fud na hEorpa a chur ar fáil, amhail an Clár Oibre Digiteach a fhorbairt, leas a bhaint as  acmhainneacht bhreise an Mhargadh Aonair an AE, an dúshraith a chur síos do Chomhaontú TrádálaAE-SAM, agus an tAontas Baincéireachta a chur i bhfeidhm.
Dúirt an tAire Stáit do Ghnóthaí Eorpacha, Lucinda Creighton TD
Sna 18 mí atá romhainn beimid ag obair go dlúth lenár gcomhghleacaithe ón Liotuáin agus ón nGréig lena chinntiú go mbeimidne, mar Uachtaránachtaí, in ann torthaí fíora buana a tháirgeadh dár saoránaigh. Beimid ag tógáil ar an obair iontach a rinne Tríréad roimhe sin – an Pholainn, an Danmhairg agus an Chipir.
Cuidíonn Tríréad na hUachtaránachta le leanúnachas níos fearr a chinntiú idir uachtaránachtaí 6-mhí Chomhairle an AE. Eagraítear na hUachtaránachtaí ina ngrúpaí de thrí cinn agus beartaíonn siad  obair na Comhairle do thréimhse 18 mí. Is í Éire an chéad Uachtaránacht sa Tríréad, fairis an Liotuáin (dara leath 2013) agus an Ghréig (an chéad leath 2014).
I gClár an Tríréid a cuireadh i láthair sa Bhruiséil inniu, féachtar ar na dúshláin is mó atá roimh an AE agus leagtar amach na tosaíochtaí agus clár oibre don Chomhairle i rith na tréimhse 2013 go dtí an chéad leath 2014.
Tá an Clár ar fáil anseo.
Do ghrianghraif agus do phíosa scannáin theilifíse faoi tíolacadh, féach anseo.
Leagann an Taoiseach agus an Tánaiste béim ar fhócas na Uachtaránacht na hÉireann ar chobhsaíocht, poist agus fás. An Taoiseach agus an Tánaiste, chomh maith le comhghleacaithe is airí, atá ag reáchtáil Chomhdháil na nUachtarán ar Pharlaimint na hEorpa i gCaisleán Bhaile Átha Cliath inniu. Is í seo an chéad ócáid fhoirmiúil uachtaránachta atá ar siúl in Éirinn.
On Tuesday 11 December in Brussels, Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Eamon Gilmore and Minister of State for European Affairs Lucinda Creighton, presented the work programme of the ‘Trio’ of EU Presidencies for the next 18 months.
We must focus in the next 18 months on further restoring economic stability across Europe
Speaking at the presentation to EU Ministers at today’s General Affairs Council, the Tánaiste said
We must focus in the next 18 months on further restoring economic stability across Europe and building strong foundations for lasting economic growth and sustainable jobs.
We in the Irish Presidency, for our part, will prioritise those areas that can deliver tangible results for people across Europe, such as developing the Digital Agenda, tapping into the further potential of the EU Single Market, laying the groundwork for an EU-US Trade Agreement, and putting in place the Banking Union.
The Minister of State for European Affairs, Lucinda Creighton TD, said
Over the next 18 months we will work closely with our colleagues from Lithuania and Greece to make sure that we, as Presidencies, can deliver real and lasting results for our citizens. We will be building on the excellent work of the previous Trio of Poland, Denmark and Cyprus.
The Presidency Trio helps ensure greater continuity between the six month rotating Presidencies of the Council of the EU. Presidencies are organised into groups of three and plan the work of the Council over an 18-month period. Ireland is the first Presidency in the Trio with Lithuania (second half 2013) and Greece (first half 2014).
The Trio Programme presented in Brussels today looks at the main challenges facing the EU and maps out the priorities and agenda for the Council during the period 2013 until first half 2014.
The Programme can be found here.
For photos and TV footage of the presentation see here.