By Gill Wyness and Richard Murphy. Adopting the Australian tuition fee system could result in poorer students staying away from expensive courses. A new report by the Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi) recommends that UK policymakers pay much closer attention to Australia's "advanced" university funding system, which shares many of the features of the UK system, but at considerably lower taxpayer expense. More...

By Anna Bawden and Abby Young-Powell. Report reveals differences in student grants, loans, fees and debts across the UK countries. Free tuition in Scotland benefits the wealthiest – study.
After 15 years of devolution, which part of the UK offers the most generous student grants, the lowest fees and the least student debt? While the difference in the cost of going to university between Scotland (no fees for Scottish students) and England (up to £9,000 a year in fees) is well known, we hear less about what is happening in other parts of the UK. More...

By Paul Dowland. Universities can gain valuable information by tracking students' behaviour online, but they must be careful not to misuse it. Monitoring progress through the analysis of grades has long been the norm, but how useful is it to know which books students have read, how often they come to class and when they contact their tutors? According to the 2014 Horizon report – a study on emerging technologies for teaching and learning – data collected on the online activity of students can be used effectively to identify top resources, improve the student experience and underpin success at university. More...

By Sarah Seed. Bonds allow universities to raise a lot of money over a long period – but they should act quickly, one lawyer argues. With universities struggling to maintain student numbers and find new sources of funding, the latest report from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (Hefce) doesn't make the landscape any cheerier. More...

By Sam Bradley. University students are teaming up to take on the private rental market with a fairer solution to student housing. Are you tired of dealing with landlords? The questionable plumbing skills, the endless ignored requests to have that grim shower curtain replaced, the battle to get your deposit returned?
For students in the UK, riding the rental rollercoaster is considered an unavoidable part of the university experience, and the ups and downs don't come cheap. The National Union of Students (NUS) reports that English students can expect to pay £4,834 a year in rent; in London the average student shells out £6,143. More...