GreenPad is a project at Staffordshire University to create environmentally sustainable housing stock within the private rental sector, for students to rent through the students' union letting service.
It is one of 25 projects taking place across the country at various student unions. GreenPad is funded by the Students' Green Fund, a joint initiative by the National Union of Students and HEFCE. GreenPad houses will be of high quality and energy-efficient, helping students to reduce their bills as well as their impact on the environment. More...

1. This circular letter notifies institutions of the start of the HESA funding and monitoring data 2012-13 funding data reconciliation exercise. This exercise compares the data returned to the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) with Higher Education Students Early Statistics (HESES) data submitted to HEFCE. A response may be required.
2. A formal response to this exercise is required only from institutions that are selected due to meeting any of the selection criteria in Annex A. More...

The four UK higher education funding bodies and Research Councils UK (RCUK) have written to the heads of all UK higher education institutions inviting input into the science and innovation strategy. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) will be gathering a wide range of contributions on the development of a new strategy in May and June. The new strategy is due to be announced in autumn 2014. The funding bodies and RCUK are working in partnership to gather evidence from the higher education sector to inform their contributions to the strategy. More...

1. This letter clarifies our requirement for the submission of financial forecasts and commentary as part of our annual accountability returns requirements. A response is required from all higher education institutions by Thursday 31 July 2014. We will send detailed guidance on how to make the submission of annual accountability information directly to heads of finance by the end of May and how to access the financial forecast tables.
2. Institutions are asked to submit full financial forecasts for the three academic years from 2014-15 to 2016-17, and to update the 2013-14 forecasts submitted in December. These should take into consideration our recent grant announcements and any other information that the institution considers pertinent. More...

De la possibilité de monter son propre MOOC aux enseignements permettant de se former au numérique, en passant par les roches et minéraux courants, six nouveaux MOOC viennent de faire leur entrée sur la plateforme France Université Numérique. Le point sur ces cours en ligne massifs, gratuits et parfois originaux.
France Université Numérique continue de grandir à bon rythme. La plateforme vient ainsi de s'enrichir de six nouveaux cours en ligne massifs et gratuits, destinés à tous ceux qui souhaitent apprendre et se former dans des disciplines diverses et variées. Suite...

By Phil Izzo. As college graduates in the Class of 2014 prepare to shift their tassels and accept their diplomas, they leave school with one discouraging distinction: They’re the most indebted class ever.
The average Class of 2014 graduate with student-loan debt has to pay back some $33,000, according to an analysis of government data by Mark Kantrowitz, publisher at student-marketing company Edvisors. Even after adjusting for inflation that’s nearly double the amount borrowers had to pay back 20 years ago. More...

By Matt Terry. With some innovative thinking and some helpful student feedback, Hannah Holmes is doing away with the traditional essay in her classroom.
The assistant professor of economics spoke about ditching the dreaded “paper” at the Learning Technologies Symposium Monday.
The essay is one of the most common evaluation tools in education, but it could also be one of the most flawed. See more...

By Viktor Gronne and Dalia Miklaseviciute. With the European elections fast approaching it is time to consider the policy changes we want from the next five years. Although the new Erasmus+ is barely starting life, the elections mean that it is time to look into the next negotiations about Erasmus, starting in 2017. More...

Von Julia Frese. Vertreter der Deutschen Forschungsgemeinschaft, der Hochschulrektorenkonferenz und des Wissenschaftsrates sind sich einig: Die Zukunft des deutschen Wissenschaftssystems sieht düster aus, wenn die Politik nicht bald handelt. Die Betroffenen plädieren dafür, dass die Regierung das Kooperationsverbot zwischen Bund und Ländern im Bereich Bildung endlich kippt.
Die Zahl der Studierenden in Deutschland steigt, doch die Ausstattung und Betreuung an den Universitäten wird kontinuierlich schlechter. Junge Wissenschaftler müssen sich jahrelang mit befristeten Verträgen und geringen Löhnen abspeisen lassen. More...

By John Ross. INTERNATIONAL students’ fees are the yardstick of what domestic students could face when tuition fees are deregulated, says University of Wollongong boss Paul Wellings.
The Australian government has made international fees a “surrogate price guide”, Professor Wellings said, because legislation prevents universities from charging domestic students more than they extract from overseas enrollees.
His comments follow HECS architect Bruce Chapman’s prediction that elite universities will quickly raise their fees to the levels collected from international students. More...