By Laura Kay. The Times Higher Education survey results are no surprise: Sheffield is inclusive, welcoming and joyfully cheap.
The response I receive from many uninformed people when I reveal that I went to university in Sheffield ranges from surprise and polite mumbling about steel to a not remotely concealed it's-grim-up-north face, along with a confused "why?"
Well, those who have been a student in Sheffield, or indeed have visited the city for a significant amount of time, will know the answer. Rated number one in this year's Times Higher Education Student Experience survey, the University of Sheffield is quite rightly being recognised for being a fantastic place to study in a poll that isn't exclusively focused on academia. More...

Politicians have sought assurances from Pfizer that it will not cut research and development jobs in the UK on taking over AstraZeneca (Report, 15 May). These assurances have not been forthcoming and are unlikely to be worth much if given. Pfizer is a public company and is reported to be interested in this takeover for economic and tax reasons, primarily. It would be sorrowful if job cuts in the medical and pharmaceutical research and development in the private sector were to occur due to this takeover. However, it is disingenuous of the politicians to use this takeover to champion research and development presence in the pharmaceutical sector in the UK by shouting about jobs at AstraZeneca only. More...

By Jack Gevertz. Skin conditions affect more than your appearance: your social life and confidence can suffer too, says a student blogger. Imagine being woken up in your student accommodation by an intolerable itch and then finding red, scaly skin spanning swathes of your body. That happened to me about mid-way through my first term at university. More...

By Anonymous academic. Academic work offers much more flexibility and freedom than other jobs.
Let's get the caveats out of the way. There are structural problems in the academic workplace, and as other contributors to the Academics Anonymous blog attest, many seem to be getting worse, not better. More...

By David Cox. I A neuroscience graduate harnesses his knowledge to advise fellow students about memorising information. Read more: five secrets to revising that can improve your grades.
If you're a student, you rely on one brain function above all others: memory. These days, we understand more about the structure of memory than we ever have before, so we can find the best techniques for training your brain to hang on to as much information as possible. More...

By Abby Young-Powell and Michael Allen. The number of donors giving to universities and of alumni giving back to higher education institutions has risen in the last year. UK universities received a record number of donations in 2012-13, according to a survey of 136 higher education institutions. More...

By Severin Carrell. Poll finds 46% of non-EU students less likely to pick university in independent Scotland because they want a British degree. Scottish universities could lose more than two-fifths of their non-EU students if the country votes for independence, a survey suggests. Of 200 overseas students surveyed, 46% of non-EU nationals said they would be less likely to choose a university in an independent Scotland because they wanted a British degree. More...