By  Nicholas Watt. Britain’s universities are to tackle the danger of “unconscious bias” against students from black and minority ethnic backgrounds by removing candidates’ names from their application forms, David Cameron is to announce. More...

By Harriet Thorpe. Once it had connotations of classroom cutting and sticking or haberdashery departments, but today the word “craft” represents a movement of makers investing time in mastering skills, experimenting with design and labouring over one handmade object at a time. More...

Harriet Swain (‘This change will be the end of the Open University as we know it’, 20 October) is correct in pointing to digital learning as an opportunity for the OU, but missed an important point around the proposed closure of seven regional centres in England. More...

By Tom Kariuki. There are just 79 scientists per million Africans, compared to 4,500 per million people in the United States. More...

By Claire Burke. From stress to depression, students at the University of Leicester come to Sarah Hume-Chignell with a range of mental health issues. She describes the highs and lows of the job. More...

By Nick Hillman. Fury over changes to tuition fee threshold is detracting from bigger issues such as abolition of maintenance grant. More...

By Rachel Shabi. Most Syrian refugees fight for sanctuary at Europe’s borders – but Reem Doukmak found it on Google. So is the story of the PhD student who swapped Homs for Warwick an example of elitism, or a model that could help build a better future. More...

By Academics Anonymous. Since the Open University (OU) was launched in 1969, almost two million students have passed through its doors, working to achieve their dream of getting a degree. Many come to us with little education beyond GCSE and we have prided ourselves on helping them to change their lives through our tried--and-tested system of distance education delivered locally. That system is now under serious threat. More...

By Natalie Day. A new book, which charts the remarkable transformation of Arizona State University, offers lessons for university leaders in the UK. More...

By Helen Lock. The SNP is calling for new regulation in university leadership – we hear the pros and cons of the controversial plans. More...