Universities must take the lead in widening access in an age of populism

By Brendan O’Malley – Managing Editor. In Commentary, Graeme Atherton says university leaders who ignore the imperative to widen access to higher education do so at their peril in the face of the populist challenge which is changing the global political landscape, as universities may be perceived as part of the elite and a cause of inequality if access remains limited. Ararat Osipian commends the State of New York for being at the forefront of fighting alleged university fraud in its many manifestations, from the recent diploma mills case to the Trump University settlement. While online learning programmes are still new in Africa, Deirdre Carabine of the Virtual University of Uganda is convinced that it is only a matter of time before their true higher education value is recognised. And Marcelo Knobel and Andrés Bernasconi question why universities in Latin America appear to be lagging behind those in other parts of the world and what can be done to bring them up to speed.
In World Blog, Philip G Altbach and Maria Yudkevich affirm that international faculty are an increasingly important part of the global academic environment, and consider some of the trade-offs for universities in attracting foreign academics.
In Features, Munyaradzi Makoni reports on a new partnership between an Ethiopian and a Canadian university to advance inclusive higher education for young people with disabilities in Ethiopia and Africa; Suvendrini Kakuchi reveals the secrets to success of Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University in Japan in luring high-quality international students, who constitute half of the student body; and Sharon Dell reports that South African higher education authorities are hoping for greater stability in the sector in 2017 as a result of progress made in addressing some of the key challenges that sparked last year’s violent protests.
On Wednesday 8 February University World News, in partnership with The MasterCard Foundation and DrEducation, will be hosting a free international webinar, entitled “Are universities crucibles of transformative leadership?” You are invited to register.
Lastly, University World News and International Higher Education are pleased to announce that they have formed a partnership and will be collaborating on future projects, including two forthcoming books on global higher education. Read more...