By Sjur Bergan and Stig Arne Skjerven. A package of measures to accommodate refugees with the ability to study that was launched by the German government in late 2015 and that supports 10,000 students a year is to be continued. The measures are being implemented by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). More...

By Michael Gardner. A package of measures to accommodate refugees with the ability to study that was launched by the German government in late 2015 and that supports 10,000 students a year is to be continued. The measures are being implemented by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). More...

By Brendan O’Malley – Managing Editor. In Commentary this week, Sjur Bergan and Stig Arne Skjerven say the European Qualifications Passport for Refugees project is being expanded to involve more countries and partners and could be of use across the world in future. Ayenachew A Woldegiyorgis explains why it is imperative for Ethiopia to reconsider its higher education priorities and develop at least one research university. And Simon Marginson recommends a better approach than the current higher education policy in England which sees students paying too much and the public too little, resulting in higher education being viewed as an elitist private good.
   Also in Commentary, Huey-Jen Jenny Su argues against reducing international talent mobility to prevent brain drain and suggests governments rather focus on creating an attractive research environment. And Serhiy Kvit says university autonomy in Ukraine is central to a new Roadmap to Higher Education Reform developed in response to an OECD report on the state of Ukraine’s education system.
   In an Obituary, Martin Rees from the University of Cambridge pays tribute to his colleague, the famous cosmologist Stephen Hawking who died last week, for triumphing in science while fighting the debilitating restrictions of degenerative disease from the age of 22.
   In our World Blog, Grace Karram Stephenson asks if academic freedom is a platform to share any controversial ideas that come to light or whether professors should cushion their opinions to make class a safer place for diverse students.
   In Features, Suvendrini Kakuchi reports that Japan, though still a leading research nation, is to boost research funding for digital era technologies as it struggles to maintain its global scientific research competitiveness. Pål Magnus Lykkja and Jan Petter Myklebust report on fears that the European Commission’s attempts to establish an open access platform for science will be undermined by the influence of commercial science publishers. More...