Par Quentin Blanc. Après «Adopte Un Mec», «Adopte Un Etudiant»? En Espagne, les personnes privées pourraient être autorisées à «sponsoriser» des étudiants, afin de permettre aux jeunes en difficulté financière de poursuivre des études supérieures.
Entre l’explosion du chômage des jeunes, la hausse des frais de scolarité dans les universités publiques et le durcissement des critères d’attribution des bourses, il ne fait pas bon être étudiant en Espagne à l’heure actuelle. Pour éviter de voir leurs effectifs fondre et des jeunes prometteurs abandonner leurs études, les facultés ibériques veulent créer un fonds permettant à des donateurs privés de financer les cursus d’étudiants en difficulté financière. «De la même façon qu’il est possible de sponsoriser un enfant du tiers-monde grâce à des associations, des particuliers pourraient prendre en charge un étudiant espagnol en payant ses frais de scolarité», explique au quotidien britannique The Telegraph Adelaida de la Calle, rectrice de l’université de Malaga et présidente de l’association espagnole des présidents d’université. Suite...

By George Mills. A scheme which would see 'godfathers' helping out Spanish university students in financial difficulties has received mixed reactions from from within the education sector.
It all started with a telephone call.
In July, the Dean of Spain's Malaga University, Adelaida de la Calle, received a call from a pensioner offering to pay the course fees of one student.
From there, her proposal took shape. More...

By Brigid Laffan. Research gulf divides higher education. Higher education is in the throes of change and challenge. Across the world, governments are reforming national systems in the search for prosperity. This is evident in the proliferation of targeted strategic investments in research and education, initiatives which foster a culture of intense competition, of which rankings are one indicator. Competition and internationalisation will intensify over the next 20 years.
In May, Minister for Education Ruairí Quinn set out seven objectives for Irish higher education that had phrases such as “world-class”, “excellence in teaching and learning”, “an open and excellent public research system”, “globally competitive” and “internationally oriented”. Yet the sector is experiencing its fifth consecutive cut in funding, draining people and resources from the system. More...

Blog Educpros de Thomas Froehlicher. Le modèle rhénan mythifié
Le modèle rhénan est souvent évoqué pour une plus grande prise en compte de l’ancrage de l’économie dans son environnement régional et ses communautés, par le choix de spécialisations industrielles à forte valeur ajoutée, portées par des investissements à long terme et une position de leadership mondial dans ces spécialités. Il en ressort un tissu dynamique d’entreprises industrielles de taille moyenne ou intermédiaire, ETI, ou encore, selon l’expression consacrée, des entreprises « Mittelstand », à l’allemande. Ce tissu est également réputé plus solidaire de son territoire. Dans ce modèle idéalisé, entreprises et territoire soutiennent leurs emplois. Suite de l'article...

U-Map is an ongoing project in which the European classification of higher education institutions is further developed and implemented.
U-Map offers you two tools to enhance transparency. ProfileFinder produces a list of higher education institutions (HEIs) that are comparable on the characteristics you selected. ProfileViewer gives you an institutional activity profile you can use to compare three HEIs.
U-Map is presented in demo-mode. It will be fully operational when the underlying database comprises a sufficient number of higher education institutions.
The Methodology.
U-Map has been developed in a dynamic and interactive process in which a number of general guidelines and design principles were used. The consultation of stakeholders was a cornerstone of that process.
How to get your U-Map profile?
If your institution is interested in having its own U-Map profile on this website please contact us. We’ll get back to you to discuss the terms of reference.

By Arwyn Jones. Universities in Wales have called for the Welsh government to review the way they are funded to prevent millions of pounds going to institutions around the UK.
Currently, Welsh students have the majority of their tuition fees paid wherever they study.
As a result, tens of millions of pounds from the higher education budget in Wales goes to universities elsewhere.
But the Welsh government said higher education funding was increasing. More...

By Tom Newcombe. Universities and colleges are twice as likely to use zero-hours contracts than other workplaces, according to a freedom of information request.
The request, made by the University and College Union (UCU), found 61% of further education colleges and 53% of UK universities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland have teaching staff on zero-hours contracts.
The request found five institutions had more than 1,000 people on zero-hours contracts.
The union said despite the large numbers of colleges and universities using zero-hours contracts, only a small number said they had policies on them. More...