Universities UK has published a new report which examines the impact of significant changes that have taken place in UK higher education since 2011.
These include the introduction of new fee levels in 2012-2013 and changes to the funding of undergraduate students, as well as immigration reforms that have affected the UK's universities.
The report, entitled “The funding environment for universities: an assessment” looks at the implications of these developments for the future funding and financial sustainability of UK universities.
Download the full report here.

During spring 2013, EUA organised three training workshops for quality managers at European higher education institutions. Staff members from more than 60 EUA member institutions from 25 European countries came together in small groups to exchange experiences on how to develop and strengthen quality cultures at their institutions. Participants included vice-rectors responsible for quality assurance, members of quality assurance units, academic and administrative staff and students.
The training workshops were organised in response to EUA’s recent work which has shown that those in charge of managing quality at universities feel the need for further capacity building in how to incentivise all stakeholders to take on the responsibility for quality. The workshops sought to address this need by presenting findings from EUA’s studies on quality culture in Europe, giving an insight into current European-level trends in quality assurance, presenting case studies from the host countries, providing a forum for an open exchange of experiences and building connections among colleagues from different countries. Read more...

On 11 July, the European Commission launched the Communication “European higher education in the world”, which outlines a strategy for the internationalisation of European higher education.
EUA welcomes the Communication as it places emphasis on the broad range of issues that are important for the internationalisation of European higher education. The document, which references the EC’s recent Communications “Modernising Europe’s Higher Education Systems” and “Rethinking Education”, places specific emphasis on how member states and higher education institutions can develop strategic international partnerships to tackle global challenges more effectively.
Among the key priorities outlined is the development of comprehensive internationalisation strategies at national and institutional level. The Commission states that such strategies should cover the following areas:

• The promotion of international mobility of students and staff (for example through enhanced services for mobility, tools for recognition of studies, better visa procedures for foreign students and emphasis on two-way mobility – into and out of Europe).
• The promotion of “internationalisation at home” and digital learning (including language learning, using ICT to internationalise curricula).
• The strengthening of strategic cooperation, partnerships and capacity building (with emphasis on joint and double degrees, partnerships with business and also international development cooperation partnerships).

The EC aims to contribute to the realisation of this strategy through stronger policy support and financial incentives for internationalisation strategies in particular through the future EU programme for education that will be called Erasmus+ (formerly called Erasmus for All). Read more...

Registration is now open for the 8th European Quality Assurance Forum (EQAF) that will take place from 21 to 23 November 2013 at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden.
EQAF provides a unique platform for the higher education and quality assurance (QA) communities to monitor, shape and anticipate developments in the field. The main purpose of the Forum is to foster a dialogue on QA that bridges national boundaries and leads to a truly European discussion on QA in higher education, and to create a common European understanding of QA through discussions and networking among different stakeholder groups.
Through a mix of plenary and parallel sessions, the 2013 EQAF, entitled “Working together to take quality forward”, will combine practice-oriented or research-based discussions that will take place in the paper sessions and workshops with presentations of current developments in quality assurance.
Recent studies show that European quality assurance has taken huge steps forward in the past decade: both institutions and quality assurance agencies have developed sophisticated processes that aim to assure and enhance the quality of European higher education. However, it is also widely recognised that while processes are in place, there is still need for further work in developing the engagement of the whole academic community in quality, as well as communication and cooperation with other stakeholders. This year the Forum will therefore specifically explore how both individuals and organisations can better understand the role that quality assurance can play in their daily lives, get engaged and work together to take quality forward.
The Forum will be of interest to rectors and vice-rectors responsible for QA, QA officers in higher education institutions, students, QA agency staff, and researchers working in higher education or the QA field.
To register or find out more about the 2013 EQAF and the call for contributions (for papers and workshops), which is still open until 2 August, please visit the event website.
The European Quality Assurance Forum is co-organised by the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA), the European Students’ Union (ESU), EUA and the European Association of Institutions in Higher Education (EURASHE).

By Aura Vuorenrinne. Unemployment and financial difficulties change priorities in policy making. EAEA fortifies advocacy work to defend adult education on European level.
Europe is in crisis that is not only financial; there are different levels to it. It is a social crisis: people are getting excluded at the same time as they lose jobs and their money.
- It is also ethical crisis, because people who suffer the most have not caused the crisis, says Gina Ebner, the Secretary-General of EAEA.
In addition, it is a European crisis; which country should pay the costs?
The EAEA Secretary-General and many other speakers spoke at the European Year of Citizens 2013 Conference in Leicester, UK on 7 June 2013. Read more...

The EU-funded GRUNDTVIG project "OED: Outreach - Empowerment - Diversity" brings together expertise in the field of research and development of adult education. The overall aim is to tackle the need for outreach to marginalised groups, especially migrants and ethnic minorities, for the development of more diversity in adult education, for the inclusion of learners' voices, and for the empowerment of its learners to become active European citizens.
This article introduces a series of good practices which are available on the OED website. They will also be presented on the OED Facebook page during the next few weeks.
The first outcome of the collective efforts of the network is a collection of good practices. It brings together 28 examples of good practice from 13 partners in the European Union. These good practices were analysed by the German Institute for Adult Education, Leibniz Centre for Lifelong Learning (DIE) in order to find starting points for professional development leading towards inclusive adult education. For this reason, the OED project is relevant to all adult education providers as a means to make progress in shaping inclusive adult education based on empirical evidence. Read more...

By Raffaela Kihrer. EAEA GRUNDTVIG AWARD 2013. EAEA hands out the yearly EAEA Grundtvig Award to a successful European learning partnership. This year´s theme for the award was "Active citizenship and transnational solidarity - Adult Education as a tool against nationalism, chauvinism and xenophobia".
The article series spreads good practices by introducing the nominees of EAEA Grundtvig Award 2013.
At the centre of Kulturmødeambassadørene - Ambassadors for cultural meetings project are dialogue-meetings, during which (mostly) young people meet "ambassadors". These ambassadors are a group of 35 multicultural young persons, who travel through Denmark and to Northern Germany to hold seminars on nationality, identity, and active citizenship.
During the meetings, several games are played which aim at making people realise that the similarities they share with the ambassadors outweigh their differences in many ways. Fighting stereotypes and xenophobia as well as developing a higher self-esteem and understanding for each other are central goals of the project. The ambassadors have up to 17 meetings per month, with less during the summer holidays and in exam periods. More...