The TopUniversities.com guide to the latest university news from around the world, on 16 September 2013.
China/Israel: Universities sign collaborative research agreement
Tel Aviv University and Tsinghua University have signed a memorandum of understanding to establish a joint research center called XIN, reports The Jerusalem Post. The center will be based at Tsinghua University but research will be conducted at both institutions. According to the memorandum, the center will aim to “advance interdisciplinary research, provide optimal conditions for creativity, and promote activity in fields that can truly impact society in both countries and the entire world”. The research will initially focus on fields that are developing rapidly in Israel and China, such as nanotechnology, and then expand to other fields.
Japan: Debate about new university entrance exam
A proposed new university entrance system in Japan has sparked debate about the best way to implement tests, reports University World News. The new system could mean several tests throughout the year for high school students, rather than just one test at the end of the academic year. It could also involve a separate test after exam scores are received, as well as an interview to assess thinking skills and motivation. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says he wants Japan’s higher education system to be more competitive globally. An official at the Ministry of Education, Masashi Kudo, said: “the goal of the new achievement test is to raise the academic ability of students.”
UK: Researchers to work with Indian universities to develop drugs
The University of Cambridge will be working with researchers in India to develop drugs for treating cancer and other diseases, reports the Hindustan Times. The research will involve identifying targets in a human cell for which there are currently no drugs, and will “pioneer new approaches to create small-molecule tools that target novel classes of targets”. University of Cambridge vice chancellor Professor Leszek Borysiewicz said: "We will work together to jointly find ways to identify the missing targets towards treatment of diseases like cancer and other infections with new drugs in a much different and novel manner from the conventional methods."
US: Senate to reauthorize Higher Education Act
The US Senate’s education committee will begin reauthorizing the Higher Education Act on Thursday, following changes since it was last reathorized in 2008, reports The Chronicle of Higher Education. Since 2008, the US Department of Education has introduced several policies that affect students, such as altering the setting of student loan interest rates, and President Obama has proposed a system of tying federal aid for universities to a rating system. In August, colleges were asked to suggest changes to the Act.