The TopUniversities.com guide to the latest higher education news from around the world, on 12 April 2013.
US: Employers look beyond degree subject, study finds
A survey of 318 executives of private and nonprofit organizations in the US has found that a relevant major is not the first thing employers look for in their graduate hires, reports The Huffington Post. A “demonstrated capacity to think critically, communicate clearly and solve complex problems” was deemed to be more important than graduate’s major by 93% of employers, 80% of whom believed a graduate should have a broad knowledge in the liberal arts and sciences. When it came to long-term career advancement, 55% said they looked for both field-specific skills and a broad knowledge base. So the lesson seems pretty clear: employers value breadth as well as depth. Certainly worth bearing in mind!
India: Kolkata university ransacked by student activists
Presidency University in Kolkata, West Bengal, was stormed by student activists belonging to Trinamool Chhatra Parishad, a student organization allied to Indian political party, the All India Trinamool Congress. Many of the university’s students were beaten up in the incident and university property was vandalized. The physics department – housed in a century-old building – in particular suffered notable damage. The incident is part of a series of student protests in response to the death of activist Sudipta Gupta in police custody, reports Yahoo News.
UK: New institution will host 33,000
A new UK university which will host 33,000 students has officially launched this week, reports The Independent. The University of South Wales, a merger between Glamorgan University and the University of Wales, Newport, will be the sixth largest university in the UK, the world’s second most popular study destination. The student body will be made of students from 122 different countries, and a total of 580 different courses will be offered at its five campuses. Improving the employability of students is reportedly the key reason behind the merger, according to the Welsh education minister.
US: Online courses cure for rising university costs, says Princeton president emeritus
William Bowen, the president emeritus of Princeton University, has published a book arguing that online courses could be the answer to the rising cost of university. Higher Education in the Digital Age argues that the cost of university is driven up by inefficient academic structures, and that universities which cannot raise the sufficient funds to hire quality faculty should offer free online courses created by more prestigious universities to lower costs while maintaining quality. But he also advises caution, warning that studies must be carried before such policies are rolled out, reports The Daily Princetonian. Notably, Bowen spoke out against online education as a method of reducing costs in 2000, but has since come to see the benefits.
US: University of Chicago student argue for no-loan financial aid policy
Student groups at the University of Chicago are arguing for the university to move towards a no-loan policy to bring it in line with other leading intuitions like Stanford, Harvard and Princeton. This would see grants used to help pay the tuition of students from families with incomes under US$75,000, and a combination of grants, personal income and university rather than federal loans used to help pay the tuition for other students receiving aid. The demands come in the light of recent reports of huge levels of student debt from federal loans in the US, which many believe is spiraling out of control. Members of the Southside Solidarity Network will be meeting with the members of the university hierarchy to discuss their demands later this month, reports The Chicago Maroon.
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