In policy and funding news:
- Lord Mandelson again made headlines, this time with his first major speech on higher education. He had some interesting things to say about universities and the economy and his hints about the possibility of lifting the cap on the fees English universities can charge students elicited a robust restatement of the Scottish Government's stance against fees. Read more in HE Scotland's blog post on the topic.
- Glasgow Caledonian University attracted negative commentary from the UCU as well as coverage in The Herald and the Times Higher following news that a commercial joint venture to attract overseas students had lost over £200k.
- With news that English universities' funding may be linked to their carbon emissions, St Andrews upped the stakes in Scotland with news of plans for its own wind farm.
- A statement was released on Tuesday following a Universities UK seminar on the swine flu pandemic and The Guardian reported news of the sector's preparations.
- In a report in the Times Higher an unnamed manager at Edinburgh Napier University claimed that merger with Queen Margaret University would be ' logical'.
In student news:
- NUS Scotland released news of a survey suggesting the summer jobs market was proving tough for students and may lead to increased drop out rate. Reporting Scotland covered the story and Labour opposition spokesperson, Claire Baker MSP, tweeted while she watched to say that "serious consideration of student support" was needed.
- An exclusive story in The Daily Record outlined a rise in the number of student disciplinary cases and was picked up by several others including The Express and The Scotsman.
- There were notable sporting successes for a Stirling golfer, Stirling & RGU swimmers and for Edinburgh's Chloe Maclean who took Bronze at European University Karate Championships.
- Finally, The Independent examined the increasing availability of more salubrious student accommodation asking 'Is this the end of dank digs?'
In research news:
- University of Edinburgh researchers announced a breakthrough in predicting a woman's response to the breast cancer drug Herceptin, with coverage including pieces in The Scotsman and The Express.
- In Dundee, the local SNP MSP called for tax breaks in order to support the video game research and the related industry clustered around the University of Abertay.
- Researchers at the University of Edinburgh received widespread coverage with news of a new computer chip able to deliver faster processing while using significantly less power and space.
- Elsewhere, the Scottish Agricultural College reported on the importance of researchers' understanding of the policy environment and the Glasgow School of Art launched an innovative PhD scholarship with the AHRB.
Slim pickings this week in the competition for the best sector media release title... at this rate, the trophy will be permanently residing at the University of Glasgow! It wins again with:
In the absence of any real sector competition for Glasgow's winner, the following sports headline in The Southern Reporter earns a guest mention in this category:
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