Feature article

Design thinking can transform first-year orientation

Design thinking offers a student-centred approach to orientation. By following these five steps, universities can strengthen first-year experiences and set them up for academic success

Jarell Alder

The University of the West Indies

From salary to strategy: why universities must teach financial literacy

Universities teach communication, critical reasoning and research methods, so why not also provide basic financial skills to all students, regardless of discipline?

Manjari Sharma

Christ (Deemed to be University)

An unseen woman doing sums with a calculator

How university financial support teams can bolster student mental health

Universities must treat financial support as central to student well-being. By fostering open conversations and offering proactive, tailored guidance, institutions can ease financial stress, build resilience and improve the student experience

Ian Ashley

University of Chester

Six ways to welcome students to university life

Find out how to design meaningful welcome experiences for first-year students as they arrive at university, and equip them with the tools to start their academic journey

Aikerim Daurenbayeva , Aina Nurtanova, Aruzhan Yergali

Nazarbayev University

Close up on young woman looking at computer screen

The case for human-centred skills in higher education

For tomorrow’s challenges – and not just today’s jobs – students will need communication, critical thinking and interpersonal skills. So, faculty should look to embed these transferable skills across disciplines. Lauren Thomas explains

Lauren Thomas

Virginia Tech

How to protect your university against authoritarianism

US institutions are facing threats to academic freedom from the Trump administration, yet they must also stay vigilant to authoritarianism from abroad. Here is what university leaders and academics can do

Sarah McLaughlin

Johns Hopkins University

Group of Asian students looking at computer

Laying foundations: how to keep first-year students invested in their learning

The challenge for higher education foundation courses is to prepare students for university learning and build their confidence without overwhelming them with information. This guide explains how

Yeow Leong Lee

Singapore Management University

A research team discussing their findings

Why universities must lead on honest AI disclosure and how a new tool can help

Universities must bridge the gap between calls for GenAI transparency and workable standards. A new taxonomy offers a practical system to declare AI’s role in research openly and responsibly

Multiple authors

Borys Grinchenko Kyiv Metropolitan University, Berdyansk State Pedagogical University

Young entrepreneurs chat happily in a breakout space

How to position entrepreneurship as a graduate skill

Entrepreneurial thinking is at the top of employers’ wish lists – but how to integrate these skills in education?

Robert Crammond

University of the West of Scotland

Why PhDs are more carousel than rollercoaster

How to make the most of the opportunities that teaching, research and seminars bring to your PhD journey

Nicholas Maldarelli

The University of Edinburgh

Female intern with laptop working on mecatronics project

Industry engagement matters for doctoral candidates, too

Doctoral candidates have not generally prioritised engagement with industry, but its opportunities to enhance research impact and career prospects now make it essential. Here, Adnan Syed Muhammad offers tips for PhD students

Adnan Syed Muhammad

Western Sydney University

Does GenAI provide the opportunity for creativity to take centre stage?

With GenAI, routine skills are on tap – creativity should now be a core literacy. Ioannis Glinavos explores what that means for higher education

Ioannis Glinavos

University of Westminster

A scaffolded approach to teaching with GenAI

As GenAI continues to reshape higher education, this four-phase framework by Rena Beatrice Alcalay offers educators ways to guide students to use these tools critically and ethically, fostering agency, bias awareness and deeper engagement in philosophical writing assignments

Rena Beatrice Alcalay

Technical University of Munich

Hand holding mortar board, digital credentials

How industry partnerships and digital credentials can close the skills gap

Industry-focused credentials allow candidates to highlight skill sets to potential employers and enable individuals who may not have access to traditional higher educational pathways to display skills acquired over time. Here are examples of how these can work

Veronica M. Godshalk, Janelle Simmonds

Georgia Tech’s Center for 21st Century Universities, Siemens Digital Industries Software

Deciding between AI and human intelligence

Managing student risk AI-version

Could a safe space to experiment with using artificial intelligence to complete an assessment offer students a path to both deeper learning and AI proficiency?

Chris Jones

Regent’s University London

How to develop your own university library excellence standard

Instead of depending on a customer service assessment by an external agency to improve your library, why not develop your own? Find out 10 things to include in your bespoke standard

Steve Briggs, Carly Ramirez-Herelle

University of Bedfordshire

An academic’s guide to the art of negotiation: part two

How to understand your negotiation partner’s drivers, handle difficult situations and learn from each interaction

Natalie K. D. Seedan

The University of the West Indies

Multiracial group of university students

The transfer student advantage: soft skills in motion

Transfer students bring more than credits to their new institution; they come with resilience, self-advocacy and real-world experience. With soft skills more essential than ever, it’s time to see these learners not as behind the curve but ahead of the game

Lauren Thomas

Virginia Tech

Young black woman before panel during job interview

The challenge of building a diverse faculty in a world that has turned on diversity

In improving recruitment and retention of faculty from under-represented groups, universities can learn strategies from the corporate world – and let go of contentious remedies that do not work

Frank Dobbin, Alexandra Kalev

Harvard University, Tel Aviv University

How translanguaging can improve the learning experience and boost students’ confidence

Research into nursing education in Indonesia found using two or more languages in the learning environment allowed students to grasp technical concepts quickly and easily. Here’s how it worked

Erikson Saragjh

Universitas Sumatera Utara

A neurodivergent student participatin gin a class discussion

Stop placing the onus on neurodivergent students to ‘fit in’

How universal design for learning can address common challenges in making classrooms more inclusive for neurodivergent students

Ioanna Kapantai

The University of Exeter

Five ways to centre faculty development at your university

Teaching quality can be an institution’s biggest asset, improving student retention and boosting reputation. So why not move faculty development to the centre of institutional strategy?

Salah Al-Majeed, Hayat El Asri

Al Akhawayn University

An academic’s guide to the art of negotiation, part 1: how to prepare

The first in a two-part series explores how to use Marshall Rosenberg’s ‘non-violent communication’ framework to help you prepare for negotiations in the workplace

Natalie K. D. Seedan

The University of the West Indies

UC Earth Science Garden at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand

How a campus garden is tackling declining 3D spatial skills in geoscience students

Making geology more tangible can spark curiosity in the field and help students learn the skills needed to address global issues such as climate change, resource management and natural hazards. Kate Pedley walks through an interactive garden

Katherine Pedley

University of Canterbury | Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha

A teacher having a discussion with students

How to protect inclusive educational practices in increasingly hostile environments

Grassroots strategies for sustaining inclusive teaching and learning practices amid shrinking resources and growing hostility, focusing on course design, pedagogy and proactive advocacy

Liz Owens Boltz, Brittany Dillman

Michigan State University

Students work with plants, a model of the Earth and a solar panel around a table

Sustainability education isn’t just an add-on – it’s a foundation for the future

If universities want to nurture future leaders capable of addressing the world’s most pressing challenges — climate change, inequality, poverty – they must go beyond surface-level curriculum reforms. Here’s how to create the space for your students to grapple with these issues

Maria Jose Murcia

Universidad Austral

Why slowness is a superpower in creative education

Good ideas often appear in the quiet moments we don’t count as work. David Thompson argues for protecting incubation time and for helping students rediscover the value of disconnection

David Thompson

University of Lincoln

A robot hand presses a key on a laptop keyboard

‘Don’t be sorry, just declare it’: safeguarding the integrity of the essay

With the advent of GenAI, higher education has pronounced the essay dead. Benito Cao argues there are signs of life – and explains how to protect its integrity

Benito Cao

Adelaide University

A student and an assessor roleplaying a client meeting

Interactive orals offer a solution to AI over-reliance in higher education

A scenario-based assessment method that promotes authentic learning can curb over-reliance on AI and build students’ professional communication skills. Here is a guide to interactive orals

Popi Sotiriadou , Dani Logan-Fleming

Griffith University, Torrens University

Balloons, meritocracy concept illustration

EDI is meritocracy – why is that hard to understand?

Equity, diversity and inclusion is misunderstood when it is seen as valuing identity instead of skill within the systems that determine academic career progression. But it is in the sector’s interest to recognise and support talent, no matter what it looks like, writes Brooke Szücs

Brooke Szücs

The University of Queensland

Build workforce capability through smarter university-industry partnerships

Universities are expected to produce job-ready graduates, but many partnerships with industry remain ad hoc. Building deeper, more deliberate relationships with employers is key to developing stronger regional talent pipelines

Grant Ritchie

University of Canterbury | Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha

Competence matters more than content in sustainability education

Instead of teaching the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals head on, find the competencies business managers will need to take on the challenges of the future. Here’s how

Rhoda Davidson, Hans-Jörg Schlierer

EMLyon Business School

A podcaster interviewing a guest speaker

The power of podcasts to enhance student support

A university podcast can help cut through the noise of traditional communications. By meeting students where they are, it can be a powerful way to build community, reduce stigma and ensure support services reach those who need them

Shaunagh Moss

University of Chester

How universities can move from DEI backlash to breakthrough

Identity threat – when individuals or groups feel devalued – can undermine equity, diversity and inclusion initiatives. But if universities reframe this conflict, it can result in growth and new perspectives, write Camellia Bryan and Brent Lyons

Camellia Bryan, Brent Lyons

University of British Columbia, York University

Protestors on the Stand Up to Racism & Facism march in London in 2015

A common enemy approach to anti-racism in higher education

We need to rethink how we understand and advance anti-racism work in universities, treating racism as ‘our common enemy’ and adopting a unified approach to tackling it, writes Paul Miller

Paul Miller

The Institute for Equity, University Centre

A doorway with an "admissions" sign next to it

It starts with connection: rethinking the enrolment journey

The old enrolment model no longer fits today’s diverse student population. To truly support modern learners, universities must prioritise flexibility, empathy and trust over scripts and yield targets, writes Agnam Memeti

Agnam Memeti

DeVry University

Multiracial group of three university students

How student feedback and planning shape a high-impact orientation programme

Orientation week should not be about institutional formality but about human connection, writes Anusha Nataru. An engaging, effective programme requires careful pacing, warmth and inbuilt capacity to respond to student feedback

Anusha Nataru

Aditya University

“Office hours reimagined.” Image by Bryan Mathers of Visual Thinkery

Doing DEI when you can’t use the ‘D’, the ‘E’ or the ‘I’ word

‘DEI is dead, long live DEI!’ How to resist attacks on DEI, develop deep resilience and reimagine and reform your practice with kindness

Eamon Costello , Wajeehah Aayeshah

Dublin City University, University of Melbourne

Brightly-coloured speech bubbles and avatars

Discussion forums: the key to AI-proof assessment?

Providing a supportive learning culture for students will make them less likely to cheat – and discussion forums, with a few tweaks, may be the way to do it

Edward Palmer

Adelaide University

Equipping university graduates to think beyond the classroom

Too many students – and some educators – misunderstand what critical thinking entails. Here, Marie Paretti explains why engineering students in particular struggle with open-ended problems, and how educators can design experiences that help them learn to think in context

Marie Paretti

Virginia Tech

An early career researcher’s guide to impact

Research impact can often be reduced to an administrative task, yet looking past metrics and seeing your work come to life can be incredibly rewarding. Here’s how to connect with the ‘why’ of your research

Andy Phippen, Louise Rutt

Bournemouth University, University of Plymouth

How should assessors use AI for marking and feedback?

While much attention has focused on students’ use of GenAI, its potential to support assessors has mostly been overlooked. Here, Isabel Fischer shares draft principles co-created at a cross-institutional workshop to guide its responsible use in assessment, marking and feedback.

Isabel Fischer

The University of Warwick

intersection speech bubbles, inclusive language

For EDI efforts to be sustainable, universities must evolve their language and practice

A transactional model can position higher education institutions as performing equity, diversity and inclusion rather than living it, writes Bruce Watson. But that version of EDI will not serve us in the future

Bruce Watson

UNSW Sydney

How to build unbreakable self-confidence: an academic’s guide

A strong foundation of professional self-confidence is crucial when treading the academic career path. Follow these five tips to cement yours

Ayten Erçoban Evren

Near East University

A pair of hands scroll social media on a smartphone

Harness the powers of social media for learning

Replace mindless scrolling with little moments of learning by curating your social media feed. Here’s how

Norlin Nosbi, Nurul Azhani Yunus, Abdul Rahim Othman, Mazian Mohammad

Universiti Teknologi Petronas (UTP)

A person selling baked goods at a fundraising event

How community events can improve staff and student well-being

Regular, inclusive community events can play a vital role in improving mental health and well-being for both students and staff in higher education. Read about how simple, low-cost activities can foster connection, ease pressure and build a stronger university culture

Janine Wilkinson, Jean-Charles de Coriolis

The University of East Anglia

How to create snackable social media content

What makes an engaging post that delivers your key message? Here’s what university social media creators should do and what they should avoid when creating short-form content

Evan Atkinson

Georgia Tech’s Center for 21st Century Universities

Should university admissions decisions rely on academic performance?

If higher education wants to evolve its role beyond gatekeepers of knowledge to true engines of development, institutions need to rethink student readiness and recruitment processes

Rahim Somani

University of Northern British Columbia

Two language students reading a physical document

Content is king in EAP teaching

Content-based instruction is reshaping English for academic purposes teaching by making subject matter central to language learning. Garth Elzerman and Catherine Sari share four strategies for creating deeper, more purposeful engagement in the classroom

Garth Elzerman, Catherine Sari

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

A man sits in darkness, illuminated by a smartphone that blocks his face from view

Four questions to ask to detect false news online

Even those working in higher education can fall for misinformation. Ask these four questions to get better at zeroing in on false news

Peter Cunliffe-Jones

University of Westminster

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