Achieving excellence in a new world – Commentary

1800, The challenge for research

Two of the UK's best-known researchers welcomed the basis of the forthcoming Research Excellence Framework (REF). Professor Brian Cox, Professor of Particle Physics at the University of Manchester, said the measurement of impact should enable academics to use the figures to lever more funding into the sector.

Research formed the basis of 40 per cent of national wealth, he said, although this was not widely recognised. UK science received only 3 per cent of global research funding but produced 14 per cent of the world's highly-cited research. However, he warned that the new system would influence the behaviour of researchers in ways that were unpredictable.

Professor Jonathan Bate, Professor of Shakespeare and Renaissance Literature, said he was relieved to see the broadening of the concept of impact in the REF. The new system provided a 'moment of opportunity' to confirm the symbiosis between research and teaching, which previous assessments had driven apart.

Professor Bate said he hoped the value of research in the arts and humanities would be appreciated more widely.

'We should reward the Olympians of the academic world as well as the potential medallists of the 2012 Games,' he said.

1721, Anthony McClaran on assuring quality

The involvement of students in the new institutional reviews introduced by the Quality Assurance Agency will help to drive up standards, Anthony McClaran, the QAA's Chief Executive, told delegates. No system of quality assurance could replace truly inspirational and supportive teaching, but the new audits would provide more explicit judgment of institutions.

He said informed choice would be at the heart of the new system. Accurate information was critical for those who are already studying as well as for prospective students.

1658, Professor Janet Beer on the need for clear information

Professor Janet Beer, Vice-Chancellor of Oxford Brookes University, outlined the content of the Key Information Sets that every university will have to provide by 2012. She said clear information was needed to counteract misunderstandings among the public about higher education under the new fees regime. Universities should concentrate on winning the trust of universities and their families.

'We need to communicate both the economic value of higher education and also the social and personal values,' she said. 'All in all, we need to be better at explaining what we do.'

1535, Securing the student interest

Dora Meredith, President of the Guild of Students at the University of Birmingham, said higher education would never be the same after the imposition of higher fees. But, with the right approach, it was still possible to achieve excellence.

She said students should judge the new arrangements on quality, dialogue and support. Consumerism was bound to increase: students' expectations would rise with the costs they face. Graduate employability would be firmly at the top of students' agenda.

Tom Thompson, President of Birmingham City University Students' Union, said students would expect improvements in the overall educational experience, and not just more contact hours and extended library opening periods. In particular, the information given to prospective students had to be accurate and accessible, for example through social media.

Universities should engage their students' unions in dialogue, as Birmingham City had with its prize-winning partnership agreement. Unions could be a critical friend to universities in adapting to the new environment.

1512, Professor Peter Coaldrake on HE in Australia

Professor Peter Coaldrake, Vice-Chancellor of Queensland University of Technology and Chair of Universities Australia, said the higher education systems in England and Australia often borrowed ideas from each other. In Australia, for example, universities had graduated towards similarly high fees when they were given more freedom over what to charge.

He said:

'Universities must make their case to the public and to government, and of course seek to operate ever more effectively with the resources available to them. At this stage there are only signs of pressure rather than crisis, and intrusions on autonomy have not systematically compromised the quality of teaching or research. But equally, we should not wait until this occurs, eroding the ability of universities to deliver both high quality and good value.'

1301, Vince Cable on the cost of teaching

Universities cannot expect to operate in a 'cost-plus' environment, Vince Cable, Secretary of State for Business Innovation and Skills, told the conference in an appeal for higher-quality and lower-cost teaching.

'Attempts by universities to pitch their charges near the top of the range is a zero sum in terms of available resources. It is economically irrational on a collective basis - and it's very likely irrational in individual cases too.'

Dr Cable added:

'So long as there is Government subsidy, there must be some control over student numbers to ensure that the costs are manageable. We envisage a selective relaxation of controls, potentially to reward more competitive providers, or to maximise the chance of students attending their first-choice institution. We want to make the controls as limited and flexible as possible.'

Full text of Vince Cable's speech

1227, Alan Langlands Q&A on 'contestable' places

Fee levels should not be the main criterion for the allocation of 'contestable' places from 2012 onwards, Sir Alan said in answer to questions at the conference. In his view, quality, innovation and retention levels should all be taken into consideration. How many such places there would be beyond the core allocation to institutions would depend on the level of volatility that was considered manageable.

1140, Alan Langlands on meeting the new world challenge

Sir Alan Langlands, Chief Executive of HEFCE, set the tone for the conference with three key messages for delegates:

• Changes in the mix of public and private funding must be handled carefully to preserve an internationally excellent higher education system.
• Institutional autonomy is the bedrock of current successes. The new approach to regulation - without presuming anything about HEFCE's role in this - should not be intrusive.
• HEFCE is working to ensure a smooth transition to the new arrangements, but we also have to prepare for a different future - it would be negligent for HEFCE to behave as if nothing was changing except the size of its teaching budget.

'The introduction of the new funding settlement for higher education is a big deal - not least for prospective students and their families - but it must not eclipse all the other important things that we do, it must not undermine the special place that universities have in our society and it must not result in higher education becoming a political football,' he said.

Text of Sir Alan's speech including presentation slides (Adobe PDF 156K)

1100, Tim Melville-Ross Welcome and Introduction

Delays in the publication of the Higher Education White Paper gave delegates to HEFCE's Annual Conference an unexpected opportunity to influence Coalition policy, Tim Melville-Ross, the Council's Chair said in his opening address.

Looking further ahead, he said:

'Personally, I believe that when the country's financial circumstances improve, there will be a strong case for a higher level of investment in higher education, given the enormous cultural and economic benefits that flow from it.'