The leaders of both Universities Scotland and Colleges Scotland have published a joint statement calling for real-terms increases in funding ahead of the Scottish Government’s budget which is due on Thursday 15 December. The statement highlights the alignment between the university and college role in skills development, research and innovation and the Scottish Government’s ambitions…
News
November
25
2022
Cuts to international student numbers should be resisted
Commenting on speculation that the UK Government may look to cut international student numbers, Alastair Sim, Director of Universities Scotland said: “Any attempts to cut international student numbers at Scottish universities would be damaging to universities and the Scottish economy. Every year more than 65,000 students from more than 180 countries study in Scotland. This…
November
23
2022
Actions required to maintain momentum towards the 2030 access targets for Scotland
Dr Kirsty Conlon, our Head of Learning and Teaching and Widening Access Policy shares her thoughts on what steps the soon to be announced Commissioner for Fair Access should be prioritising. A shorter version of this blog appeared on Wonkhe. Universities in Scotland are expecting an announcement on who will be the next Commissioner for…
November
23
2022
Government must ensure universities receive research funding
Universities Scotland have welcomed a UK Government announcement for additional funding to support the international collaborations and competitiveness of UK research, as a result of delays to the UK’s association to the Horizon Europe programme. This funding can directly support research and wider economic growth in Scotland if the extra funding is ring-fenced for research…
November
14
2022
Sir Ian Wood: Major risk to the Scottish economy if funding for our university students continues to be reduced
We are delighted to have Sir Ian Wood, businessman, philanthropist and Chairman of JW Holdings Limited write for Universities Scotland about the importance of universities to the Scottish economy. This is a longer-version of a column Sir Ian wrote for The Times. As it is, our universities funding has followed real term decline since 2014/25 leaving…
October
25
2022
Principals warn of need for sector funding
Two Principals of Scottish universities have spoken to the latest edition of Holyrood about the need for funding for research. Scotland’s universities provide world-leading research and have some of the best universities in the word that attracts many people to Scotland to study. However, there is the significant challenge of keeping these world class researchers and…
October
24
2022
Dr David Donaldson joins Universities Scotland
Dr David Donaldson joined us today as a Senior Policy Officer for Research, Innovation and Health, covering Dr Emma Baxter’s maternity leave. David joins us from the Roslin Institute at the University of Edinburgh where he was a research fellow in the field of immunology from 2009. David has a keen passion in bringing people…
October
11
2022
Roundtable on student poverty
On Tuesday 11 October, we co-hosted a roundtable on student poverty with the National Union of Students Scotland and the Mental Health Foundation at one of our members, Glasgow Caledonian University. This roundtable was the result of a recommendation from the Mental Health Foundation’s Thriving Learners report to determine what additional support and changes in…
September
28
2022
Colleges and Universities CPG: students and the cost of living crisis
On 28 September, the Scottish Parliament’s Cross Party Group on Colleges and Universities met to discuss the cost of living crisis and its impact on students. MSPs and members of the CPG came together to discuss this very pressing issue and how we can help students through this crisis. The CPG had three speakers, Ellie…
September
28
2022
Professor George Boyne at the Scottish Parliament’s Education, Children and Young People committee
On Wednesday 28 September, Professor George Boyne Principal of the University of Aberdeen appeared before the Scottish Parliament’s Education, Children and Young People committee to represent Universities Scotland. Professor Boyne highlighted the benefits of additional investment in Scottish universities. Questions focused on the over-reliance on international student fees to fund core business, the sector’s research…