“The death of the historian Peter Hart, at the age of 46, has robbed Irish history of one of its most impressively original talents. Prof Hart was the author of a series of important, compelling and – at times – controversial books …” (more)
[Irish Times, 31 July]
“When I became President of Dublin City University just over ten years ago, the country’s research community was just convulsed in a debate that came from the then recently conducted ‘Technology Foresight’ exercise that had been commissioned by the Irish government …” (more)
[Ferdinand von Prondzynski, University Blog, 31 July]
“Apprentices in Cork Institute of Technology (CIT) will be able to work in a single building from next September following the Government’s funding go-ahead for the project, according to the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation, Batt O’Keeffe TD …” (more)
[CorkPolitics.ie, 30 July]
“… ‘If you were going to see a doctor and the doctor said, “I’ve been really busy since I got out of medical school, and so I’m going to treat you with the techniques I learned back then”, you’d be rightly incensed,” he told me recently. ‘Yet there are a lot of faculty who say with a straight face, “I don’t need to change my teaching”, as if nothing has been learned about teaching since …'” (more)
[Jeffrey R Young, Chronicle of Higher Education, 24 July]
“… The primary PRTLI funding awarded to UL will go towards the expansion of the University’s sector-leading Materials and Surface Science Institute (MSSI) for the establishment of a National Centre for Applied Materials Research at UL. This will develop new materials and methods in the strategically important areas of pharmaceutical and composite materials and will significantly enhance UL’s materials research capabilities in biomaterials, materials for energy conversion and biocatalysis …” (more)
[Clare Herald, 30 July]
“The abolition of third-level fees means it is almost entirely the children of the better-off who literally cash in. A good educational system, producing bright, motivated students, is a critical part of a strong economy …” (more)
[Karlin Lillington, Irish Times, 30 July]
“… Christopher Wren would be amazed that modern astronomical measurements had led to the discovery that we live in an expanding universe that was once smaller than an atom. But what would surprise the founding members most is that these, and other discoveries, remain the preserve of a few. Far from being an indispensable part of the human experience, science has remained a specialised subject understood by only a fraction of society …” (more)
[Cormac O’Raifeartaigh, Irish Times, 29 July]
“One of the side-effects of any significant increase in participation levels in higher education is that a degree no longer sets you apart from the general population. If the official Irish target of securing a 72% participation rate of each age cohort is achieved, then having a degree will be nothing very special …” (more)
[Ferdinand von Prondzynski, University Blog, 30 July]
“The Scottish government is under pressure to abandon its commitment to free higher education after an independent review concluded that Scotland could no longer afford to offer universal public services …” (more)
[Hannah Fearn, Times Higher Education, 30 July]
“The head of research funding body Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) is preparing to leave Ireland and take up a new post abroad. The move relates to professional advancement rather than dissatisfaction with his current position, according to sources in the Government …” (more)
[Dick Alhstrom, Irish Times, 30 July]
“Earlier this week the Irish Times published a letter in which the writer questioned the support of university presidents (in this case UCD President Hugh Brady) for tuition fees, and in particular voiced disapproval that they might cite social equality as a reason …” (more)
[Ferdinand von Prondzynski, University Blog, 30 July]
“The New York Times Room for Debate page hosted a forum last week entitled ‘What If College Tenure Dies?’. As the preamble rightly notes, the question follows from an increasing shift in university personnel away tenure and tenure-track lines and toward adjuncts and lecturers hired on temporary contracts. The numbers are stark …” (more)
[Mark Bauerlein, Minding the Campus, 29 July]
“They say university broadens the mind, but for third-level students of the future, it will be a gateway to a whole new world of learning. It’s only a matter of time before many students attend a number of different colleges both at home and abroad to complete their degree …” (more)
[Katherine Donnelly, Independent, 30 July]
“The race to develop successful tidal and wave energy systems has taken a new tack, with plans by a group involving Queen’s University Belfast (QUB) to design a fully submerged turbine that can be deployed in deepwater sites …” (more)
[Lorna Siggins, Irish Times, 30 July]
“UCD is to lead a major international research consortium to investigate if a person’s genetic make-up can help design their ideal nutritional diet …” (more)
[UCD News, 29 July]
“Foreign students are being charged up to eight times more than British undergraduates as universities seek to plug a multi-million pound hole in the higher education budget …” (more)
[Graeme Paton, Daily Telegraph, 29 July]
“Today saw the launch of a €7m fund designed to help academics turn research into jobs by bringing new products and services to market …” (more)
[Deirdre Nolan, Silicon Republic, 29 July]
“Times Higher Education (THE) has announced the completion of the collection of data for its forthcoming World University Rankings: ‘An epic effort by our world university rankings data supplier, Thomson Reuters, to collect information from hundreds of universities around the world concluded successfully last week’. I am not sure whether ‘epic’ is the right word …” (more)
[University Ranking Watch, 29 July]
“A lecturer at Oxford University’s centre for Jewish studies claims colleagues discriminated against her after she converted to Christianity. Dr Tali Argov says she was overlooked for promotion, stripped of her privileges and cold-shouldered at social gatherings …” (more)
[Martin Beckford, Daily Telegraph, 29 July]
“One crucial issue facing Irish higher education over the next while will be institutional diversity. Broadly the question goes like this: we are a small country, so why do we need seven universities that cover more or less the same territory, and a dozen or so institutes with the same mission, and some other colleges? Why not identify a specialism for each …” (more)
[Ferdinand von Prondzynski, University Blog, 29 July]
Ninth Level Ireland 