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Universities told to offer better support to entrants with few or no qualifications following debate over whether these students should be able to access loans

Universities told to engage potential students before they write off higher education as ‘not for them’

Leading institutions see drop in proportion of students from surrounding area despite renewed access drives

Graduation rates less than half of enrolment figures as institutions face ‘considerable dropout issue’, Unesco warns

Proportion of undergraduates from families of doctors, lawyers and engineers grows in comparison with other socio-economic groups

Universities told to adjust to new attitudes on HE expansion, as figures show boom in new entrants who have few to no qualifications

Birmingham vice-chancellor’s call to review loan eligibility for students with no A levels criticised by own staff members

Taith being wound down as UK prepares to rejoin Erasmus but academics say nation has benefitted hugely from having own programme

London institutions urged to work together as they double down on widening participation efforts that help serve pipeline for ‘frontier’ jobs

Still unclear whether Scotland will meet fair access goals set for this year, as country prepares to adopt institution-level approach

Head of UK’s flagship distance learning institution warns online provision alone doesn’t guarantee equal access to higher education

King’s vice-chancellor Shitij Kapur made waves last month when he said that a degree is no longer a passport to professional success. But was it ever? Could it ever be? And what does it mean for universities if it is not? Patrick Jack reports

Calls for more support for people with experience of prison to access higher education as experts warn programmes being hampered by staff shortages

Minister suggests internal battle to secure extra maintenance support for disadvantaged students to blame for low grant amount

Universities urged to collaborate on areas such as the language they use in admissions to ensure accessibility for non-traditional students

No one has come up with a better way of convincing the Treasury to bring back maintenance grants, skills minister tells social mobility event

Cross-party committee calls for higher household income threshold for maximum student support loans as more struggle to afford university

University leaders should advocate for grants to be diverted to early years education to reduce later attainment gaps, conference hears

Link between higher education and higher earnings weakens across many OECD countries, showing need to strengthen alternative options

Birmingham professor to temporarily oversee access and participation at English regulator following departure of John Blake

Former teacher steps down after one term, having overseen revamp in widening participation efforts

Focus on traditional subjects at GCSE level has not helped pupils get into top universities, says Becky Francis’ report on school curriculum

Inequality between male and female participation rates prevails in most parts of the globe, with 88 countries in worse situation compared with a decade ago

School-leavers incentivised to move away from local area to attend university, despite the benefits that staying put can bring, according to MillionPlus

Using financial incentives to influence student choice risk undermining Labour’s widening access goals, critics fear

University of Cumbria opens doors of new campus in town where only 13 per cent of school leavers continue on to higher education

A ‘disconnect’ between aspirational rhetoric and the realities of ‘live’ admissions risks undermining Australia’s inclusion goals

Failure to acknowledge how class operates within academia means many students still feel uncomfortable on campus, says Beth Johnson

Global University Academy aims to find ways of bridging different countries’ funding and regulations to provide ‘stackable’ courses for displaced people

Success of Trump-inspired nationalist party will increase scrutiny over institutions’ plans to grow overseas intakes, academics predict

New figures show university progression gap between London and the rest of the country widening, as ministers plan interventions in coming White Paper

Two institutions enrol almost 40 per cent of all students from poorer regions as intake drops at other universities

Researchers find non-repayable grants key to increasing higher education participation in countries where more than two-fifths of adults have a degree

Students on free school meals who participated in activities such as campus visits 48 per cent more likely to go into higher education than those who didn’t