Feature article

Young multiracial artists painting in a studio

How to foster a start-up mindset in creative sector students

In an ever-changing employment landscape, more students than ever are setting up start-ups after graduation. Richard Sant and Victoria Fabbri share how the creative sector has lessons for nurturing future entrepreneurs

Richard Sant, Victoria Fabbri

University of the Arts London

Young girl school pupil looking through a microscope

How can universities get more school pupils enthusiastic about science?

Outreach in local schools and colleges is one way universities can work towards widening participation in higher education. Carl Harrington shares the lessons from a project designed to get more pupils interested in studying science

Carl Harrington

The University of East Anglia

Incorporating new tech into your university class

A beginner’s guide to implementing new technologies in your classes

Adela Vega shares practical strategies for overcoming the stress associated with using new tech, so that teachers can instead embrace it as part of their practice

Adela Vega

Monterrey Institute of Technology

Learning design illustration of computer screen, light bulb, pencil and books

Learning designer may be the best job you’ve never heard of

This role is the bridge between students and academia – and makes use of many transferable skills you may already have in your toolkit

Vanessa Jefferson

Online Education Services

PhD at university needs to be more practical

Bridging the gap: how to enhance PhD programmes for non-academic careers

As more PhD students express interest in non-academic career paths, it’s essential to evaluate the relevance of traditional PhD programmes for alternative opportunities

Dennis Relojo-Howell

The University of Edinburgh

Group of officials in discussion

How to convey the benefits of higher education to government and policymakers

From identifying the decision-makers to presenting clear evidence, Jamie Gilbert Mikell shares tips for communicating the value of higher education to government and policymakers in the US

Jamie Gilbert Mikell

Athens State University

Diverse young people laughing

Making LGBTQ+ individuals feel safe, valued and empowered on campus

Gender-inclusive housing, research opportunities and informed mental health support are among the ways universities can create a welcoming environment for the full spectrum of the queer community

Aaron Davis

University of Washington

Group of chemistry students

Ways to improve the equitable inclusion of LGBTQ+ people in research and higher education

A summary of actions universities and research bodies should take to create truly equitable, inclusive environments for LGBTQ+ staff and students

Alfredo Carpineti, Matthew Young, Craig Poku

Pride in STEM, Nottingham Trent University

Gender equality at universities is crucial for society

Strategies for higher education institutions to strengthen gender equality

Gender equality can only become possible when harmful gender norms are challenged and equality is actively promoted. Perçem Arman provides key starting points for universities

Perçem Arman

Near East University

Two women giving a presentation to their colleagues

Administrators can and must act to nurture LGBTQ leaders

Advocacy by straight administrators and expansion of mentoring could increase the number of LGBTQ leaders in higher education, writes Kevin Leonard

Kevin Leonard

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

Illustration of young woman with tangled arrows representing decisions above her head

One thing at a time: tips for making decisions

Academic life is rife with everyday choices that can sap your bandwidth. Here’s why this is exhausting and how to ease the load

Yaniv Hanoch

University of Southampton

Female medical student examining slide

Unifying theoretical and clinical education in a medical curriculum

A focus on practical competences comes with the risk that theoretical knowledge will be sidelined during the clinical years. However, two-way vertical integration of medical training can provide a more balanced strategy for learning

László Köles

Semmelweis University

Techno-pedagogic design for blended and online courses

Techno-pedagogic design for blended and online courses

Course design for online and blended learning that combines pedagogical know-how with appropriate use of technology. Albert Sangrà presents design models that can help

Albert Sangrà

Open University of Catalonia (UOC)

Poetry can be used in many classes at university

Poetry is a door into many disciplines, not just a literary one

A poem can act as a memory aid, ground facts in individual experience and prompt questions about policy, power and generational impact, says Pádraig Ó Tuama

Pádraig Ó Tuama

Poetry Unbound

Three diverse students talking on a university campus

Steps to promote LGBTQ+ students’ well-being on campus

What can universities do to promote greater LGBTQ+ student well-being and positive academic outcomes? Kristen A. Renn provides some answers

Kristen A. Renn

Michigan State University

Long covid

HE has its head in the sand on long Covid, and it could prove costly

Long Covid is far more common than most people let on, so institutions must be ready to support its students, staff and faculty – here’s how

Mays Imad , Skylar Magee , John Nugent

Connecticut College

A group of aspiring business people

How to train entrepreneurs in five steps

What training is needed to help aspiring entrepreneurs develop the skills they will need? George Chondrakis shares five vital steps

George Chondrakis

Esade

Woman holding light bulb with symbols of academic fields surrounding it

A campaign to communicate the impact of university research

With public perception of US higher education in decline, universities urgently need to send an engaging, integrated message about how their work benefits society, writes Paul M. Rand. Here’s how his institution is doing it

Paul M. Rand

The University of Chicago

A group of medical students stand around a patient in bed

Social justice as part of medical education

Five strategies universities can adopt to aid medical students’ understanding of and engagement with social justice principles as part of healthcare training

Priya Harindranathan

Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center

open welcome sign on a glass door

Strategies to maximise the benefits of open research

Sharing data, publishing preprints and making research outputs freely available all have tangible benefits for individual scientists and society. Here are tips to get started

Tariq Al-Musawi

Al-Mustaqbal University

Statue of blindfolded Justice against the gay LGBT rights rainbow flag

How can universities support global LGBTQI+ human rights?

From more research to clearly signposted support for international students, UK campuses can do more to advance inclusivity worldwide. Drew Dalton offers four strategies

Drew Dalton

University of Sunderland

Student feedback

Effective feedback techniques for struggling students

Giving feedback on work that does not meet the required standard requires great tact and understanding of your students, says Ilse Mariana Leyva Barrera

Ilse Mariana Leyva Barrera

Monterrey Institute of Technology

An architect using a 3D simulation of a building layout

Extended reality for extending education

As digital technologies like extended reality (XR) evolve, how could they be used to enhance university teaching? Drawing on experience in architecture, Martin W. Andrews and Antonino Di Raimo investigate

Martin W. Andrews, Antonino Di Raimo

The University of Portsmouth

ChatGPT hack using Google Drive for academics and student essays

A simple hack to ChatGPT-proof assignments using Google Drive

What if there was a way to maintain the essay in all its three constituent parts – reading, thinking, writing – in the age of ChatGPT? Dave Sayers thinks he has an answer

Dave Sayers

University of Jyväskylä

Robot standing in front of a chalk board

An evaluation of ChatGPT in action

When set a task, how does ChatGPT really perform and what does this tell educators about how to craft their questions and assignments to avoid students relying entirely on this AI tool to generate answers?

Karen Kenny

The University of Exeter

A man and two women in a meeting around a laptop

How professional supervision can benefit academics

Common in health professions, supervision has much to offer faculty and higher education institutions – whether it takes place one-on-one or in groups. Here, Anita Volkert explains how to use the 3Cs of effective supervision to get started

Anita Volkert

Glasgow Caledonian University

Robot in thoughtful pose with hand to chin

Re-evaluating natural intelligence in the face of ChatGPT

Generative AI tools mean that our pedagogy, understanding of specialisation and how we value human abilities such as empathy, compassion and critical thinking must change

Elvin Lim , Andrew Koh

Singapore Management University

Black woman holding an LGBTQ+ flag

Breaking the homonegative life cycle for lesbian, gay and bisexual students in Jamaica

Lesbian, gay and bisexual students in Jamaica experience education punctuated by discriminatory treatment. Craig McNally looks at what university leaders must do to break this homonegative cycle and create inclusive campuses

Craig McNally

University of Technology, Jamaica, The University of the West Indies

University lecturer being an LGBTQ+ ally

How can we make LGBTQ+ students feel welcome through our teaching?

Practise inclusivity, speak out against harmful behaviour in your classroom and, most importantly, continue to learn, says Chris Pearce

Chris Pearce

UNSW Sydney

Social mobility at university

Is it time to rethink social mobility discourse and the meaning of ‘success’?

We must remember that while social mobility is a valuable goal, it’s not one with which all students are willing or able to conform, say Louise Ashley and William Monteith

Louise Ashley, William Monteith

Queen Mary University of London

Person wearing an LGBTQ+ rainbow badge

Small steps that make a big difference to LGBTQ+ inclusivity

A guide to boosting LGBTQ+ inclusivity in higher education, by Eleanor M. Townsend

Eleanor M. Townsend

The University of Exeter

A phone showing key social icons with notifications

Making the most of social media: practical tips for academics

A guide for academics to using social media as a powerful tool to share and amplify their work and build professional networks, by David Riley

David Riley

The University of the West Indies

Inclusion at university

We need an integrated approach to inclusion in higher education

Carol Evans makes the case for an Integrated Inclusion Framework, which would harmonise competing but overlapping EDI agendas to create aligned change that benefits everyone

Carol Evans

Cardiff University

American football team starting a new play

Making male athletes key players in preventing sexual assault on campus

Young sportsmen have the influence to shift campus attitudes away from rape culture and misinformation towards accountability and support for survivors. A US-wide programme aims to empower them to do so

Tracey Vitchers

It’s On Us

A woman communicating with a chatbot on her laptop

How to make ChatGPT work as a teaching assistant: a case study in law

A guide to working with AI writing tool GPT-4 to train it as a useful teaching assistant to answer students’ questions, based on Benjamin Liu’s experience doing so in law

Benjamin Liu

The University of Auckland

Group activities can help HDR student belonging

We must help HDR students experience a sense of community and belonging

A University of Adelaide team on what can be done to enhance community for higher degree by research students and how to ensure they see this culture from the outside

Multiple authors

The University of Adelaide

Asian students raising hands in university class

Putting trust at the heart of higher education

Vulnerability, uncertainty and mutual respect can help build trust between students and universities. The process can include small actions such as open conversations in class and whole-institution programmes

Samson Tse , Carl Hildebrand

The University of Hong Kong

Anti-racist ally on university campus

How to be an anti-racist ally on the university campus

Three academics from the University of Westminster provide practical advice on ensuring allyship is taken seriously in higher education institutions

Stephen Bunbury, Deborah Husbands , Dibyesh Anand

The University of Westminster

Four students each responding differently to an assignment question

Tips (from a librarian) for creating assignment prompts

A guide to crafting and writing clear assignment instructions that students can understand and follow

Toni Carter

Athens State University

LGBT teacher

Five simple ways to make your classroom more LGBTIQ+ friendly

From encouraging the use of pronouns for all to utilising the power of narrative, Lucas Lixinski marks IDAHOBIT day by offering tips on LGBTIQ+ inclusion

Lucas Lixinski

UNSW Sydney

LGBTQ+ campaigners pose with the rainbow flag

Work ‘with’ not ‘on’: making social research more inclusive for LGBT+ people

How to develop inclusive social research practices that involve carrying out work ‘with’ LGBT+ participants, rather than ‘on’ them, by Paul Willis

Paul Willis

The University of Bristol

Connected wooden markers on a blue background

Questions to foster open and engaging research communication

Each stage of a research project comes with questions about what information to share and with whom. Richard Holliman offers practical advice on how to make your research communication more transparent and engaging

Richard Holliman

The Open University

An image of solar panels in a field at sunset

Start your university on a path to resilient net zero

Practical tips on how institutions can improve their resilience to climate threats while on a path towards net zero emissions, by Rob Wilby and Shona Smith

Robert Wilby, Shona Smith

Loughborough University, University of Leeds

Illustration of young people in different coloured tops illustrating pronoun use

Creating an environment where staff and students feel comfortable sharing their pronouns

Using the correct pronouns is a key part of respectful communication – so where do we begin with creating a university environment where sharing pronouns becomes a natural part of our workplace culture?

Kat Smith

University of the Arts London

Books and papers piled around an empty notepad with a pencil poised to write

Making the abstract concrete

Strategies for writing effective abstracts for conference and research papers

Steven Bateman, Yingchun Li

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

Scientist in yellow lab coat using pipette

How medical education can benefit from global challenges

Worldwide crises, such as a pandemic or healthcare costs in ageing Western societies, often centre on medical education and require it to adapt quickly. So, what can a university learn from such situations?

Béla Merkely

Semmelweis University

Two women discuss an investment opportunity

Invest in the future with student-managed funds

Student-managed investment funds are an effective way to give students real business experience and develop their professional skills. But they need careful planning and support from faculty, Ahmad Al Asady explains

Ahmad Al Asady

North Dakota State University

Bag of groceries

A ‘grocery store’ model can help your campus food bank reduce waste

A move from pre-packed hampers can make university food banks more efficient and the space more welcoming – and build a stronger community. Erin O’Neil offers tips for switching to a grocery-store model

Erin O’Neil

University of Alberta

Two colleagues speaking to one another by a computer

A mentoring scheme for graduate teaching assistants

How to shape a mentoring scheme to help graduate teaching assistants develop their instructional practice and gain professional qualifications

Thomas Rodgers, Claudia E Henninger

The University of Manchester

Online class asynchronous or synchronous

Synchronous or asynchronous? When to use which when teaching online

Eunice Costilla Cruz and Elizabeth Marcial Morales examine the right time to make use of synchronous moments in virtual courses, and when asynchronous ones are more suitable

Eunice Costilla Cruz , Elizabeth Marcial Morales

Monterrey Institute of Technology