Ahead of U.S. Supreme Court rulings on a pair of affirmative action cases this spring, students at the University of North Carolina are divided on the issue of affirmative action — the practice of factoring race in admissions to boost minority enrollment — and the role it should play in creating a diverse student body, Reuters reports. (April 2023)  …

Distressed parents of Kenyan university students stuck in Sudan converge in a house in Kenya’s Wajir County while they wait for news of their stranded children in Sudan’s capital, Khartoum. The imminent end of a 72-hour cease-fire between Sudan’s warring forces has left many Kenyan parents extremely apprehensive, including Osman Mohamed. “My son is among…

In June, the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule on two cases that claim that the affirmative action policies at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina discriminate against Asian American applicants. While the court has upheld the legality of such preferences in admissions three times, the past is no guide to the future – and colleges must now…

Harvard University said in a statement that former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern had been appointed to dual fellowships at Harvard Kennedy School and to a concurrent fellowship at the Berkman Klein Center later in 2023.    “I am incredibly humbled to be joining Harvard University as a fellow — not only will it give me the opportunity to share…

Japan has one of the lowest birthrates in the world, and the number of 18-year-olds in the country has dropped by nearly half in the past 30 years. The result is shrinking enrollments, lowered standards, shuttered schools and economic pains as companies fight over a limited supply of young talent. As the U.S. ages, its…

A former Harvard University professor convicted of lying to federal investigators about his ties to a Chinese-run science recruitment program and failing to pay taxes on payments from a Chinese university was sentenced Wednesday to supervised release and ordered to pay more than $83,000 in restitution and fines. Charles Lieber, 64, was sentenced by Judge…

Almost every category of higher education in the U.S. has declining enrollments. But trade programs – short certificates that offer real-world skills like auto repair and industrial automation – are a hit. The Hechinger Report’s Olivia Sanchez looks at one program in Tennessee to discover why: students love the flexibility, practicality and high wages. Read…

Terrica Purvis squinted through goggles as her hands carefully guided a pipette full of indigo-tinted fluid into clear glass test tubes. It was the last chemistry lab of the winter quarter at Everett Community College. Purvis was working through the steps of what chemistry professor Valerie Mosser jokingly refers to as the “post-apocalypse survival” lab…

A survey of more than 1,000 global education agents from five continents found that there will be a surge in applications this year. However, students’ top concerns vary – Chinese students care most about rankings, while students from the Middle East and Africa worry more about costs. Dive into the research in this report from…

French! That’s according to writer Freddie DeBoer, who cites the hundreds of millions of French speakers across Africa. DeBoer argues that “safe majors” like business or computer science often suffer from high competition, low educational standards, volatile demand and susceptibility to artificial intelligence (AI). Furthermore, the idea of a “practical major” is meaningless, constantly changing…

The latest session of the U.N. Commission on Population and Development is happening this week in New York. Attendees have discussed how women and girls are still denied equal access to education, how aging in rich countries and high birth rates in poorer ones affect public schooling, and how the pandemic may have punched a…

Alabama State University is partnering on a new project to make free mental health resources more widely available to students at historically Black colleges and universities, The Associated Press reported.     The “She Care Wellness Pods” will give students access to therapy sessions, workshops, yoga and quiet spaces. Actress Taraji P. Henson’s Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation…

The authors of a new book, “Campus Economics: How Economic Thinking Can Help Improve College and University Decisions,” think so. Sandy Baum and Michael McPherson weigh in on the future of tenure, the effects of high inflation and why colleges don’t shut down unpopular majors. Weigh their arguments for yourself in this interview with Scott…

In a 2019 survey, more than 40% of East and South Asian students said gun violence is their biggest fear when it comes to studying in the U.S. Meanwhile, English-speaking countries with less gun violence, such as Canada, Australia and Britain, have seen a rise in international education. Are the two related? Liam Knox of…

Florida is home to New College, whose roughly 700 students largely devise their own degree programs. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has accused Florida’s public education system of indoctrinating students in left-wing ideas and has removed New College’s president and board. (DeSantis is expected to announce this summer as a Republican candidate for the 2024 presidential…

The Biden administration announced it would end the China Initiative, a Trump-era plan to investigate academic espionage by China. However, the Biden administration has set new compliance, disclosure and privacy rules, and research collaboration has declined. Many researchers, especially Asian American ones, report being afraid to work alongside their Chinese peers. Can the U.S. balance…

Tulane University President Michael Fitts thinks that AI can make creative work easier but will never replace human creativity itself. AI “can find an answer, but it can’t be the first to ask the question,” he wrote. As long as that remains the case, universities will need to train human minds, he added. Read the…

U.S. News & World Report publishes the most influential college rankings in the U.S. But last year, Yale Law School – the No. 1 legal program in the country for years – chose not to participate. Twelve of the top 14 law schools followed suit, though most still made it into this year’s rankings despite…

Many college graduates aspire to work in government because of the stability, benefits and sense of purpose. But at least six states have tried to reduce the importance of a college degree in getting a job, arguing that the requirements are a burden on poorer applicants and result in turning away many gifted ones –…

The cost of U.S. tourist and student visas, among other kinds, is increasing on May 30. See the full breakdown in this news release from the U.S. State Department. (March 2023) …

Two-year community colleges, which serve many of the students who need the most support, have the lowest completion rates of any kind of university or college, The Associated Press reported. The availability of advisers, students say, is often a deciding factor in who succeeds, the AP says in its story. (April 2023) …

Younger Americans – millennials and adults in Generation Z – are more engaged in addressing climate change on- and offline, according to a 2021 Pew Research poll. Compared with older adults, Gen Zers and millennials are talking more about the need for action on climate change, including discussing and sharing information on social media platforms…

Every year, the Common Application, used by thousands of U.S. colleges and universities, releases data on applicants. The field is changing fast: applicants are now more likely to be women, and less likely to submit standardized test scores. Read the story from Scott Jaschik of Inside Higher Ed. (April 2023) …

While colleges work hard to keep students safe, gun violence can happen anywhere in the U.S. International students discuss the issue, and how it has changed their perceptions of their host country, in this story from Dan Friedell of VOA Learning English. (April 2023)   …

Between 2012 and 2018, U.S. enrollment in humanities majors dropped by over 14%. Many students think that the humanities, like history or English, won’t get them a good job or aren’t relevant to their interests. But the true picture may be less dire. Some colleges are bringing their humanities programs into the 21st century, and…

A university on the largest Native American reservation in the U.S. launched its accredited doctoral program, becoming the first among more than 30 accredited tribal colleges and universities across the country to offer such a high-level degree. The program at Navajo Technical University will be dedicated to sustaining Diné culture and language. Dine is the…

When he looked to the future, Grayson Hart always saw a college degree. He was a good student at a good high school. He wanted to be an actor, or maybe a teacher. Growing up, he believed college was the only route to a good job, stability and a happy life. The pandemic changed his…

U.S. educators are debating the merits and risks of a new, free artificial intelligence tool called ChatGPT, which students are using to write passable high school essays. So far, there isn’t a reliable way to catch cheating. Matt Dibble has the story. …