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Elizabeth Gibney on the Wellcome Trust’s top job, one of the most powerful roles in UK research

A sideways look at the week’s big stories

New v-c of Wales’ research powerhouse is keen to sharpen focus on China, writes David Matthews

Academy’s use of financial instruments worries politicians. Martin Mevius reports

Third of sector expects staff to hold qualification, FoI request shows. Elizabeth Gibney reports

The Quality Assurance Agency will be bailed out by the taxpayer if it is sued by a private college that fails an inspection, it has emerged.

Universities hope California’s referendum on state funding may set a precedent. Jon Marcus writes

‘Probably the most significant medieval historian’ rounds on absentee students. Paul Jump writes

Unions protest over transfer of academic support services to external firm. Jack Grove reports

IE University in Segovia occupies the site of the first Dominican convent on Spanish soil, Santa Cruz la Real.

The UK higher education sector has concluded that an insurance scheme to guarantee international students a fees refund or alternative places should their course or university close down is “essential”.

An interview with former foreign secretary David Miliband is among the first podcasts now available on ̽����Ƶ's own podcast channel.

Academics’ pay and stress levels featured prominently in the ten most popular ̽����Ƶ news stories of 2012.

The number of students embarking on pharmacy programmes in England will be restricted to match the number of NHS-funded training placements.

One of the men who predicted the existence of the Higgs boson particle has been given the highest possible accolade in the New Year Honours list, released today.

An outsourcing company has announced that it will buy i-graduate, a firm that surveys international students and agents, for up to £7.5 million.

George Osborne, the chancellor, has announced the allocation of £21.5 million for projects to unlock practical applications for the “miracle material” graphene.

The Home Office has released more details of the controversial extra 100,000 interviews to be introduced for international students planning to study in the UK, which will cover applicants' educational history and chosen institution.

Universities are increasingly paying for student field trips after this year's hike in student fees, a new report suggests.

Chinese students who study in Britain return to their home country more open-minded and tolerant, according to a new study.

The government has announced changes to copyright that it hopes will bring existing exceptions for education, research and archiving up to date.

Universities that failed to fill undergraduate places this year will not generally be hit with cuts to their student number allocation next year, unless their shortfalls were "extreme", England's funding council has announced.

Cambridge tech to boost students’ computer skills captures imagination of British public. Chris Parr reports

David Willetts points to the price paid by Ivy League for donor cash. David Matthews writes

MPs told that universities can’t always take their IP straight to the bank. Elizabeth Gibney reports

Principal investigators on large research projects do not have the necessary skills to foster strong relationships between the academy and business, according to a council member of the Arts and Humanities Research Council.

Male-dominated headhunting firms paid to identify potential university leaders are hampering efforts to recruit more female vice-chancellors.

Sandy Hook shootings likely to fuel debate over carrying weapons on campus. Jon Marcus reports

Behind closed doors, elite institutions were highly critical of White Paper reforms, finds John Morgan

‘Mixed economy’ for initiatives makes a difference but national ambit is missing. Jack Grove reports

Traditional values for OU-led Mooc platform that aims to rival US providers. Chris Parr reports

Theresa May, the home secretary, has been accused by a vice-chancellor of acting “like a Dalek” and of “casting a dark cloud over British higher education” in her refusal to change course on student visas.

Eschatology knocks and hysteria grows as true believers see fate in the diary. Chris Parr reports

More than 150 posts to go as London Met is forced to tighten its belt. David Matthews reports

Eleven journal papers have been retracted after it was discovered that they were accepted on the basis of fake reviews.

History publications press funders to rethink ‘gold’ licence and ‘green’ embargo. Paul Jump writes

These are among the items in The Cabinet of Things used by Falmouth University's Academy for Innovation and Research as tools for stimulating creativity, particularly during "sandpit" problem-solving workshops for businesses.

Jack Grove reports from the SRHE annual conference on efforts to clarify an ‘unclearly defined’ role

Part-time teachers are not getting the support they require from university departments, despite their growing importance within the academy.

The University of Reading is to leave the 1994 Group, becoming the eighth institution this year to depart from the group of small research-intensive universities.

The leader of Scottish Labour has attacked the free university tuition north of the border as being "essentially regressive".

A fifth Parliamentary committee has urged the government to remove international students from its net migration target, warning that failure to do so will damage UK universities.

By Scott Jaschik for

Race is higher education’s “dirty little secret” and more should be done to tackle the issue, a debate has heard.

International students make up 12 per cent of the total student population at UK universities, a sharp rise from 8 per cent eight years earlier.

A London university has announced it is to set up a specialist school for gifted young mathematicians as part of the government's plans to improve mathematics education in the state sector.

State school students in England with university-educated parents are five times more likely to reach higher education than those from "disadvantaged backgrounds", and are also more likely to go to an elite institution.

A UK-based platform for massive open online courses (Moocs) to rival established providers in the US has been launched by The Open University.

A managerial culture is growing in universities as they “position themselves to align more systematically with government and industrial sectors”, a conference has heard.

Internationally diverse departments outperform others, study finds. David Matthews writes

Ten Australian universities are performing “above the world standard” for research, including four performing “well above” world standard, according to an evaluation of Australian research.

The perception among science, technology, engineering and maths PhD students that any career outside academia is akin to failure is denying industry access to high-quality, PhD-educated employees, a leading neuroscientist has claimed.

Regions could be hurt by research concentration, conference told. Elizabeth Gibney reports

Paul Jump talks to Andrew Coats, go-to director for a game-changing approach to collaboration