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The UK's only independent think tank devoted to higher education.

Nick Hillman

  • Is a new higher education white paper for England imminent?

    2 November 2021 by Nick Hillman

    It was disappointing that higher education was almost entirely absent from the Chancellor’s Budget Statement to the House of Commons last week – I say ‘almost’ because UK universities did get one passing mention (the same as the English Civil War while cider got 10). Plus, as part of the…

  • HEPI comment on the Budget and Spending Review

    27 October 2021 by Nick Hillman

    Nick Hillman, the Director of the Higher Education Policy Institute, said: The slowdown in planned public spending on research and development is disappointing. Unlike other areas of government spending, when it comes to research, public funding “crowds in” rather than “crowds out” private funding. So the road towards the long-standing…

  • Expect the unexpected? Six things to look out for in the Spending Review

    25 October 2021 by Nick Hillman

    HEPI Director, Nick Hillman, looks forward to this week’s Spending Review. If you made me bet hard cash, I would say it currently seems unlikely that anything positive to do with higher education and research will make up the main story coming out of this week’s Spending Review. On research…

  • New report says R&D spending should focus on the regions as part of ‘levelling up’

    21 October 2021

    Catching the wave: harnessing regional research and development to level up (HEPI Report 144) by Professor Mary Stuart and Liz Shutt shows how university research and innovation activities can play a major part in developing regional economies. The authors argue for encouraging engagement between universities and local employers and their…

  • International students need more relevant careers support if UK is to remain a destination of choice

    14 October 2021 by Nick Hillman

    The Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI) and Kaplan are publishing new research on the expectations and experiences of international students in relation to careers support and employability. Paying more for less? Employability support for international students at UK universities (HEPI Report 143) includes specially commissioned new research from the Careers Research…

  • Three important things to remember about the Spending Review

    13 October 2021 by Nick Hillman

    The Spending Review is just a few days away. There’s not much more than can be said about it … except perhaps three things. 1. The question I am most commonly asked at the moment is: ‘What will be in the Spending Review?’ It is interesting to speculate but it…

  • The state of higher education at the start of the 2021 academic year

    8 October 2021 by Nick Hillman

    These are the remarks made by Nick Hillman, HEPI’s Director, last night to the University Marketing Forum’s dinner. Introduction Thank you for inviting me to speak to you. I know this meeting has jumped around in our diaries for a year or more, so isn’t it wonderful to be able…

  • Seven Takeaways from the Tory Conference

    6 October 2021 by Nick Hillman

    There has been no shortage of education events at this week’s Tory Party Conference – mainly on the fringe programme but with a little education action in the main auditorium too. No one could have gone to all of the education-themed events, as some have overlapped, but here are some…