logo
episode-header-image
Aug 2024
19m 32s

Can universities make their sums work?

SKY NEWS
About this episode
Can universities make their sums work?  
As students nervously receive their A-level results, many of the universities they'll enrol in are facing their own concerns over what's next...   
  
Academics have warned that years of underfunding and a lack of lucrative international students at British universities after visa changes risks the sector's ability to provide top-class education and, for some institutions, whether they'll be able to keep teaching at all.  
  
On this episode, Niall Paterson is joined by two university vice-chancellors, Professor Jane Harrington at Greenwich and Professor David Maguire at East Anglia, to hear the realities and challenges faced by universities across the country.  
  
Plus, our business correspondent Paul Kelso explains why higher education is facing the crisis it's in now. 
 
Producer: Soila Apparicio  
Editor: Paul Stanworth 
Up next
Apr 2025
'Defiled and looted' - returning home during the Sudan war
Civil war has been raging in Sudan for two years. The conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has seen famine, destruction, and millions driven from their homes. Among them, the family and friends of our Africa correspondent Yous ... Show More
16m 11s
Apr 2025
Did Trump just win the election for Canada’s Mark Carney
Mark Carney's Liberals have won the Canadian election in a remarkable turnaround for the centre-left party.      The Liberal Party was well behind in the polls just months ago.  That's before Carney replaced Justin Trudeau as leader and US President Donald Trump soured relations ... Show More
14m 52s
Apr 2025
From Shanghai to Scunthorpe - what's China's influence on UK industry?
British Steel's Scunthorpe steelworks are now effectively under government control after the business secretary said Chinese owner Jingye had decided to stop buying enough raw materials to keep the blast furnaces going.  Jonathan Reynolds said the government took the action as st ... Show More
14m 17s
Recommended Episodes
Apr 2025
Why Trump’s university crackdown is driving professors off US campuses
With academics leaving the US, funding cuts looming over universities for alleged failures to combat antisemitism, and foreign students facing deportation for pro-Palestinian activism, the Trump administration’s policies are being felt at colleges across the United States. What’s ... Show More
25m 11s
Jul 2025
Gown and out: are British universities broke?
<p>UK universities are internationally renowned, but their finances are in a mess. Our correspondent offers a lesson in how to fix them. Why an amateur <a href="https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2025/07/06/struggling-with-the-trade-war-amateur-football-might-help?ut ... Show More
20m 43s
Mar 2025
"Hope Labour": The Reality of Sessional Academia
Academic careers have long been associated with stability, prestige, and a clear path from graduate school to tenure. But in today’s universities, an increasing number of scholars find themselves trapped in precarious, low-paid sessional contracts - far from the secure careers th ... Show More
39m 23s
Oct 2024
The Consultants are Coming!
Outside consultants are helping cash-strapped colleges cut majors, like foreign languages, that once seemed essential — and are taking the heat for those unpopular decisions. Related Reading:  When Cost-Cutting Universities Hire Consultants, Who’s Really Making the Decisions?  ... Show More
30m 5s
Jul 2025
Does university still get you a well-paid job?
Graduates are facing one of the toughest jobs markets in decades. We hear from students in India, the US and UK about whether they feel a university or college degree is worth it as we discuss the cost of attending university around the world and what your job prospects might be ... Show More
17m 27s
Aug 2024
The University of Impossible-to-Get-Into (Update)
<p>America’s top colleges are facing record demand. So why don’t they increase supply? (Part 2 of our series from 2022, “<a href="https://freakonomics.com/freakonomics-radio-goes-back-to-school/"><i>Freakonomics Radio</i> Goes Back to School</a>.”)</p><p> </p><ul><li><strong>SOUR ... Show More
1h 11m
Apr 2025
London School Of Economics President Talks University Funding
President and Vice-chancellor of London School of Economics Larry Kramer discusses the impact of President Trump on US universities as the "effective dismantling" of American higher education. On the UK university funding crisis, Kramer tells Bloomberg's Caroline Hepker and Steph ... Show More
14m 2s
Nov 2024
#513 | The UK University Crisis
<p><strong>⚡️⚡️⚡️  Black Friday Sale ⚡️⚡️⚡️</strong></p><p><strong>Special link: </strong><a href="https://bit.ly/BlackFridayELFCM25">https://bit.ly/BlackFridayELFCM25</a></p><p>💰  Save 20% AND unlock €500 in English-learning challenges<br>⏳  Limited availability<br>⏱  Ends 23:5 ... Show More
23m 35s
Apr 2025
How has the war in Ukraine divided Western countries?
While the US is pushing for a quick end, the Europeans are increasing their military aid to Kyiv. And with no end in sight to the fighting, can those differences be bridged? In this episode:  Hanna Shelest, Director, Security Programmes, Ukrainian Prism. Glenn Diesen, Professor, ... Show More
25m 6s