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  1. Realising the benefits of the KEF through collaboration

    February 5, 2020

    The KEF affords universities an opportunity to highlight the impact of Knowledge Exchange, but at Greenwich and across University Alliance, we believe its true social, economic and environmental benefits can only be realised through collaboration, within and across universities. Last week Research England released the conclusions of their consultation on the upcoming Knowledge Exchange Framework (KEF). For universities, the KEF is an opportunity …

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  2. The DTA is Intersectoral- Part 4

    January 27, 2020

    Dr Vladimir Vukovic, Deputy Director of the Energy research stream within UA’s Doctoral Training Alliance relates his experience working across both academia and industry, and the benefits this has brought him. The DTA programme is committed to not only supporting researchers through their PhDs but providing them with the full range of skills and experience they’ll need for a fulfilling career in academia or industry. Working with the DTA Energy …

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  3. The DTA is Intersectoral- Part 3

    January 20, 2020

    I caught up with DTA3 researcher Arantza Cobela Garcia to discuss her research and how the Doctoral Training Alliance has helped her apply it to real world problems, crossing the boundary between academia and professional research. Arantza is a researcher on the extended Doctoral Training Alliance programme (DTA3), run by University Alliance. Her PhD is hosted by the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) and falls within the Applied Bioscience…

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  4. The DTA is Intersectoral- Part 2

    January 14, 2020

    Doctoral Training Alliance researcher SreeHarsha Bandaru writes about his experience of crossing the divide between academia and industry, at the Nuclear Innovation Bootcamp, and how being part of DTA helped him to get there. The Nuclear Innovation Bootcamp is a fully funded two-week intensive programme where 50 speakers, 30 mentors and 10 organisers help participants design a company and a product that will transform the creation of nuclear ener…

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  5. The DTA is Intersectoral- Part 1

    January 6, 2020

    The Doctoral Training Alliance is University Alliance’s flagship programme, making funded doctoral fellowships available across the UK’s leading professional and technical universities. At its heart, the programme is committed to being International, Interdisciplinary and Intersectoral. In the series The DTA is Intersectoral, we showcase how our funded PhDs cut across different sectors, building bridges between academia and industry, and provides…

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  6. Regional Investment, European Funding and Defining Value: The Future Challenges for Research

    December 18, 2019

    This blog was initially published by Research Fortnight. The new government’s agenda poses universities some existential questions, says Vanessa Wilson A December election was always going to be a daunting prospect. But one heartening aspect was witnessing the role of universities and students’ unions in supporting student voter registration and turnout. It might not have been the youthquake some were predicting, but voter apathy was certainly no…

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  7. British Academy join our call to look beyond salary-led definitions of value

    December 4, 2019

    With a potential future Conservative government threatening to tackle “low-value” degrees, the British Academy’s Head of Higher Education and Skills Policy, Harriet Barnes, asks what we actually mean by “value” when it comes to Higher Education and how we can avoid being led astray by narrow definitions. The question of the ‘average’ salary in the UK suddenly became a hot topic in the General Election campaign when an audience member at the BBC Q…

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  8. Invest in technical skills by bridging the false HE/ FE divide

    November 30, 2019

    The UK is facing a problem. Gaps in skills are becoming ever more critical in light of a rapidly evolving economy but there is a fundamental misunderstanding of the nature and delivery of the Higher Technical Education we will rely on to address these shortages. As we prepare for a new government, it is more important than ever to tackle these misconceptions and ensure that Further and Higher Education are accessible to, and work for, everyone. S…

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  9. The Next Government must Invest Across the Whole of Nursing Education

    November 23, 2019

    Commitments from political parties to return financial support for nursing students are welcome, but for Alliance universities to help resolve the NHS workforce crisis, investment must be made across the pipeline of education and delivery. A crisis in the NHS workforce Alliance Universities train over 56,000 nurses, midwives, occupational therapists and other allied healthcare professionals (AHPs) each year. A vital pipeline of talent for the nat…

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  10. Profile: Professor Alistair Fitt, Deputy Chair of University Alliance

    November 1, 2019

    Professor Alistair Fitt began his education at a state-run grammar school before going on to Oxford University to study mathematics at undergraduate, master’s and PhD level. He then embarked on a fairly traditional academic career, working for the university as a research assistant in an engineering lab. Having said that, he never set out to become a Vice-Chancellor or senior administrator. In that respect, Alistair’s career was partly serendipit…

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