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10 Feb 2010 10:20:20
Vice Chancellor of the University of Bedfordshire Professor Les Ebdon CBE is giving evidence today (Wednesday) to the Science and Technology Select Committee's inquiry on the impact of spending cuts on scientific research.
Chair of million+, Professor Ebdon will make clear that, even in difficult economic times, world-leading research should be funded wherever it is found and will argue that there is no case to support the concentration of postgraduate doctoral students in just a handful of universities.
He said: "Any move towards an increase in research concentration would be a false economy: a handful of universities cannot possibly deliver the dynamic and innovative research base which the UK needs and which the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) should be promoting. The recent increase in concentration may have been described by Hefce (the Higher Education Funding Council for England) as an "initial" step but it could become a slippery slope.
"Many modern universities are hugely productive in their postgraduate provisions on very low levels of funding and with highly successful research groups that are relatively small in size. There is no robust evidence that postgraduate doctoral provision is dependent on a critical mass of world-leading research or that this produces greater efficiency and better outcomes.
“Expanding excellence, innovation and opportunity should be at the heart of postgraduate provision in the UK. Sacrificing this idea, to supposedly preserve quality, is just what those who would cut higher education budgets further, want to hear. All universities need to make clear that the result would be a narrowing of opportunities for students and graduates."
Latest news» 2010» February» Vice Chancellor gives evidence to Select Committee
