News Talks by Times Higher Education

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Join the Times Higher Education editorial team for behind the headlines discussions on the biggest stories in global higher education. New Talks is a fortnightly podcast offering analysis on the latest developments in university policy, research, funding, student success and much more.

  1. 2d ago

    News Talks podcast: What impact will binning DSIT have on UK R&D?

    With Andy Burnham’s new government announcing plans to scrap the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, we discuss what this could mean for UK research --- One of the first moves of Andy Burnham’s new Labour administration has been to announce the closure of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) in favour of research sitting within the business department. On this week’s News Talks podcast, we discuss the role of DSIT over its three year lifespan, the legacy of key figures within the department such as Patrick Vallance and how it’s removal may affect the management and funding of research in the UK. Campus editor Miranda Prynne speaks to Times Higher Education features editor Paul Jump about the thinking behind Burnham’s decision, reactions across higher education, why DSIT was created in the first place and the possible implications for science and research. For more on what Andy Burnham’s premiership may mean for UK higher education, listen to 8th July episode in which Miranda explores this topic with THE editor-in-chief Chris Havergal: Podcast: What could Andy Burnham as prime minister mean for UK universities?

  2. Jul 8

    News Talks podcast: What could Andy Burnham as prime minister mean for UK higher education?

    We discuss what the next three years may hold for UK universities under an Andy Burnham premiership.  --- With Andy Burnham expected to take over as prime minister this month, this week’s podcast explores what this may mean for the UK’s beleaguered higher education sector. Times Higher Education editor-in-chief Chris Havergal sits down with Miranda Prynne to examine what is known about the former Manchester mayor’s views on higher education and the role universities might play in his future policy agenda. They discuss how Burnham’s key ambitions might shape the role of universities in the wider education UK education and training system, the value of research within his planned “innovation nation” and where he may stand on key issues such as international students and student loans. Finally, Chris gives his take on how universities can best prove their worth and find favour with the prime minister-in-waiting.

  3. Jun 24

    News Talks podcast: How is global higher education responding to the SDGs?

    What do the 2026 Sustainability Impact Ratings tell us about the countries and regions whose universities are prioritising work towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals - - - As the 2026 Sustainability Impact Ratings are unveiled, we discuss what the latest results reveal about institutional and regional efforts on UN Sustainable Development Goals. Times Higher Education rankings editor Naomi Firsht talks to Miranda Prynne about the institutions and countries which are leading the pack in working towards each of the 17 goals. They discuss the broader global trends highlighted in the ratings which show universities in less wealthy nations closing the gap against their wealthier counterparts and Asia’s institutions growing their presence year on year.

  4. Jun 11

    News Talks podcast: Is China’s Greater Bay Area the next global higher education hub?

    We discuss the ambitions of Shenzhen and other cities in China’s Greater Bay Area to develop higher education systems that match their global economic and industrial clout. --- Shenzhen and other cities in China’s Greater Bay Area are leveraging the higher education prowess of neighbouring Hong Kong to develop their own world-leading universities. A series of branch campuses have been set up by prestigious Hong Kong institutions in cities including Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Dongguan, which the Chinese authorities hope will propel the region into the top echelons of global higher education. Times Higher Education’s Asia-Pacific editor John Ross visited one of these youthful institutions, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen (CUHK-SZ), which just 12 years after it’s launch already boasts 13,000 students studying across eight schools with ambitions to grow to 25,000 students when its new medical school – currently under construction – opens. On this week’s episode of News Talks, Campus editor Miranda Prynne asks John about his impressions of Shenzhen and the Greater Bay Area of China – and gets a colourful description of the CUHK-SZ campus. They discuss the Chinese authorities’ ambition to develop a regional higher education offering across the Greater Bay Area in line with its economic and technological advancement, the role that Hong Kong’s globally recognised institutions are playing in this effort and whether Shenzhen and neighbouring cities will ultimately take over as a global hub for higher education.

  5. May 27

    News Talks: Are university mergers the future for UK higher education?

    We discuss whether mergers are a sensible way forward for UK universities beset by financial challenges. The announcement that King’s College London and Cranfield University are planning to join by August 2027, raises questions about whether university mergers offer a sensible way forward for the UK’s beleaguered higher education sector. So this week, on News Talks, Times Higher Education editor-in-chief Chris Havergal joins Campus editor Miranda Prynne to interrogate this question. They explore the reasoning behind King's and Cranfield’s decision but also discuss other recent mergers in the UK and Australia to draw lessons on what works and where difficulties often arise. Chris puts the case for and against university mergers as an answer to UK higher education’s current financial turmoil and offers his take on what the future may hold for a sector in flux. More episodes of News Talks can be found here: News Talks: a Times Higher Education podcast | Times Higher Education (THE).

  6. May 14

    News Talks: The human cost of UK university job cuts laid bare

    We discuss the fall out from tens of thousands of layoffs across UK higher education after a Times Higher Education survey exposed the anger, fear and stress that pervade the sector. In this week’s podcast, the author of the UK redundancy survey, THE features editor Paul Jump talks Miranda Prynne through the results which paint a picture of a demoralised, exhausted and fragmented sector and the human stories behind the cuts. They discuss the strength of feeling among respondents, who and what is blamed for the sector’s financial woes, the impact of the redundancies on those remaining as well as lessons for university senior managers and how institutions might move forward from such a bruising few years.

  7. Apr 30

    News Talks: What next for OfS after Sussex free speech ruling

    As the University of Sussex celebrates legal victory against the Office for Students, we discuss what the ruling means for the future of the regulator. ---  The Office for Students (OfS) has been defeated in the High Court with its £585,000 fine, imposed on the University of Sussex for failing to protect free speech, overturned. In this episode of News Talks, find out what this landmark ruling could mean for the future of the UK’s higher education regulator. Times Higher Education editor Chris Havergal joins Miranda Prynne to talk through the key points upon which Mrs Justice Lieven found in Sussex’s favour, likely reactions to across the university sector and how this ruling might shape the future operations of the OfS.

  8. Apr 15

    News Talks: Can Magyar free Hungary’s universities of Orbán’s populist influence?

    After Péter Magyar’s landslide election victory, we discuss why restoring independence and academic freedom to Hungarian higher education may not be an easy task.  --- Right wing populist leader Viktor Orbán’s 16-year rule in Hungary has come to an end after his rival Peter Magyar won a two thirds majority in the general election. Centre-right leader Magyar has promised to rebuild relations with Europe, tackle corruption and cronyism and restore academic freedom. On this episode of News Talks, Campus editor Miranda Prynne talks to Times Higher Education Europe reporter Seher Asif about why the ousting of Orbán may provoke mixed feelings among Hungary’s academics and higher education leaders, how the former populist leader reshaped the country’s universities and why reversing the Orbán era policies may not be a simple matter. The conversation also turns to what lessons the experience of Hungary’s universities might offer to other higher education systems around the world threatened with government hostility and interference.

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Join the Times Higher Education editorial team for behind the headlines discussions on the biggest stories in global higher education. New Talks is a fortnightly podcast offering analysis on the latest developments in university policy, research, funding, student success and much more.

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