Saudi Arabia has triumphed in a snapshot ranking released on Thursday: the top universities in the Arab world. Three of the top five universities were in Saudi Arabia, while Morocco and Egypt also secured three spots each in the top 15. The ranking is an initial release before consultation with the sector to determine how best to evaluate the region. …

Sir Simon Hughes, former deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, is taking up a post with the Open University. He is to become the university’s head of public affairs for one year, covering for maternity leave. Sir Simon, who served as justice minister during the coalition, will represent the university in areas such as dealing with government. The OU’s Steve …

University bosses enjoyed salary packages worth more than £272,000 on average last year, as pay for senior leaders rose, a report suggests. In some cases, vice-chancellors were handed pay rises of more than 10 per cent, according to a new study by the University and College Union (UCU), which calculated that these university leaders took home almost seven times more …

Despite the hours students and their lecturers spend together, there’s a disparity in how much each knows about what the other thinks. Students have their chance to formally evaluate classes, just in case their feelings weren’t flashing across their faces throughout the lectures. But, coursework grades aside, students don’t tend to have access to the inner thoughts of their university …

20 per cent of children are obese by the time they leave primary school Getty Images Schools should stop “fat shaming” overweight children and instead give them helpful advice to lose weight, a new report by Olympian and adventurer James Cracknell says which also backs a sugar tax. Teachers outlining their concerns about chubby pupils in letters to parents are …

Oil and gas workers who lose their jobs amid the industry downturn could be given the opportunity to retrain as teachers. Funding will be available from a £12m Scottish government transition fundalready announced for the industry. People wanting to retrain in science, technology, engineering and maths will be given priority. The General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS) said it could …

Universities should insist that students learn a second language as part of their degree to help prevent dementia in later life and broaden their horizons, a language expert has claimed. Professor Antonella Sorace, founder of the Bilingualism Matters Centre at Edinburgh University, said there was now good evidence to show that bilingualism could protect the brain in later life. Studies …

There are two fundamental questions every prospective international student needs to ask themselves: Where would I want to study? And what language do I want to study in? If the answer to the latter question is “English”, then your quest to find the right location just got that much easier. A new visualisation tool, compiled by StudyPortals, has mapped the …

Highest paid: Professor Andrew Hamilton of Oxford University Rex Features University vice-chancellors enjoyed salary packages worth more than an average £272,000 last year, with some being handed pay rises of more than 10 per cent, a new report has claimed. The University and College Union (UCU) calculated that these university leaders took home almost seven times more than the average wages …

Some parents have been seen “using cannabis” while dropping off and collecting their children from a primary school, it has been revealed. St John’s CofE Primary School in Radcliffe, Greater Manchester, issued a letter after parents reported the class B drug “being used” around the site. The letter said it had been “noticed” by some older children, adding it is …