Campus by Times Higher Education

Campus: How to turn university students into engaged citizens

In 2024, more people than ever in history will be going to the polls to vote in elections in
more than 80 countries, including the US and the UK. As pillars of democratic societies, universities and colleges are integral to the exercise of choosing our public
representatives. In today’s episode we speak to two political scientists about voting habits, including among Generation Z, and how universities can encourage their students to engage in the democratic process.

Elizabeth Matto is director of the Eagleton Institute of Politics, a research professor and teacher-scholar-practitioner of democratic education and director of the Center for Youth Political Participation at Rutgers University. She talks to us about what civic engagement is, how campuses can support their students to vote and engage as citizens, and universities’ mission to prepare young people to be part of a democratic society. She also gives tips for facilitating political discussion in the classroom and creating an environment that allows students to be brave, respectful and open with their views. Her new book, To Keep the Republic: Thinking, Talking, and Acting Like a Democratic Citizen (Rutgers University Press, 2024) is published in April.

Michael Bruter is a professor of political science and European politics in the department of government at the London School of Economics and Political Science and director of the Electoral Psychology Observatory. Michael has published seven books, including his latest book with Sarah Harrison, Inside the Mind of a Voter (Princeton University Press, 2020), and multiple articles in the fields of elections, political behaviour, political psychology, identities, public opinion, extreme right politics and social science research methods. He told us what their research has shown about first-time voters, including debunking misconceptions such as that young people don’t care about elections, and why voting is like bungee jumping.

Campus interview: James Purnell, president and vice-chancellor of the University of the Arts London

James Purnell has been the president and vice-chancellor of the University of the Arts London since 2021. He joined UAL after a career that included key positions at the BBC (as director of strategy and digital, and director of audio and education) and as a research fellow on the Institute of Public Policy Research’s media project. He has served as special adviser on the knowledge economy to UK prime minister Tony Blair and as an MP and cabinet minister.

This wide-ranging Campus interview draws on Purnell’s wealth of knowledge of public policy, the digital landscape and the creative industries. The conversation covers universities’ social purpose, the potential of online to widen access to a creative education, what AI could mean for the arts, and how government policy could be shaped to better support students. He also talks about how urban development can foster creativity, and how his experience as a film producer shaped his view of the arts’ potential to make a difference in the world.

Campus: Microcredentials are knocking. Will higher education answer?

From employers to policy makers, universities and their students, everyone agrees that alternative credentials are a good thing for the economy and for expanding access to higher education. But it’s one thing to think it’s a good idea and another to make it happen. The truth is demand for microcredentials remains low among students, the business plans are patchy and higher education providers haven’t fully embraced the new models. 

In this episode we hear from an institution who has managed to get alternative credentialing right in a big way. The University of Edinburgh has been building Moocs (massive open online courses) and microcredentials for over 10 years. It currently offers 80 online master’s courses and 100 Moocs and microcredentials, reaching 4.7 million learners around the world. Melissa Highton, assistant principal of online and open learning at the university, is here to tell us about their strategy behind developing Moocs, how they remain relevant to millions of learners and the secret behind their commercial success. 

Michael D. Smith, a professor of information technology and public policy at Heinz College and Tepper School Of Business at Carnegie Mellon University, speaks with us about his recent book The Abundant University. Having observed disruption in the television and music industries, he urges universities to leverage technology to reach more students and secure their futures. 

 

Read more from Melissa Highton on Campus "A look back over 10 years of Moocs"

Campus interview: Mike Ibba from Chapman University on mentorship and the future of US science

January is a month of change and new beginnings and our guest for this episode speaks about his experience of both, in terms of his career, the relationship between the arts and sciences and the state of US science. 

Microbiologist Mike Ibba joins us to discuss Chapman University's decision to move its philosophy department into the Schmid College of Science and Technology and why he wants training the next generation of scientists to be his lasting legacy. Ibba has been the dean of the college since 2020 after spending nearly 20 years at The Ohio State university. He also shares his experience of making the transition from a large, publicly-funded R1 institution to a small, private R2 institution. 

Thanks to Chapman University for sponsoring this episode.

Campus: How to do public engagement

In the lead-up to the Times Higher Education Awards 2023, for this episode, we talk to two winners from last year, both of whom share their advice, insights and best practice for engaging the public. King’s College London and health science company Zoe won the award for Outstanding Marketing/Communications Team for the Covid Symptom Study app. Tanya Wood, talks about the agile methods the team used to communicate the science in real time in a way that saw millions sign up for the app and impacted UK Covid policy. Hugo Bowles joins us to explain the Dickens Code, an ongoing project in which he and principal investigator Claire Wood, of the University of Leicester, enlisted the global public to unravel the mysteries of Charles Dickens shorthand. 

Campus interview: Laura Allen from Trinity University on connecting student well-being to the natural world

 

Can spending time in natural environments support students’ well-being? The is the question that an interdisciplinary team of researchers and educators at Trinity University in San Antonio Texas wanted to answer.  Despite research showing that spending time outside does support students’ mental health, the team struggled to get students to actually spend time outdoors. So they developed an innovative course combing theory, research and practice to help students improve their mental wellness and better understand how it’s connected with the natural environment.

 

On today’s episode of the podcast, Laura Allen, co-developer of the course and a professor in the department of education at Trinity University joins us to talk about what inspired her and colleagues to develop this programme, how it combines forest bathing and undergraduate research, and, most importantly, if it’s helped their students. 

 

Thanks to one of our newest Campus+ members Trinity University for sponsoring this episode. 

Watch the video recording of this episode on Campus. 

Campus: What to do when principles of free speech are tested

Academic freedom and free speech are the defining values of higher education institutions. But sticking to those principles becomes very difficult when polarising political events divide communities on and off campus. In this episode, free speech champion and the chancellor at Vanderbilt University, Daniel Diermeier, discusses how academic leaders should respond to the Israel-Hamas war.

Civil discourse is part of Dr. Diermeier’s solution to tribalism on campus and he gives examples of how that has been coached and encouraged at Vanderbilt. He also shares what is was like in the first few months of his chancellorship when researchers at Vanderbilt’s University Medical Center were on the cutting edge of Covid-19 vaccine development.

Find more resources from colleagues and peers on how to protect academic freedom on Campus 

Campus: Unlocking people power through citizen science

Find out how engaging non-academics in research can uncover and disperse new knowledge and ways of thinking that could help shape solutions to seemingly intractable problems

Campus: How to be a good mentor and mentee

For this episode of the podcast we handed the mic over to the Campus network to get their top tips on how to be a good mentor and mentee. These relationships can make or break academic careers so getting them right is crucial. Our contributors offer suggestions on how to choose a mentor or supervisor, how to give advice, how to do reverse mentoring and how to lay the ground rules so that everyone gets what they need from these relationships. 

This episode's contributors are:

Eve Riskin, dean of undergraduate education, Stevens Institute of Technology 

Monika Foster, head of department marketing, operations and systems, Faculty of Business and Law, Northumbria University 

Jon McNaughtan, associate professor, educational psychology, leadership, and counseling, Texas Tech University 

Sioux McKenna, director, Center for Postgraduate Studies, Rhodes University 

Preman Rajalingam, director, Centre for Teaching, Learning and Pedagogy, Institute of Pedagogical Innovation, Research and Excellence, Nanyang Technological University

Bryan Hanson, graduate student ombudsperson, Virginia Tech

Tara Brabazon, dean of graduate studies and professor of cultural studies, Charles Darwin University 

Barbara Kensington-Miller, associate professor curriculum and pedagogy, University of Auckland

Elena Riva, associate professor and director of education, Institute for Advanced Teaching and Learning, University of Warwick

Gabriel Paquette, associate provost for academic affairs and faculty development, University of Maine

Lucas Lixinski, professor law and justice, UNSW Sydney

 

Campus interview: Ngiare Brown, chancellor, James Cook University

Ngiare Brown is the first female and the first indigenous chancellor of James Cook University. She’s joined the institution at a time when efforts to indigenise Australian higher education are taking root, with the recent interim report of the Universities Accord saying that putting First Nations at the heart of Australian higher education would result in positive, long-term changes. 

Dr. Brown intends to make higher education a place for indigenous students, starting with James Cook, one of her alma maters – a goal which she balances with an acknowledgment of the legacy of the university’s namesake. In this interview, she talks about what she’d like to see changed in Australian higher education, how researchers should engage better with First Nations communities and how a welcome to country statement can make a big difference when it’s done the right way.