ukstudentnews.co.uk - Keeping uk students updated

Recommendations

A “THOROUGHLY decent” student fractured a man’s jaw outside a nightclub. CCTV footage showed Liverpool Hope University student Craig Robson, 19, walk up to painter Alan Currie, 22, and punch him in the face. As Mr Currie fell, he was hit four more times in the face. Liverpool Crown Court heard Mr Currie woke up in an ambulance with a broken nose and three jaw fractures. Three women had gone to his aid after the beating at 3.25am on February 15 outside the Latin Quarter, Conway Street, Birkenhead. Judge David Boulton heard Robson made a full admission to police. Judge Boulton suspended a six-month sentence for two years and ordered Robson, of Thirlmere Drive, Wallasey, to complete 80 hours’ unpaid work and to pay Mr Currie £1,000 compensation. Brendan Carville, defending, said Robson was a “thoroughly decent” young man.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 10 August 2008, 7:49 GMT

IT IS a student lecture with a sobering difference. Freshers at St Andrews are to be given anti-drinking lessons from the police in a bid to safeguard the future of an iconic academic tradition. The annual Raisin Week foam fight, which sees dozens of students engaging in boisterous revelry in St Salvator's Quadrangle, is considered the social highlight of the year at Scotland's oldest university. But in recent years the event's image has been tarnished by yobbish behaviour fuelled by binge-drinking. Student leaders fear that an increase in drink-fuelled criminal conduct could lead campus officials to pull the plug on the traditional November event. Now freshers at Prince William's alma mater are to be warned by officers that drunken anti-social conduct will lead to them being arrested. They will also be told that a criminal record could harm their career prospects.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 10 August 2008, 7:53 GMT

The UK graduate jobs market seems to be holding firm, with the lowest graduate unemployment rate for five years. An annual survey tracking students six months after graduation found that 5.6% are out of work, compared with 6.1% the previous year. The highest rates of unemployment were among computer science and creative arts graduates. Students with the lowest degree grades were also found to have the worst employment rates. This annual survey from the Higher Education Statistics Agency shows that there is still a demand for students leaving university - with another fall in the unemployment rate among recent graduates.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 10 August 2008, 9:59 GMT

Banks are keen to sign up new undergraduates, but beware the fees, warns Teresa Hunter THOUSANDS of students will soon take that first step down the road to their future and set off for university after Scotland's bumper set of Higher results. But it takes more than academic prowess to make a success of student life. A good grip of basic arithmetic to keep debt under control is also vital, and when it comes to managing your finances, choosing a good bank account is an important first step. Banks bend over backwards to entice students aboard, in the hope that these will be tomorrow's high earners and will stay with them when the money starts rolling in. But once they have caught you, they can come down on you hard if you step out of line. Some will be very unpleasant until you get your finances under control, and these are the nice guys. Others will hammer you with eye-watering charges, burying you in a mountain of debt.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 10 August 2008, 10:02 GMT

Police have launched a double murder inquiry after the bodies of two Chinese students were found in a flat in Newcastle upon Tyne. Northumbria police have not yet named the victims, but said that a man was found lying on a bed in the back bedroom of the ground floor flat and a woman in the front bedroom. Their head injuries were so severe that detectives have not yet worked out the nature of the murder weapon. The bodies were found at about 4.30pm on Saturday afternoon in Croydon Road, an area popular with students and families from the local Asian community. A spokesman for Northumbria police said the victims were thought to be students and efforts were being made to contact their next of kin.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 11 August 2008, 9:10 GMT

Student rents have risen by almost 20% in four years, research suggests. An undergraduate can now expect to pay £61.64 a week, up almost £10 from £52.44 in 2004. The figures, based on 46,000 properties in 73 UK cities, were published by the website accommodationforstudents.com. London was still the most expensive place to study, with an average weekly rent of £102.65, the research showed. The best value towns were Middlesbrough, Stoke, Wolverhampton, Crewe and Bradford where rents are between £40 and £45 a week. The highest in Scotland was St Andrews, where rents topped £82 a week, followed by Edinburgh and Glasgow with average prices £71.06 and £69.34 respectively. The findings showed some "hotspots" where rents have risen well above the national average - renting in Exeter now costs around £78 a week, 35% higher than the average of £58 five years ago. And in Chester, prices have gone up 8% in the past year from around £67 to £73. Traditional English universities such as Liverpool, Birmingham and Manchester are still good value, with rents between £52 and £57 - below the national average. But others are increasing fast - in Leeds increasing student popularity has seen rents rise by 7% in the past year to around £62 a week.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 11 August 2008, 9:11 GMT

Teenagers are starting to save early – in some cases at the age of 11 – to avoid student debt. A poll of teenagers by child trust fund provider the Children's Mutual shows a third of 11 to 18-year-olds are saving for university. As the threat of student debt grows, the poll found 42 per cent of those joining university this year plan to work part-time. Which is just as well, as 78 per cent of parents said the thought the credit crunch would make it harder for them to fund their offspring through the corridors of academia. David White, chief executive of The Children's Mutual, said: "It is great to see that today's teenagers are aware of the costs involved with going to university and are taking steps independently to try and avoid the high levels of debt that are now common amongst graduates. "But the average cost of three years at university now sits at £40,400 - a huge amount of money for any teenager to find." The average university debt is now £17,500. With such high costs, parents are being urged to start financial preparations for university as early as possible.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 11 August 2008, 9:13 GMT

Common student misconceptions about money have been dispelled by the Guardian. The newspaper warned students that since September 2004, bankruptcy can no longer be used to escape the student loan. Although graduates could pay off the debt with a conventional loan and then claim bankruptcy, Chris Turner of PricewaterhouseCoopers warned this would probably lead to assets being seized and trouble in securing credit and mortgages later. Students should also insure their car in their own names and term-time addresses, not their parents'. Failure to do so, known as "fronting", could lead to insurers refusing to pay a claim. They can, however, insure their possessions on their parents' home insurance. The paper also reported recent research by NatWest showing that the greatest student expense is accommodation and warned students that they pay tax on their earnings
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 11 August 2008, 9:14 GMT

WE are once again in the middle of a university break but it’s the residents who are having to suffer with builders who couldn’t care less how much mess they make of the fronts of houses they are renovating (just for student accommodation) and bins left full even though there was a special refuse collection from student houses at the end of the university term, in June. Windows are cluttered with students’ clothing so we, the residents, have to put up with all this and not complain. I overheard a conversation by a visitor: “Gosh, Mackintosh Place is now a slum” – good for the morale of the residents isn’t it? I cannot see how Cardiff County Council can take our council tax and not do something for the benefit of the residents, most of whom are pensioners. Keep Cardiff clean? What a laugh. Yes, down the Bay and in Cyncoed, perhaps, but in the Roath area we are the forgotten land of our fathers
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 11 August 2008, 12:19 GMT

An American student has claimed that Rex cheated on his girlfriend Nicole with her during a trip to Miami, Florida. Ashley Abbott alleged she and Rex had a romance after meeting on a street in the city. The 21-year-old old told The Sun that they spent nights together in a posh hotel, adding that Rex had offered her a job at his family's restaurant in Notting Hill. The student said Rex claimed he was single, despite having dated Nicole Cammack for the past few years. Ashley said Rex stopped contacting her shortly before entering the house. "I hope he seeks professional help for his deceitful, womanising behaviour. He has no conscience," she said.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 11 August 2008, 12:22 GMT

TWO Chinese students found dead in a flat suffered severe head injuries – and one may have been suffocated. Police found the male and female students on beds in separate rooms of a downstairs flat in the West End of Newcastle upon Tyne on Saturday afternoon. Post-mortem examinations by a Home Office pathologist revealed that the man suffered "massive" head injuries, while the woman "may also have been asphyxiated", Northumbria Police said. The force will reveal more details about the case today, but the students' identity will not be released until relatives are informed. The unexplained murders left other Chinese students living in fear. Ishaopeng Wu, 31, said he had been attacked by local youths in the past. The mobile communications student, who is a member of the Chinese Students and Scholars Association, said: "I am very shocked. I cannot see if we should live in this area any more. It is a tough area, but convenient for the university. I cannot believe this has happened."
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 11 August 2008, 16:13 GMT

COMMONLY misspelt words should not be corrected but accepted into everyday usage, a university lecturer suggested today. Years of correcting his students' atrocious spelling has left Professor Ken Smith so fed up that he is proposing the most common spelling mistakes should simply be accepted as "variant spellings". Dr Smith, a criminology lecturer at Buckinghamshire New University in High Wycombe, said: "Instead of complaining about the state of the education system as we correct the same mistakes year after year, I've got a better idea. "University teachers should simply accept as variant spellings those words our students most commonly misspell. "The spelling of the word 'judgement', for example, is now widely accepted as a variant of 'judgment', so why can't 'truely' be accepted as a variant spelling of 'truly'?"
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 11 August 2008, 16:16 GMT

Oxford University says it will not make conditional offers for places based on the new A* grade at A-level when it is first awarded in 2010. The higher grade is intended to identify the most able students and to help universities choose from among many candidates with A grades. But there are concerns it will become dominated by independent schools, hitting efforts to widen participation. Oxford University says it wants to see how such A* grades are distributed. Pupils starting A-level courses this autumn will be the first to be considered for the upper grade of A*, which will be awarded for marks of 90% and above.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 11 August 2008, 16:31 GMT

The introduction of top-up fees has had no effect on demand for student places, according to research published today. Figures for recruitment this year show a 9 per cent rise in the number of students seeking to go to university this autumn – bringing the percentage of 17-year-olds opting to go to university to 47.1 per cent. However, they also show there is little change in the profile of the university population – despite millions of pounds being spent by ministers on attempts to widen participation amongst disadvantaged groups. In addition, universities were spending less than expected on bursaries to help the less well-off , largely because some students did not realise they were entitled to them.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 12 August 2008, 8:50 GMT

A Northern Ireland student who is almost completely deaf has had her PhD thesis stolen. Lisa Townsend lost the years of research as well as book proposal documents when her laptop computer was taken during a burglary at her south Belfast home. It is understood that 30-year-old Lisa was targeted during a spate of burglaries in the Donegall Pass area at the beginning of the week. Miss Townsend, who was hoping to have the thesis published, has made a desperate appeal for the thieves to return the computer. She told the Belfast Telegraph: “I need the laptop back as soon as possible — not only was there a copy of my doctoral thesis on it, but there was also more recent research work and book proposal documents. “I need that laptop back. I'm having problems functioning professionally without it, and people should note that it does look distinctive as there's not many of them around,” Lisa added.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 12 August 2008, 12:24 GMT

POLICE today confirmed a body found in a Cumbrian lake was that of a missing camper who was born in Penrith. The heartbroken family of Josef William Bulman today paid tribute to the 20-year-old after he was discovered dead in Ullswater yesterday. Mr Bulman, originally from Cumbria but who had moved to Nottinghamshire, had vanished in the early hours of Sunday morning. The university student had last been seen on the lakeside path leading from Pooley Bridge to his campsite at Waterside House at about 4am. His family raised the alarm when he vanished and a massive search operation was launched.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 12 August 2008, 12:34 GMT

Both students and their parents largely underestimate the cost of going through university, a survey by the Association of Investment Companies (AIC) found. Although 78 per cent of parents think the credit crunch will make it harder to support their children financially through university, most do not even realize how much they will have to pay until their child finally graduates because they do not take top up fees into account. While students think they will graduate on average with £12,200 of debt, the parents' estimates were way out at £9,681 – the reality is that top-up fees will cost students an extra £7,000 on top of their debt, and students graduating next year will therefore owe £20,000 when they leave university. The increased fees force many students to change their career choices or living arrangements altogether, with 40 per cent stating they would rather accept a better paid job than follow their true vocation in order to repay their student loans.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 12 August 2008, 12:35 GMT

Students who started university in the UK last year can expect to owe more than £17,500 by the time they leave, according to an annual poll on debt. The Push survey of 2,000 students also suggests that the average debt tops £4,500 for each year of study - nearly 10% more than last year. The rise suggests students are being badly hit by the credit crunch. Another poll of 3,385 students for the National Union of Students found many under-estimated their living costs. According the NUS survey of 3,135 current students and 250 would-be students, they spent £710 a year on groceries when they expected to spend £510. They spent £740 on household bills but thought they would spend £580 and £100 more on travel than the expected sum of £285.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 13 August 2008, 9:24 GMT

Young people worried about getting into student debt do not know enough about the grants available and overestimate how much they will have to pay back, according to new research. Some 71% of young people surveyed were worried about getting into debt, a YouGov poll for the University of Greenwich found, and 58% were worried about the rising cost of living. But 88% did not know they were entitled to a maintenance grant if their family income fell below £60,000. Students from households with incomes up to £25,000 qualify for a maximum grant of £2,800. And those from a households with an income up to £60,005 are entitled to at least a partial grant, to help cover the costs of living and accommodation. The grants do not have to be repaid. The independent research found students overestimated how much they would have to repay each month in student loans. Young people expected a graduate earning the average starting salary of £19,000 a year would have to repay £150 a month. The true figure is under £30 a month, or less than a pound a day.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 13 August 2008, 9:25 GMT

A Kent law student accused of murdering a doctor acting as his guardian said he loved and respected her. David Quartey, 22, of Humber Road, Dartford, said he and consultant paediatrician Dr Victoria Anyetei shared a "mother and son" relationship as he gave evidence at his murder trial. Prosecutors claim Quartey, stabbed mother-of-one Dr Anyetei, 54, a total of 56 times after he "snapped" from the pressure of failing his exams. Quartey denies murdering Dr Anyetei. Her bloodied body was found slumped in her Toyota Avensis car on the driveway of her home where Quartey also lived in Teynham Road, Dartford, on August 14 last year.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 13 August 2008, 9:28 GMT

At least one in 10 teenagers will get three straight A-grade passes today, as more pupils than ever before receive top grades in their A-levels. More than one in four scripts are expected to be awarded an A grade with less than three per cent of scripts set to be marked as a fail. The rise in top grades is almost entirely down to improved performance by the country's independent schools and state grammar schools. The figures highlight the growing dilemma facing university admissions staff as they attempt to select the brightest candidates for popular courses amidst claims of growing grade inflation following 26 consecutive years of rises in the A-level pass rate.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 14 August 2008, 8:53 GMT

Teenagers achieved record results in their A-levels again this year as the national pass rate soared above 97% for the first time. The proportion of pupils awarded A grades also rose again with more than one in four gaining the top marks. Overall 97.2% of candidates taking A-levels this summer achieved A to E passes, up from 96.9% last year. Girls continued to score better grades than boys although boys are continuing to close the gap at grade A.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 14 August 2008, 9:07 GMT

Once the preserve of the rich and well-connected whose parents could arrange a trek with Masai or a job in Mother Teresa's Calcutta soup kitchen, gap years are now a must for any self-respecting student. They offer a chance to see the world, grow up and have colourful tales to tell during freshers' week. Despite tuition fees and student debt, almost a third, or 130,000 sixth-formers, set out from the UK each year on a gap-year adventure before heading off to university, according to Mintel, the market analyst. Few who take a year out ever regret it and most say they have made far more of their time at university as a result. But experts urge young people to plan their trips carefully and be aware of the pitfalls before they embark on the journey of a lifetime. Gap years are now big business with students spending an average £4,800.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 14 August 2008, 11:46 GMT

A-level results are being hit by sibling inflation as the number of photogenic twins gaining top grades and places at the same university rose again for the 17th year in a row. And 2008 saw the usual twins being trumped by the appearance of the Oke quadruplets - Tolu, Tayo, Tobi and Tosin – who achieved A and B grades at the St Francis Xavier sixth form college in Clapham, south-west London. The 18-year-olds from Woolwich secured places at Manchester, Goldsmiths, Queen Mary University of London and Cambridge. "Our mum really encouraged us from as early as year six and prepared us from a young age to take control of our own learning," said Tayo. Among students and their families celebrating A-level results across England, Wales and Northern Ireland were identical twins Anika and Nicola Ueckermann, who will study at the University of East Anglia following their crop of As and Bs from Colchester County high school for girls.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 14 August 2008, 11:54 GMT

There has been another increase in the A-level pass rate and the proportion of entries awarded the top A grade. Figures from the Joint Council for Qualifications show 97.2% of entries in England, Wales and Northern Ireland passed, up from 96.9%. A grades went to 25.9% of the entries, up from 25.3% - and in Northern Ireland more than a third achieved an A. The results reveal striking differences in achievement across England, with south-east England getting the most As. There, 29.1% of entries were awarded an A grade - an increase of 6.1 percentage points since 2002. The lowest proportion of A grades were achieved in the north-east of England (19.8% of entries) - an increase of 2.1 percentage points since 2002, which was also the lowest rate of improvement across the regions. There were a record 827,737 A-level entries and 1.13 million AS-levels this year from more than 600,000 students.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 14 August 2008, 13:22 GMT

A Norwich student has plunged 1,000ft down a ravine to his death after leading a Scout expedition in Liechtenstein. Tom Moore, 21, who was studying at the University of East Anglia, was on a two-week trip to the tiny European Alpine state with Scouts when the tragedy happened. Assistant Explorer Scout leader Mr Moore travelled to Liechtenstein with 50 other scouts from Hertfordshire. But towards the end of the trip the environmental sciences student decided to go walking on his own up the Mittagsspitz mountain. Mr Moore informed colleagues he was going to walk local ridges and took with him a day sack, money and his passport. He said he would return in time to join the main party on its scheduled return to the UK last Saturday morning. But when he failed to turn up worried members of his scouting team alerted local police and a massive search was launched in the mountains
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 14 August 2008, 16:06 GMT

It suggests that single men could do worse than head for Bishop Grosseteste University in Lincoln, which boasts eight female students to every male. Imperial College London could be the place for girls looking for love, with two thirds of students male. Hard-up students in search of a cheap drink would be well-advised to study in Falmouth, Teeside or Bangor, where a pint costs less than £1.50. Unsurprisingly, London is the priciest place for students to drink, but two of the Edinburgh universities - Heriot-Watt and Napier - are also among the most expensive at £2.73 and £2.95 a pint respectively. Nationally, the average price students pay for beer in and around their campus has gone up from £2.06 to £2.13, though they will save 53p a pint if they stick to college bars.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 14 August 2008, 18:15 GMT

The number of university students continues to rise, despite complaints that the introduction of variable tuition fees in 2006 would make studying less affordable. Ucas, the university and college clearing service, said yesterday that the number of applicants had risen 9 per cent on last year. More than half of the 553,924 applicants have had their places at universities confirmed so far - an improvement on this time last year. The rise confirms a report by Universities UK, the vice-chancellors' body, this week, which found that the introduction of variable tuition fees in England - capped at £3,145 for 2008-09 - had not prevented "significant increases" in applicants this year. Most clearing is finished by the end of this month. But even though students may not be put off going to university by the fear of debt, money worries may well affect which university they choose.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 15 August 2008, 8:23 GMT

Guernsey's students have gained their best ever results in their A-level examinations. Official figures show a 100% pass rate compared to 97.2% in England, and 99.6% in Jersey. Pupils at the Grammar School, Elizabeth and Ladies' College, and Blancheland received their results on Thursday. It is the first time all four of the schools had a 100% pass rate. Some 334 pupils across the island took the exams with just over 30% getting A grades. About 85% obtained A to C grades.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 15 August 2008, 23:11 GMT

The race for university places has continued today, with more than 3,300 places now accepted through Clearing. The latest figures from Ucas show 3,392 students have gained places through the Clearing system – up from 2,600 yesterday and 3,086 this time last year. In total, 349,449 students have now accepted places at university – helped by an A-level pass rate of 97.2% and a rise in the percentage of A grades (25.9%) – which compares with 321,647 last year. The same number of students are eligible for Clearing this year as in 2007. However, more places have been taken through the system - the proportion of university places confirmed in the first two hours after results were announced was up 8.4% compared with the same time last year, the higher education minister, Bill Rammell, revealed yesterday.
Submitted by ukstudentnews.co.uk - submitted 16 August 2008, 10:27 GMT

Blogs

Did you know ?

Submit a news story

Get Free E-Newsletter

View sample newsletter

Sign in/up

Note: Your browser must support cookies
New user - Sign up now
Forgotten Password - We will send it to your email address ASAP

Search

Statistics

Sports

University sport gets new national voice
BUSA and UCS merge to create British Universities & Colleges Sport - A new national organisation set up to promote the benefits of sport and physical activity in the higher education sector began business for the first time today.

We need sports writers. If interested, please contact us

Your shout

Send your messages to yourshout@ukstudentnews.co.uk

Downloads

Download our Poster
Add our news service to your website

Your vote

Our Associates

We are prepared to send your student members customised newsletters.
If interested please email associates@ukstudentnews.co.uk
Current newsletter receipients: