New year honours: VCs and researchers recognised. Leicester vice-chancellor and Ucea chair among those knighted, along with former shadow education secretary. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-p...

New year honours: VCs and researchers recognised. Leicester vice-chancellor and Ucea chair among those knighted, along with former shadow education secretary. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-p...

EU’s Horizon scheme boosts UK research quality, report finds. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-p...

The Ivory Tower Annual 2025. A round up of this year’s best bits from our comedy column. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-v...

Hope amid turmoil: commentators choose their best books of 2025. Seven university and research experts reflect on the books that influenced them this year. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-worl...

Why 2025 was a big year for academic publishing. Four publishing experts explore how AI, copyright issues and open access developments defined the year. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-worl...

Officially announced today: new deals between UK unis and 'big 5' publishers will trial removing article-processing fees from some journals, effectively making them free for both readers and authors @sophieatrpn.bsky.social was well ahead of the curve on this www.jisc.ac.uk/news/all/lan...

Who were the most influential people in research this year? Politicians, review chairs and research council leaders feature among our picks. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-worl...

Twenty-year plan for Scottish higher education to be drawn up Universities and policymakers promise to address funding challenges, with changes to free tuition ruled out www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-u...

Why Europe needs to focus on keeping its AI talent. Career precarity and uncertainty about the future of research careers pose a problem for Europe. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-euro...

Opinion: REF changes allow smaller institutions to tell their story. Specialist institutions have much to welcome but must make their voices heard, says GuildHE's Rachel Persad. Free to read. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-v...

Ivory Tower: The morning after the nightmare before Christmas. The UK’s leading university-media relations team are recovering from their Christmas party. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-v...

Open science must avoid ‘feeding the machine’ for AI firms. Academics must set standards for use of artificial intelligence in research, says open science expert. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-euro...

Universities dropping publisher deals ‘could boost open access’. Advocates say non-profit platforms could become more attractive, but warn of accelerating redundancies in libraries. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-o...

Flat cash for discovery research at UKRI ‘will increase competition’ Shakeup of spending at national research funder likely to be felt “pretty quickly”, experts say www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-r...

Publisher backs ‘responsible’ AI use in peer review Frontiers says survey showing reviewers already using artificial intelligence supports transparent, “supervised” approach www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-worl...

‘Slim’ chance of London PhD stipend rise, say experts Cost of living in the capital could deter postgraduates, warns Finsbury Institute director www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-c...

UKRI's allocation of budget up to 2030 just out. More about 'buckets' than just allocations for individual research councils this time round. Spending on curiosity-driven research flat, while budget linked to govt priorities, innovation will rise. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-r...

It's become a mantra that the govt are protecting curiosity-driven research It's still the biggest chunk of UKRI's budget But figures out today clearly show it will decline in real-terms, while spending on govt priorities and innovation will rise www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-r...

Spending on curiosity-driven research at UK Research and Innovation will remain flat from 2026 to 2030, but the funder’s budget for government priorities and innovation will rise. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-r...

UK to pay £570m to rejoin Erasmus programme in 2027. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-u...

UK to rejoin Erasmus student mobility programme from 2027. The UK will rejoin the European Union’s flagship mobility programme for students in the 2027-28 academic year, the Cabinet Office has announced. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-u...

BREAKING: Flat cash settlement for curiosity-driven research at UKRI up to 2030. UKRI has released a breakdown of how it will spend its £38.6 billion four-year research budget. Spending on government priorities will increase. Free to read. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-r...

Research charities taking dire cost recovery ‘really seriously’ Fragile finances are pushing universities away from charity grants seen as special feature of UK system From me at the Universities UK conference last week www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-r...

European Spallation Source neutron facility reviewing research timeline after disruption www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-euro...

Katherine Mathieson explains the importance of the Royal Institution's Christmas lectures. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-v...

I remember writing this back in 2020. I mean, I suppose he was right, after a fashion. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-he-govern...

Ministers urged to make NHS protect academic research time. Russell Group says upcoming 10-year workforce plan for health service must safeguard squeezed clinical researchers. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-u...

‘Systemic reforms needed to kill zombie retracted papers’. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-worl...

UKRI pushes net zero target from 2040 to 2050 Agency also lays out plans to develop environmental sustainability measures for funding calls by 2029 www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-r...

Ex-minister warns of ‘insufficient rigour’ in UK life science research David Willetts, Regulatory Innovation Office chair, urges standardisation in early-stage research to unblock innovation www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-i...

Research charities taking dire cost recovery ‘really seriously’ Fragile finances are pushing universities away from charity grants seen as special feature of UK system www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-r...

Vallance backs renewed #REF2029 focus on research outputs Science minister adds that “significant weighting” on strategy, people and research environment remains www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-r...

Opinion: Restarted REF has the right mix of continuity and evolution. Rule tweaks balance credibility and burden deftly, although questions on specialisation remain, says Chris Day. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-v...

UK university sector reaches deals with four major publishers. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-o...

Australian universities ‘must put research and education first’. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-aust...

Just 2.5 per cent of papers written with AI disclose it, study estimates. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-worl...

Cern advised to go ahead with Future Circular Collider. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-euro...

REF 2029: High-handed approach erodes confidence in changes. Headline moves look sensible, but document drop is riddled with potential nasties, says Anna Grey. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-v...

Cash-strapped universities face tough calls on publishing deals. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-o...

Opinion: REF after the pause: politics and a quiet retreat on culture. Changes risk reinforcing “extreme myopia” on traditional research outputs, write Simon Hettrick, Gemma Derrick, James Baker and Ola Thomson. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-v...

Interview: Scientists must ‘hang in there’, says Maddox Prize winner. US climate scientist and integrity champion, Virginia Burkett, tells embattled researchers to be “prepared for setbacks”. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-usa-...

BREAKING: Four major publishers agree deals with UK university sector Elsevier, Springer Nature, Taylor & Francis and Wiley meet “sector-agreed thresholds” in long-running talks Free to read www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-o...

European Commission sets out €14bn 2026-27 Horizon Europe spending plan www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-euro...

Free to read: Coalition S open access group seeks new host and director www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-euro...

Just out: Four major publishers agree deals with UK university sector after long-running talks. Elsevier, Springer Nature, Taylor & Francis and Wiley have met "sector-agreed thresholds for acceptance", says Jisc. Via @robinbisson.bsky.social www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-o...

UK researchers gain access to Google’s AI and quantum tech. Government makes agreements with tech giant on quantum processor and ‘AI for Science’ models. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-i...

Interview: Scientists must ‘hang in there’, says Maddox Prize winner. US climate scientist and integrity champion, Virginia Burkett, tells embattled researchers to be “prepared for setbacks”. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-usa-...

Doctor Know. Ivory Tower: Another REF return from a celebrity academic. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-v...

BREAKING: Four major publishers agree deals with UK university sector Elsevier, Springer Nature, Taylor & Francis and Wiley meet “sector-agreed thresholds” in long-running talks Free to read www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-o...