The Obama administration has no plans to renew the Bush-era competitiveness grants and their companion, the National Smart Grants, beyond their 2011 expiration date, meaning a likely end for America's short-lived experiment with merit-based federal financial aid. Instead, the administration will focus its resources on the popular Pell Grant…

Grade inflation is among the oldest and thorniest problems in higher education. In 1894 a committee at Harvard University reported that A's and B's were awarded "too readily." But after more than a century of fulmination, there is little agreement on the cause or how to fix it. There is even contentious debate about whether the phenomenon of grade…

Over the past decade, partnerships between a university and a private company to recruit and educate foreign students in a college-preparatory program have become a commonplace in other English-speaking countries. The reason is clear: pathways programs enable colleges to tap into a much broader pool of students, including those who may not qualify…

In the hyper-competitive world of intercollegiate athletics, where programs vie to win national titles, attract talent, and build the best facilities, keeping a close eye on trends and emerging practices is a necessity. With that in mind, "The Chronicle" asked more than three dozen experts to describe the changes they expect to see in athletics…

In this article, the author discusses the issue surrounding the blanket rejection of career-school credits by traditional schools. Whether they attend a career college, community college, online college, or brick-and-mortar university, many Americans find that higher education has become a "grab and go" proposition. To them, attending multiple…

A herd of camels meanders through the 115-degree heat as sand billows across the abandoned stretch of desert that once was to be a branch campus of George Mason University. Nearby, alongside the road that leads into the tall sand dunes is a sign that reads: "REDUCE SPEED: MOVING SANDS AHEAD." The sign is intended for motorists, of…

This fall the Academic Progress Rate, a formula that the National Collegiate Athletic Association developed to measure the academic performance of its member teams, will go into full effect. Known as the APR, the formula consists of two variables: academic performance (which requires satisfactory grades and timely progress to a degree) and student…

Three years ago, as part of a broad effort to raise academic standards in college sports, the NCAA adopted a controversial rule designed to make life difficult for athletes idling in the classroom. The measure--known as the 40-60-80 rule, or the "progress toward degree" requirement--mandates that, to remain eligible to compete, athletes must…

Mike Frank G. Epitropoulos moved to Greece in the summer of 2005 to become chairman of the business and applied-sociology departments on a small branch campus of the University of Indianapolis, in the shadow of the Acropolis. A former sociology professor at the University of Pittsburgh, he had long wanted to live with his wife and two sons in the…

Over the past four years, Pakistan's higher-education budget has increased more than sevenfold, to about $449-million. While that amounts to only 0.5 percent of Pakistan's gross domestic product, it is a big improvement from the days of barely enough to pay "measly salaries and basic bills." But for students, along with many of…

In recent years, studying abroad has grown in both prestige and popularity. Business and political leaders increasingly see it as one of the most effective ways to produce globally literate citizens. College administrators agree and are looking for ways to reduce the barriers--both financial and academic--that prevent most undergraduates from…

When the federal Commission on the Future of Higher Education delivered its final report to the secretary of education in September, accreditors and many higher-education leaders breathed a small sigh of relief. The document did not endorse an early recommendation that the current accreditation system be completely dismantled. Now, though, just a…