Universitatea „Cuza” din Iași se implică pentru elevii aflați în situații de risc

Pentru ca aceștia să aibă parte de experiență academică, două facultăți de la Universitatea „Cuza” vor derula o interesantă Școală de Vară, în perioada 6-19 iulie 2020

Universitatea „Alexandru Ioan Cuza” (UAIC) din Iași se implică pentru elevii aflați în situații de risc. Astfel, pentru ca aceștia să aibă parte de experiență academică, două facultăți vor derula un program punte. Este vorba de cele de Educație Fizică și Sport, respectiv Teologie Romano-Catolică. Activitatea este legată de o Școală de vară care se va derula în intervalul 6-19 iulie 2020.

„Puncte de atracție vor fi competițiile din diferite ramuri ale sportului, parcurgerea pe biciclete a traseelor turistice tematice ale Iașului, precum și acțiunile culturale și recreative. Bineînțeles, nu vor lipsi activitățile educaționale prin care elevii se vor familiariza cu specificul domeniilor de studiu: cursuri, ateliere de lucru, vizite de studii, pachete de activități formativ-recreative, consiliere profesională și de orientare în carieră, evenimente culturale (vizite la muzee și la diverse alte obiective turistice, participări la spectacole), informează cei de la „Cuza”.

Pentru a experimenta ce presupune viața de student, elevii vor fi cazați în căminele Universității „Cuza” și li se va servi masa la cantină (3 mese pe zi). Participarea este gratuită! Toate costurile legate de transport, cazare, masă, materiale de lucru, intrări la muzee și spectacole etc. vor fi acoperite prin proiectul ROSE, derulat prin Banca Mondială de UAIC.

Publicație : Bună Ziua Iași

Universitatea „Cuza” din Iași, participant la Start-up Weekend Covid-19, cu scopul de a găsi soluții punctuale pentru situația provocată de virusul ucigaș

Universitatea „Alexandru Ioan Cuza” (UAIC) din Iași, participant la Startup Weekend Covid-19, cu scopul de a găsi soluții punctuale pentru situația provocată de COVID-19. Concret, în perioada 24-26 aprilie 2020, mai mulți reprezentanți ai comunităților de start-up din România (printre care și parte din echipa Rubik Hub existentă și la UAIC ) vor organiza acest moment. Evenimentul, organizat pentru prima dată în mediul #on-line, se va desfășura pe durata a 54 de ore. Se vrea a fi cel mai mare de acest gen, de până acum.

Participanții – IT-iști, designeri, oameni de comunicare, cadre medicale, oameni de știință, profesori și profesioniști din varii domenii – se vor împărți în mai multe echipe și, cu ajutorul mentorilor, vor încerca să găsească cele mai bune soluții la probleme date, pornind de la provocările din sistemul de sănătate, categoriile vulnerabile ale populației, antreprenoriat, comunitate, educație și divertisment.

„Startup Weekend Covid-19 este o oportunitate grozavă pentru orice #student care dorește să iasă din zona de confort, să se alăture unei comunități globale de oameni creativi și inovatori și să contribuie activ la îmbunătățirea calității vieții în societatea din care face parte! Pentru mai multe detalii, click aici: https://bit.ly/2XTgi3d”, au transmis oficialii de la „Cuza”.

 Publicație : Bună Ziua Iași

Biblioteca Central Universitară „Mihai Eminescu” din Iași facilitează accesul mobil și gratuit la bazele de date abonate ale instituției

Biblioteca Central Universitară (BCU) „Mihai Eminescu” din Iași facilitează accesul mobil și gratuit la bazele de date abonate ale instituției. Acest lucru se poate face accesând portalul www.e-nformation.ro.

„Aici îți poți creea cont, introduce datele solicitate. Vei primi pe adresa de email un link de activare. Soluția vine ca urmare a Decretului privind instituirea Stării de Urgență- activitățile publice din unitățile de învățământ s-au suspendat până pe 15 mai. În acest context, activitatea administrativă a Bibliotecii Centrale Universitare «Mihai Eminescu» se desfășoară cu respectarea regulilor de disciplină sanitară stabilite de autorități”, au anunțat cei de la BCU.

De asemenea, de precizat că până la reluarea programului de lucru cu publicul, împrumuturile la domiciliu vor fi prelungite automat.

Publicație : Bună Ziua Iași

 Coronavirus UK: Universities face £2.5bn tuition fee loss next year

Capping student numbers will not avert financial catastrophe, report warns

Capping the number of students who can attend each British university will not stave off the financial catastrophe that institutions face following the coronavirus outbreak, a report from the University and College Union (UCU) warns.

The report forecasts the sector could lose around £2.5bn next year in tuition fees alone, along with the loss of 30,000 university jobs, based on gloomy predictions of international and domestic students staying away if Covid-19 continues unchecked.

The government is negotiating with the university sector to limit the number of students each institution can admit in September, in the hope that it will help some avoid cutthroat competition and possible bankruptcy if their student intake slumps.

But the report, commissioned by UCU from London Economics, says a cap could be ineffective if more students are prepared to sit out next year. The consultancy’s forecasts show even the likes of Oxford and Cambridge seeing falling numbers of undergraduates entering from the UK and abroad.

“Our world-renowned universities are doing crucial work now as we hunt for a [Covid-19] vaccine and will be vital engines for our recovery both nationally and in towns and cities across the UK. It is vital that the government underwrites funding lost from the fall in student numbers. These are unprecedented times and without urgent guarantees, our universities will be greatly damaged at just the time they are needed most,” said Jo Grady, the UCU’s general secretary.

Rebecca Long-Bailey, the shadow education secretary, backed the call for greater government support. “UK universities must be valued as part of the frontline response to the coronavirus pandemic, supplying students to the NHS and conducting world-class research into the virus,” she said.

The report suggests that universities could lose £1.5bn in international student fees, more than £600m from UK-based students, and £350m from students from the EU, based on surveys of students’ intentions, including one conducted for Ucas, the admissions service.

Gavan Conlon, a partner at London Economics, said the pandemic will result in a “very substantial loss” in enrolments and income, requiring significant government support.

“The proposed student numbers cap will not be enough to avoid an overly competitive market for the remaining pool of applicants, with the impact of this actually being worse for some institutions than the effect of the pandemic itself,” Conlon said.

But Nick Hillman, the director of the Higher Education Policy Institute, said he thought the report’s forecasts for students numbers – particularly a 16% drop within the UK – were overly pessimistic.

“I do not want to underestimate the severe impact of Covid-19 on higher education. But, given the diversity of our higher education sector, we must ask if it is right for modelling to assume every single institution will face a recruitment crisis across the board,” Hillman said.

London Economics’ forecasts did not include the £790m lost in accommodation, catering and conference income identified by the Universities UK group of vice-chancellors in its recent submission to UK governments calling for at least £2bn in bailout funding.

“The union is absolutely right to warn of the knock-on impacts this would have for jobs, regional economics, local communities and students,” said Alistair Jarvis, the chief executive of UUK.

“Government must take urgent action to provide the support which can ensure universities are able to weather these very serious challenges, and to protect students, maintain research, and retain our capacity to drive the recovery of the economy and communities.”

Publicație : The Guardian

Harvard to reject $8.7m in federal aid after Trump cites school’s endowment

The Ivy League school is following the actions of Stanford and Princeton universities, which also turned down funds amid growing scrutiny

Harvard University announced Wednesday it will turn down $8.7m in federal coronavirus relief, a day after Donald Trump excoriated the wealthy Ivy League school over taxpayer money it stood to receive.

It followed similar actions at Stanford and Princeton universities, which said they, too, will reject millions of dollars in federal funding amid growing scrutiny of wealthy colleges.

Officials at Harvard said the school still faces significant financial challenges due to the pandemic but will refuse the money over concerns that “intense focus by politicians” will undermine the relief program created by Congress.

“While we understand any reallocation of these resources is a matter for the Department of Education, we hope that special consideration will be given to Massachusetts institutions that are struggling to serve their communities and meet the needs of their students through these difficult and challenging times,” Harvard said in a statement.

Congress is offering $14bn to the nation’s colleges and universities as part of a $2.2tn rescue package. Schools were allotted varying sums based on their size and the number of students they teach from poorer backgrounds.

But Trump said Tuesday that Harvard “shouldn’t be taking” its share because it has such deep financial reserves. It echoed concerns from other critics, including some alumni, who said Harvard doesn’t need the money and can rely on its nearly $40bn endowment.

Harvard University had earlier rejected calls to return the stimulus funding, saying it planned “to direct 100% of the funds to financial assistance to students, and will not be using any of the funds to cover institutional costs”.

The university said it received the grant through the educational relief scheme that was part of a stimulus passed at the end of March, which also included a fund aimed at helping small businesses.

That business fund has been riddled with controversy after disclosures that larger companies received bailout funds while many small businesses, among the hardest hit by the coronavirus crisis, still await aid. Large companies are facing a similar pressure to universities to return the funding. On Monday the hamburger chain Shake Shack said it would return the small business loan it had received from the government, the first major firm to hand back money.

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on Wednesday said other rich schools should reject the funding. Affluent schools that do not primarily serve low-income students “do not need or deserve additional taxpayer funds”, she said in a statement.

“Schools with large endowments should not apply for funds so more can be given to students who need support the most. It’s also important for Congress to change the law to make sure no more taxpayer funds go to elite, wealthy institutions,” she said.

Stanford, which has an endowment of nearly $28bn, said it told the Education Department on Monday it would refuse $7.4m allocated in the package. Officials at Princeton also said they will reject $2.4m in aid.

But some of the richest colleges still plan to take the funding. Cornell University, with a $7.3bn endowment, says it plans to accept $12.8m in relief and use it entirely on student grants. The University of Notre Dame said Wednesday it also will accept its $5.8m allotment and direct it all to students; the school’s endowment totals $11.3bn.

Terry Hartle, a senior vice president with the American Council on Education, an association of college presidents, said Congress did not exclude any type of institution when it created the formula used to distribute funding.

“All schools means all schools: barber colleges, dance schools, community colleges, publicly traded for-profit schools and elite universities,” said Terry Hartle, the group’s senior vice president. “Congress could have, but did not, exclude any category of institution.”

Publicație : The Guardian

Des universités vont organiser des partiels en présentiel malgré le coronavirus

Frédérique Vidal a évoqué la possibilité pour les universités d’organiser des partiels dans leurs locaux à partir du 20 juin.

Certains partiels pourraient finalement se dérouler dans les universités. C’est ce qu’a déclaré la ministre de l’Enseignement supérieur Frédérique Vidal dans une interview accordée à 20 Minutes parue ce mercredi 22 avril. «Nous recommandons d’organiser un maximum d’épreuves ne nécessitant pas la présence physique d’étudiants sur les campus. Et si cela devait être le cas, il faudrait le faire à partir du 20 juin, car de nombreuses inconnues demeurent à ce jour», a-t-elle indiqué.

Si la Conférence des présidents d’université (CPU) insiste auprès des différents établissements pour que ces derniers trouvent d’autres solutions, certains n’en démordent pas. «Même si nous les encourageons à trouver d’autres modalités d’examen, beaucoup de collègues veulent pouvoir faire passer les partiels en présentiel», confirme Gilles Roussel, président de la CPU.

Certaines universités y réfléchissent

Certains établissements ont déjà bien avancé leur réflexion sur le sujet. C’est par exemple le cas de Sorbonne Université: «Nous en saurons plus fin avril, mais nous réfléchissons à cette option. C’est en cours de discussion», affirme l’institution. À l’université Clermont Auvergne, la solution des partiels en présentiel a quant à elle déjà été actée depuis une semaine pour les étudiants de médecine, rapporte La Montagne . Une décision qui déplaît à certains concernés. «On ne comprend pas pourquoi nous et pas les autres alors?», se désole une étudiante en quatrième année de pharmacie.

Selon le président de la CPU, les étudiants concernés sont principalement des jeunes en première année de licence. «Les promotions sont très importantes et les collègues peuvent avoir plus de difficultés à faire de l’individualisation ou des partiels à distance», explique Gilles Roussel.

Dans quelles conditions sanitaires?

Mais une problématique demeure: la plupart des étudiants sont rentrés dans leur famille, parfois à des milliers de kilomètres de leur lieu de formation. Devront-ils revenir pour passer ces examens? En seront-ils exemptés? «Ces étudiants ne doivent pas être pénalisés, répond Gilles Roussel. Il faudra essayer de trouver d’autres modalités, ou limiter ces partiels en présentiel aux étudiants qui n’auraient pas pu les passer à distance», juge-t-il.

Autre question de taille: comment assurer la sécurité sanitaire des étudiants qui viendront passer ces partiels? La réflexion ne semble pour l’instant pas très avancée. «Nous sommes en train de réfléchir à toutes ces questions. De combien de mètres espacer les candidats? Devra-t-on leur fournir des masques pour composer? Il va falloir que nous tranchions rapidement», estime le président de la CPU. Pour l’heure, des milliers d’étudiants demeurent dans l’incertitude.

Publicație : Le Figaro