The Higher Education Show

Every week the Wonkhe team and guests from across higher education dissect the week's big policy developments, and we also feature views from around the sector.

The Higher Education Show is a education podcast hosted by Unknown Host, with 315 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Unknown Host hosts The Higher Education Show, a education show with 315 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

• 

  Episode #5

  Hope (again), Mi5

  Oct 2, 202642 minS26

  This week on the podcast we examine what Labour Party conference told us about the government’s plans for higher education – or, perhaps more significantly, what it didn’t. We also consider what higher education should make of MI5’s warning about research collaboration with the China General Technology Research Institute, the suspension of Buckinghamshire New University’s student sponsor licence, new expectations for student accommodation, and the latest picture on antisemitism on campus. With Debbie McVitty, Editor at Wonkhe, Gary Hughes, Chief Executive at Durham Students’ Union, Mack Marshall, Editorial Coordinator at Wonkhe, and presented by James Coe, Associate Editor at Wonkhe and Research Agenda. All our coverage from Labour Conference 2026 Espionage alert sees MI5 take an interest in Chinese research collaboration

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #4

  International recruitment, graduate social mobility

  Sep 24, 202648 minS26

  This week on the podcast Home Office figures show more than 20,000 fewer study visa applications in August than a year earlier – so is the fall in international recruitment catastrophic for university finances, or merely extremely bad? Universities UK International wants enrolments to return to growth, but new modelling from Public First suggests there is nowhere stable left to grow. Plus we discuss a new report from the Graduate Futures Institute finding that graduate opportunity remains deeply unequal, and our guests pick their stories of the week. With Ben Vulliamy, Executive Director at the Association of Heads of University Administration, Jim Dickinson, Associate Editor at Wonkhe, Sharanya Sivarajah, Community and Policy Officer at Wonkhe and presented by Michael Salmon, News Editor at Wonkhe and Editor at Research Agenda. Study visa applications see a big fall in the key month of August UUKi: Higher Education Sector Action Plan Public First: The international student trap: new modelling finds UK universities have nowhere stable left to grow Why international recruitment keeps chasing the wrong markets University of Leicester: Britain has widened access to university but graduate opportunity remains unequal, report warns

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #3

  Loans, Free speech

  Sep 18, 202649 minS1

  This week on the podcast we examine the government’s response to criticism of the student loan system. With ministers still describing the system as unfair and in need of reform, what might meaningful change now look like? Plus we discuss the Office for Students’ new freedom of speech conditions of registration, and we take a look at the other higher education policy and sector stories that have caught our guests’ attention this week. With David Kernohan, Deputy Editor at Wonkhe, Pam Macpherson Barrett, Director of Policy and Regulation at the University of Leeds, and Mack Marshall, Editorial Coordinator at Wonkhe, and presented by Jim Dickinson, Associate Editor at Wonkhe. Students feel free to speak – unless they’re training to be doctors The tone has changed on free speech, but the architecture hasn’t Student loans are still broken and unfair

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #2

  Future jobs, uni closures

  Sep 11, 202634 minS1

  This week on the podcast we examine Universities UK’s plans to strengthen graduate employment, as its annual conference puts the future of universities and their contribution to jobs, innovation and communities in the spotlight. Plus we discuss new research on what university closure actually feels like for students, and whether existing student protection arrangements are equipped to deal with the financial, academic and personal consequences. We also pick through some of the other higher education and research policy stories catching our attention this week. With Mark Leach, Editor-in-Chief at Wonkhe, David Kernohan, Deputy Editor at Wonkhe, Smita Jamdar, Partner and Head of Education at Shakespeare Martineau, and presented by James Coe, Associate Editor at Wonkhe and Research Agenda. Will a graduate jobs roadmap show us the right way? Student protection needs to start with what closure actually feels like

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Episode #14

  The end of the year show

  Jul 16, 202655 minS25

  This week on the podcast Team Wonkhe looks back on the year in higher education policy and politics – from the Post-16 Education and Skills white paper to the financial pressures pushing institutions towards closures, mergers and deeper collaboration. Plus the team discusses the fallout from the Office for Students' High Court case against the University of Sussex, the shifting narrative around who goes to university and why, and the growing gap between students' financial pressures and what the system assumes about their time and money. With Debbie McVitty, Editor at Wonkhe, John Blake, Director of the Post-18 Project and David Kernohan, Deputy Editor at Wonkhe and presented by Jim Dickinson, Associate Editor at Wonkhe.

  ListenShow Notes

Recent guests on The Higher Education Show. Study who booked and why before you pitch.

Based on semantic analysis of episode topics and host coverage, this show is a strong guest fit for executives in:

Industry fit is computed by PitchCentric using vector embeddings of the show's episode catalog.