// Archives

UCAS visit days – what to expect

As I write this, there’s less than an hour to go before I put on my “Admission Tutor” lanyard — having recently taken over the role from my colleague Prof Philip Moriarty, who has left some big shoes to fill — and prepare to kick off another UCAS Visit day. We hold over a dozen …

2018 National Student Survey (NSS) Results in Physics

Guest post by Prof Michael Merrifield, Head of School I am somewhat vociferously on record arguing that most university league tables are a complete waste of time – they are compiled by newspapers who have a vested interest in promoting volatility, and they combine disparate statistics in a way that makes no sense at all. …

Staff vs Student Cricket Challenge: Match Report

  School of Physics and Astronomy Cricket Academic and Research Staff vs. Undergraduates Thursday 14/06/2018 The staff won by 3 wickets, with 4 overs to spare Match report kindly provided by Prof Laurence Eaves The Academic and Research Staff won a keenly fought and exciting match under 20-20 rules at Highfields Cricket Ground on University …

What is the point of lectures?

guest post by Head of School, Prof Michael Merrifield There has been quite a lot of discussion in the Times Higher Education over the last few weeks questioning the purpose of lectures at university.  As my contribution, I would like to advance a rather unfashionable view, but before doing so let me say what I …