Professional services in higher education

Advice on the many functions of a university that fall outside academia or teaching such as HR, finance, communications, department and laboratory management, libraries and student services. Find out how professional services teams in higher education can best ensure the smooth running of an institution, supporting teaching, research and student success – and work effectively with their academic colleagues.

By Eliza.Compton , 31 July, 2026

What established academics can learn from technical staff

University research runs on the expertise of technicians, research software engineers, data stewards and core‑facility specialists. Treat them as strategic partners and your group’s quality, speed and compliance will improve

By Eliza.Compton , 28 July, 2026

A peer-led approach to helping university students with information overload

Complex administration tasks and fragmented communication channels can cause students unnecessary stress and prevent them from accessing support. A centralised approach that offers peer guidance can be an answer

Reading time

4minutes

By Eliza.Compton , 22 July, 2026

Five ways academics can protect their annual leave

Organisation and communication will ease the way for university staff to book guilt-free time off and prevent burnout

Reading time

4minutes

By miranda.prynne , 25 June, 2026

Campus interview: Alain Pompilus of the University of Florida on how to better understand – and connect with – prospective and current students

Alain-Bernard Pompilus is associate vice-president for constituent knowledge and insights at the University of Florida

How can universities develop sophisticated systems for data sharing and analysis that can guide communications and student services? Alain Pompilus was tasked with putting such a system in place and shares lessons from the experience

By Laura.Duckett , 24 June, 2026

Widen access to higher education by improving school attainment

Secondary students solving a maths problem on a whiteboard

With school attainment a key driver of progression to university, outreach must go beyond traditional interventions to widen access. Matthew Lucas offers five evidence-led ways to design educationally robust programmes

Reading time

5minutes

By Laura.Duckett , 8 June, 2026

How we cut daily lab deliveries by 94 per cent

By cutting down deliveries, you can lower your lab’s carbon footprint, reduce clutter and admin and free up researchers to focus on discovering new cures and treatments. Learn how

Reading time

4minutes

By Eliza.Compton , 8 June, 2026

What bush turkeys can teach us about adaptability at work

When ‘wildlife relocation’ became an unexpected part of her role, Liisa Partanen found the experience came with insight into workplace resilience and problem-solving

Reading time

4minutes

By Eliza.Compton , 5 June, 2026

Building internal change management capability as a future-proofing strategy

Two professionals using stick notes to plan

University staff have institutional knowledge and understand the organisational practices and interpersonal dynamics that influence decision-making. So it makes sense to develop their change competence, writes Karen Mather

Reading time

4minutes

By Eliza.Compton , 2 June, 2026

Turning student data into student success

Data alone will not ensure effective student support. From careers to well-being and disability services, using it successfully requires collaboration between academic and professional services, training and shared accountability, writes Aleata Alstad-Calkins

Reading time

4minutes

By Laura.Duckett , 29 May, 2026

Why AI adoption in universities is really a question of trust

A laptop with a padlocked chain around it

To encourage AI use that aligns with institutional policies, university governance must prioritise transparency, usability and academic autonomy. Learn how

Reading time

4minutes

Professional services in higher education