The Crisis in UK Higher Education and the Role of Leadership in Its Resolution

Assignment Brief

Individual Report (2,000 words)

Task: write a report analysing the state of crisis in the UK higher education and discuss the role of leadership in contributing to the crisis as well as alternatives that may lead to a resolution.

You are required to formulate arguments grounded in reading and facts. Simply stating your opinion will result in a failed assignment. An argument starts with analysis. Analysis is the creation of insights into factual details of a situation. For instance, you may be showing causal or other types of relationships, connections between elements that are linked to the state of crisis. An argument proceeds by drawing a conclusion, which is a point you want to make in order to convince someone of something based on the reasoning and analysis about factors.

Evidence for your report should come from newspaper articles, reports, and academic papers. You may also choose to collect primary data from various stakeholders at the University of Greenwich. If you decide to do this, please, inform your tutor and seek ethical approval before commencing data collection.

Structure your report as follows:
It is advisable to include a table of content

Introduction

Briefly introduce the key issues that describe a crisis in the UK higher education that you will be analysing. How are the key actors/stakeholders? What is your evidence of crisis? Does leadership have a role to play in this crisis?

Signpost the different sections in your report and how they build on each other.

Analysis of crisis

• Define the area of HE crisis that you are focusing on.
• This can be student experience, staff dissatisfaction, financial strain or any other area you identify from your reading.
• Key issues in terms difficulties experienced by the sector

Here you need to make connections between different areas. If your primary focus is student dissatisfaction, present it in the wider context. It does not just occur in the vacuum, where everything else is fine. What else is happening?

Analysis of Power and Leadership

Where is the power located in the system? Who are the leaders? Who are the followers?

Consider the stakeholders of the system. Which stakeholders have the power to influence the state and events in the system, universities? Who leads? Who follows? Is it a clear cut distinction? (Use Power analysis of a taught module as an example here).

What do contemporary HE leaders look like? Critically discuss an image (or two) of leaders you have identified in your research. These can include leaders at different levels (policy, universities, and departments). Draw on mainstream leadership theories to describe what they stand for, their skills, qualities, values.

How does this image compare to the notions of crisis? Are the leaders suited for the challenge at hand or do they need to adopt/change? If so how?

Based on the notion of crisis, what are your thoughts on how they may look different to improve the situation? This can be a comparative analysis of leadership skills, qualities, vision. Also consider the role of followers here and the basis of power. Does the current system mobilise all stakeholders equally? Are there untapped resources that could be mobilised?

Conclusion

Summaries key ideas, analysis and recommendations.

Sample Answer

The Crisis in UK Higher Education and the Role of Leadership in Its Resolution

Table of Contents

1. Introduction

2. Analysis of Crisis

3. Analysis of Power and Leadership

4. Conclusion

5. References

Introduction

The UK higher education (HE) sector is currently facing a deep and multifaceted crisis. Universities are struggling with severe financial pressures, declining staff morale, and growing student dissatisfaction. According to the Financial Times (2024), almost half of UK universities are now running budget deficits, with some institutions facing insolvency risks. The situation has been exacerbated by the loss of international student revenue, inflation, and cuts to public funding. At the same time, staff strikes, mental health issues among students, and widening inequalities have created a volatile environment that threatens the stability and reputation of the UK’s university system.

Key stakeholders in this crisis include university leadership teams, government policymakers, academic staff, students, and external partners such as research councils and private investors. Each has a different interest in the system, but all are affected by the financial and social consequences of ongoing instability.

Leadership plays a crucial role in this context. University leaders are responsible for balancing budgets, protecting academic integrity, and maintaining staff and student wellbeing. Yet, their approaches have often been criticised as overly managerial and disconnected from academic realities (Deem, 2020). The sector’s leadership models, traditionally shaped by corporate governance and hierarchical decision-making, may be ill-suited to today’s complex educational challenges.

This report analyses the crisis by focusing primarily on financial strain and staff dissatisfaction and how these interlink with leadership culture. It will first examine the nature and causes of the current crisis, identifying systemic weaknesses and their impact on key stakeholders. It will then analyse leadership and power structures within UK universities, assessing whether current models are capable of managing or resolving the crisis. The report concludes with recommendations for reform, proposing alternative leadership approaches grounded in collaboration, transparency, and shared governance.

Analysis of Crisis

The crisis in UK higher education is not caused by a single factor but by the intersection of financial instability, government policy, and workforce discontent. These pressures have converged to create an environment where universities struggle to maintain quality, morale, and public trust.

Financial Strain and Marketisation

The financial model of UK higher education has become increasingly unsustainable. Since the introduction of tuition fees in 2012 and the decline in direct government grants, universities have relied heavily on student fees as their primary income source. Domestic tuition fees have been capped at £9,250 since 2017, but inflation and rising operational costs have drastically reduced their real value (Universities UK, 2023). The Institute for Fiscal Studies (2024) estimated that universities now lose approximately £2,500 per student per year on home undergraduates.

To offset this loss, many universities have become dependent on international students, who pay significantly higher tuition fees. However, post-Brexit visa restrictions and tighter immigration policies have led to a decline in overseas enrolments, exposing the fragility of this financial model. According to The Guardian (2024), applications from key markets such as India and Nigeria have fallen by 15–20% since 2023, forcing universities to announce staff redundancies and course closures.

This marketised system treats education as a commodity, encouraging competition rather than collaboration. Universities are compelled to behave like businesses, focusing on branding, recruitment, and profitability rather than educational or social missions. As Marginson (2019) argues, this shift towards neoliberal management has eroded the collegial ethos that once defined academia.

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