Welcome to the seventeenth edition of The Fifteen. This week, we chart the shifting currents in global higher education—from mass firings in Afghanistan to a national support staff strike in Ghana to some odd collateral damage from recent Indo-Pakistani tensions. Lots of disappointing news about funding cuts, stories of governments trying to deal with issues of security, program length and the regulation of private sector universities, and the arrival of a truly eye-rolling set of rankings. Enjoy!

1. In Brazil, the government has decided to juggle its payments to universities. It’s not cutting total transfers (so it says), but it is delaying transferring much of universities’ allocations until the end of the calendar year. Universities, not without reason, are wondering how they are supposed to pay staff, support students, cover utilities, etc in the meantime. In better news from Latin America, Colombian universities are celebrating an 11% hike in government funding (Sources: CNN, Folha da Regiâo, LAFM.com)
2. Following Turkey’s announced support for Pakistan in recent clashes along the Indo-Pak border, many, many Indian universities have suspended their partnership agreements and Memoranda of Understanding with Turkish universities (full list available here from the Hindustan Times). Is this a groundswell of academic patriotism? Or is the hand of the Modi government at work here? (Sources: Business Today, MSN.com., Hindustan Times, Indian Express)
3. A new global survey found that in three of the “Big Four” Anglophone destinations (the US, Canada, and Australia), international postgraduate enrollments fell by double-digit percentages for the January–March 2025 intake. The UK was the outlier, reporting an 8% increase in international postgrad numbers. Undergraduate admissions are, of course, another story. (University World News)
4. In Afghanistan, the Taliban government, presumably sick of all the stories about Trump attacking American universities, is finally getting around to attacking universities themselves. One way they are doing this is by forcing widespread curriculum revisions. Another is by firing hundreds of professors, presumably for too much independent thought. Meanwhile, Afghan women, who have been shut out of universities since the Taliban returned to power, are still able to access some form of higher education thanks to the (very unofficially sanctioned) Online Women’s University. (Sources: Hasht e Subh Daily, AMU TV)
5. Tuition fee news from all over. Finland has opened the door to charging fees in continuing education courses. Russian universities will be allowed to increase their fees next year. Norwegian students are still complaining about last year’s introduction of student fees for international students. (Sources: Helsinki Times, Oreanda news, University World News) 
6. In a time of scarcity, all sorts of people in South Africa are coming to the deeply erroneous conclusion that too many of the “wrong people” are benefitting from higher education. One prominent economist says there are too many students; one right-wing MP is claiming the country’s universities hire too many foreign professors. It’s all pretty ugly. (Sources: Business Tech, Research Professional News)
7. Lots going on in Accra. Ghana’s previous (2020-24) government, led by the New Patriotic Party, went on a spree both of creating new universities and renaming a lot of them after NPP-friendly individuals. Now the current government, led by the National Democratic Congress, has decided to undo all the re-namings. Meanwhile, Ghana’s three senior staff (i.e. non-academic) unions in higher education launched an indefinite national strike this week after the government failed to honour a pact to improve pay and conditions. They have instructed members to stay home until the government delivers the agreed salary increases and benefits. (Sources: Ghana Business, Adom Online)
8. The unbelievably ridiculous year-long saga of South Korean medical students boycotting classes to prevent the government from increasing the number of medical student places (rent-seeking ahoy!) should have ended a few weeks ago when the government basically caved, but not all students chose to call off the strike. Many have now been expelled. (Source: Korea Times)
9. Following a bout of violent student protest in Greece, the government is taking steps to get campuses (which, for reasons dating back to the dictatorship of the 1970s, have been no-go zones for the police) back under control. Some students are facing expulsion, and institutions have been told by the Minister to take greater control of who has access to campuses. For the most part, rectors seem to be on board with this. (Sources: The National Herald, Prothema)
10. China is experimenting with the lengths of degrees, making some longer and some shorter. In Vietnam, which has been on a tear of higher education innovation, the National University is coming down unequivocally on the shorter side, saying it may bring the duration of some programs under 3 years. (Sources: China Daily, MSN.com)
11. Last month the Spanish government signaled its intention to tighten regulation on private universities. Now it’s France’s turn, saying it will create a new set of rules that will restrict many private universities’ ability to recruit on Parcoursup, the national recruitment/application/matching/admissions platform. (Source: Les Echos 
12. Here’s a ranking we all probably could have done without: University Alumni Rankings of the Wealthy and Influential 2025. Guess which university comes top. Go on, guess. (Source: Altrada)
13. In Pennsylvania, the State University has decided to try to close a number of rural campuses where enrolment has been declining and future finances look grim. But opposition is mounting, and it is not yet clear the University’s Trustees will back the plan. (Sources: Penn State University, Inside Higher Education)
14. Up until now, higher education attention in Washington has been the Trump Administration’s attack on universities. But now the focus is switching to student aid. DOGE vandalism and the illegal “disbanding” of the Department of Education have left the government desperately understaffed to process next year’s student loan applications. The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators has already flagged multiple breakdowns in the Department of Education’s new aid portal and FAFSA tools.  In addition, the reconciliation bill currently wending its way through Congress has the potential to seriously increase the cost of college attendance both by cutting Pell grants and ending subsidies on student loans. (Sources: Inside Higher Education, Nasfaa.org, Acenet.org)
15. There’s a new, controversial proposal to overhaul California’s 1960 Master Plan by merging its three public school systems into one unified “California University” system. Under the proposal, every region would host a multi-campus network offering the full range of credentials, from certificates through doctorates, eliminating intersegment transfer barriers and reducing duplicated administrative costs. Proponents argue that the tripartite system is outdated, weakened by blurred segment roles, and failing to meet today’s diverse student needs. Critics counter that merging three massive systems poses enormous governance, logistical, and funding challenges, and risks eroding each segment’s distinct mission. Final recommendations are now under review by the Assembly’s Higher Education Committee as part of a broader Master Plan update process. (Sources: California Committee on Higher Education, California Competes, EdSource)

That’s our bi-weekly global roundup. Let us know which trends you’d like us to explore next, and we’ll see you in two weeks for another edition of The Fifteen.