Higher education policy in Scotland and the implications for part-time study
The Scottish Government have initiated a major reform of post-16 education with a stated aim of increased flexibility for learners, including more part-time provision. The Open University is the largest provider of part-time higher education (HE) in Scotland and evidence gathered from students who have studied in the college sector suggests that part-time learners value the flexibility of part-time study that allows them to repeat study at the same level or start at a lower level or change subject from previous study. This paper explores the policy changes being made and questions if this flexibility will be maintained for part-time learners in a climate of efficiency savings in HE provision? Will adequate opportunities be made available for them? Will further incentives be put in place to encourage more part-time learning?
Higher education in Scotland's colleges: opening up routes to a degree
The Scottish Funding Council’s (SFC) strategy for widening participation, Learning for All, first published in 2005, acknowledges the contribution of Scotland’s colleges in widening the social base of higher education (HE) study in Scotland. At the time the strategy was published, just under a quarter of all HE students were located in the colleges. This proportion is falling but it remains the case that, in contrast to the university sector, the population of HE students in the colleges is skewed towards the most deprived quintile of the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD). Improving the opportunities for these students to move on to degree study is therefore an important component of SFC widening participation policy. The implications of the fact that the fall in HE participation in the colleges is greatest among part-time students are discussed in this paper. Data from surveys of Open University (OU) in Scotland students who had previously studied at HE level in a college are used to provide some insight into the issues of part-time progression. In particular we look at issues of transition between sectors for part-time students and the intersection of policy discourses concerned with access, inclusion and skills utilisation.
Public health in eight European countries: an international comparison of terminology.
OBJECTIVES
The aim of this paper was to assess the use of different terms pertaining to public health in selected Member States of the European Union.


STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS
Qualitative research methods were used to compare the terminology among eight Member States. Seven to nine core terms were defined for each country, and a search was performed for these terms in the names of institutions and professional titles, organized into three comparable categories.


RESULTS
The data analysis showed considerable diversity in terminology. The three most commonly used terms for each country, and the frequency distribution of the core terms for all eight countries were determined.


CONCLUSION
Public health terminology and underlying concepts vary among Member States of the European Union. A large number of loosely related terms are in use, indicating the lack of a common conceptual framework for the discipline of public health. The most commonly used terms pertaining to public health are 'health sciences' and 'health promotion'. 'Public health' is not among the most commonly used terms.