Numerous UK universities are experiencing financial instability; with an increasingly competitive and maturing market, reliance has grown on international students to offset institutional shortfalls. Dependency on international student tuition revenue has over-exposed the market to dramatic shifts in political policies, both domestic and internationally, that could significantly impact operational success. UK higher education institutions (HEIs) ability to promote their institutions as they are intertwined with the UK government; thus, controversial policies create a backlash, drawing HEIs into disputes as unwanted participants yet recipients of significant economic disruption. Government policies on domestic tuition caps, Brexit, and increasing geopolitical disputes with China have had a considerable impact on institutional operations. This paper recommends HEIs, principally lower-tabled universities, take a more aggressive strategic realignment to best adapt to the marketplace’s uncertainty. By reemphasising institutional specialisation, variable tuition rates for under-represented growth markets, financial support for EU students, increased distance education presence, and intense market-wide lobbying of government MPs, this paper seeks to open a discussion on how to identify existing problems and target opportunities for growth. The complexity of market conditions and the decreasing solvency of many institutions will not be solved by a single recommendation or a short-term policy but by a complete realignment and robust industry-wide initiatives. If universities cease operations or collapse under market conditions’ financial strain, it will impact the overall market’s reputation, reducing UK institutions’ overall desirability as a major exporter of education.

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In a knowledge-based economy, creativity is important for maintaining a country’s competitiveness. As the main educational institution that provides fresh blood to the nation’s talent pool, universities need to find appropriate ways to nurture creative minds to enhance the nation’s competitiveness. The purpose of this study was to develop a self-leadership model to increase students’ creativity at universities in Yunnan Province, China. The research methodologies used in this study were literature synthesis, descriptive statistics, regression analysis, focus group discussion, and paired-samples t test. Through such a combination of qualitative and quantitative research, this model was developed with students’ self-leadership skills as the key, with activities for creativity, supervisor leadership and organizational structure as supporting factors for creativity development. After a four-week intervention, the model was proven to be effective in enhancing students’ creativity. The researcher recommends that university administrators in Yunnan Province, China, consider using this model as a means of increasing students’ creativity.

By nature, every human being looks for knowledge and once he/she gets that, he/she shares it with others who are around him/her. So, it can be said that human beings are both information consumers and sharers. In the present world, social networks play an important role in human life. Studies reveal that human beings have adopted social media into their work, profession, and so on, other than just communication and entertainment. Education is one of the fields that adopted social media and new technologies to increase the course effectiveness. Social media can facilitate students in following professional societies, organizations, or faculty, as well as contributing discussion points or questions across a network. Nowadays, most of the schools have the technologies, but, if we analyze them, we will understand that they are presentational than interactive. This article gives a clear understanding about social networks and its use in the field of education, and concludes with some important points for the consideration of the school leaders for the use of social networks in the field of education by making use of all the potentials of social networks.