University Principals, these days, are expected to maximise their institution’s income, so it is hardly a surprise that many are advocates of top-up fees and an increased supply of overseas applicants. The pursuit of both, however, raises profound questions about to the role of universities in society and is in danger of reinforcing the neoliberal drive to turn education into just another tradeable commodity. The idea of higher education as a public good is being increasingly marginalised. We are in an era of national and international league tables, competition in the global marketplace and all the concomitant obsessions with performance indicators, research assessment and branding…

…More importantly, however, this chase for funds and obsession with international rankings obscures the most promising opportunity of all. It’s surely time to drop the “Harvard fixation” and strike out in a new direction, one that recognises the transformative potential of a higher education for both the individual student and wider society. The civic mission of universities has been neglected in recent decades, although it has been undergoing a renaissance in the US, where community-based learning, active citizenship, volunteering and research focused on social needs are all being promoted under the auspices of a joint declaration by university and college presidents, coordinated by the national organisation Campus Compact (www.compact.org).