James R. Flynn is an accidental IQ specialist. In the early 1980s, the American-born political scientist thought he might spend a few pages in a planned book on "how to defend humane ideals" grappling with the argument that the gap in IQ scores between blacks and whites was genetically rooted. It was not his first foray into that subject, but this…

In the 2009-2010 academic year, women accounted for nearly two-thirds of the 270,600 American students going overseas. Indeed, the proportion of men studying overseas has remained the same--or flatlined, to put it less charitably--for more than two decades. Sending a broader cross-section of majors abroad has not made a dent in the gender gap…

For decades, women have enrolled in college in greater numbers than men, and, by many measures, have outperformed them in the classroom. But in recent years, as social scientists and student-affairs offices have focused on other differences between the genders, they have documented patterns that could explain how engagement influences student…

The author talks about a new generation of Ph.D.'s that is advancing the field with a multidisciplinary approach. Like their predecessors who worked to establish black studies as a respected academic discipline, today's Ph.D. students are also attracted to the social mission of the field. But younger black-studies scholars are willing to work with…

As colleges add services for the growing number of student veterans, they find that many women in that population seem reluctant to participate. On many campuses, officials find that only a sprinkling of women take part in programs and services designed to support veterans. The low turnout appears to be at odds with the number of female veterans…

College officials deny it, but many Asian-American high-school students feel they will be held to a higher standard. The idea that Asian-American applicants are held to a higher standard in college admissions has received a wave of attention lately. The U.S. Department of Education is now investigating whether Princeton University discriminates…

As the nation's student-loan debt surpasses the $1-trillion mark, alarming students, parents, and politicians, few are thinking about the effects it is having on people like Michael J. Trivette, a 28-year-old graduate student in higher education at the University of Georgia. Two-thirds of Ph.D. and other doctoral students and nearly three-quarters…

American colleges have to be in India. After all, no other country in this century, save China, is likely to be as important geopolitically, financially, demographically, or culturally. Globally savvy students ought to study here. There are research opportunities for political scientists and public-health specialists, economists, and…

For-profit colleges are some of the biggest critics of the federal graduation rate, arguing that it gives an inaccurate image of their institutions. They point out that the official calculation doesn't take into account the vast majority of the students who attend their institutions, most of whom are neither "first-time" nor "full-time." So major…

Although the percentage of female authors is still less than women's overall representation within the full-time faculty ranks, researchers found that the proportion has increased as more women have entered the professoriate. They also found that women cluster into certain subfields and are somewhat underrepresented in the prestigious position of…

When four generations converge in the academic workplace, it can create serious culture clashes. It is happening across college campuses--in offices as diverse as admissions, student affairs, legal affairs, and technology. It is especially striking in the faculty ranks, where generational challenges have extra significance amid recruiting efforts,…

This article reports on the findings of a study of college presidents released by the American Council on Education. Although more members of minority groups and women lead higher-education institutions today than in the past, the study shows the rate of diversification in the president's office has been slow, particularly since the late 1990s.…

A perennial talking point of politicians and scientists, since the time of the Greeks, is to lament how American youth are sliding into moral decrepitude, lawlessness, and poor mental health. Indeed, to hear some observers talk, particularly in this election year, young people in the United States are being battered by a coarsened culture that…

College leaders usually brag about their tech-filled "smart" classrooms, but a dean at Southern Methodist University is proudly removing computers from lecture halls. Jose A. Bowen, dean of the Meadows School of the Arts, has challenged his colleagues to "teach naked"--by which he means, "sans" machines. More than any thing else, Mr. Bowen wants…

Affordable housing is an elusive commodity for students in Paris and much of the rest of Europe. Many European universities are in cities where property values have soared in recent years--along with higher-education enrollment figures and the number of students vying for rooms. Few of the universities have dormitories, and students are left…