Message from the Chair

The UK Council for Graduate Education (UKCGE) was founded in 1994 to provide a forum for discussion and debate about the many changes taking place in what was at that time the burgeoning area of postgraduate education. Growth in the postgraduate sector has continued to outstrip that for undergrauate courses with the result that it has gained increasing prominence in the strategic planning of Higher Education Institutions. As a consequence UKCGE has grown from its small beginnings to have as its members the majority of Universities in the UK and many individuals and agencies with an interest in postgraduate work.

The Council is a registered charity whose primary mission is to promote and support the interests of postgraduate education in all disciplines. It helps its members contribute to the development of the UK's graduate education culture by systematic enquiry into, creative thought about, and critical analysis of, postgraduate education. The main vehicle for achieving this is the various conferences and events that the Council organises at regular intervals throughout the year. These events, together with the Council sponsored publications,support its mission and offer those involved in postgraduate education, whether they be administrators, academics or managers, regular opportunities to both meet others in the field and participate in specialist networks.

This website provides a further avenue through which to provide our membership and other interested parties with current information on the upcoming Council events and a variety of documentation relating to topical postgraduate issues. However in my role as Chair of UKCGE I am keen that it is the subject of regular updating to maximise its value as a conduit for dialogue with our membership. Consequently we are keen to hear from our members with any sugestions for improvements to what this website offers in order to ensure that it maintains both its currency and maximises its value to our membership.

Professor Malcolm McCrae