The Harry Ransom Center is offering research fellowships for projects that require substantial on-site use of its collections. Applicants for one- to three-month fellowships and travel stipends must have a PhD or be an independent scholar with a substantial record of achievement; if the PhD is in-progress, the proposal and letters of recommendation must clearly indicate completion by June 1, 2015.

US citizens and foreign nationals are eligible to apply. Applications should be submitted till January 15, 2015.

We all pay attention to university rankings. For students and parents, they can be an important guide in choosing a university. For institutions, policy makers, and politicians, they can be a source of pride, frustration, or envy. In some cases, such as Russia’s “5/100 initiative”, the desire for an improved position in international ranking tables can also be a trigger for investments in strengthening institutions or education systems.

But do international rankings provide an effective measure of relative quality for universities across a country or region, or around the world? And how do they relate to emerging efforts to create a set of globally accepted quality standards for universities?