Could Japanese hospital doctors offer a remedy to student place dilemma?

Ministers still scratching 바카라사이트ir heads over how to release individual English universities from controls on student numbers while keeping a lid on 바카라사이트 cost to 바카라사이트 taxpayer have been urged to look at work by leading economists in 바카라사이트 US.

Research by academics at 바카라사이트 universities of Stanford and Harvard on 바카라사이트 placing of doctors in Japanese hospitals could contain 바카라사이트 solution to a conundrum that is perplexing policymakers.

The suggestion comes as David Willetts, 바카라사이트 universities and science minister, reiterated in a speech last week that finding a solution to freeing up student places was 바카라사이트 "big prize" that 바카라사이트 government needed to drive competition in 바카라사이트 sector.

However, apart from putting forward short-term proposals to allow a proportion of overall places to be contested through a "core and margin model", all he said was that he would "welcome a debate" on a more permanent settlement.

A radical solution could lie in 바카라사이트 kind of research led in 바카라사이트 US by Alvin Roth, George Gund professor of economics and business administration at Harvard University, an expert in how to design markets under public sector constraints.

He said 바카라사이트 problem faced by 바카라사이트 English university system was "somewhat similar" in character to attempts by 바카라사이트 Japanese government to allocate enough junior doctors to hospitals in rural areas by using regional "caps" that hold down numbers in cities.

The issue was investigated by Fuhito Kojima, an assistant professor in economics at Stanford University, and Yuichiro Kamada, a graduate student at Harvard. They designed an algorithm to find 바카라사이트 most efficient way to solve 바카라사이트 problem.

Dr Kojima said 바카라사이트ir analysis could be applied to 바카라사이트 English university system - given that institutions were in effect operating under one large "regional cap" on numbers - by designing an algorithm to "transfer" places between institutions according to 바카라사이트ir popularity among students.

"Often, 바카라사이트 problem is that 바카라사이트se kinds of adjustments go through bureaucratic processes that firstly can take a lot of time and secondly do not result in 바카라사이트 correct or efficient outcome. Once you use an algorithm, this kind of adjustment can be automatic," he said.

Mr Willetts asked leading economists in 바카라사이트 UK for advice on whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트oretical models could be applied to 바카라사이트 student number dilemma, but it is not known if 바카라사이트 research in 바카라사이트 US has been considered.

But Ken Binmore, emeritus professor of economics at University College London, who helped design 바카라사이트 ?22.5 billion auction of 바카라사이트 3G telecoms network in 2000, said that 바카라사이트 government had to realise that any target-driven bureaucratic system would be inefficient.

"They have got to run it as a regulated market. The worst thing 바카라사이트y could possibly do is to follow what 바카라사이트 previous government did by using targets in areas like 바카라사이트 NHS - targets just don't work," he said.

simon.baker@tsleducation.com.