Dear colleagues, The University Council for Modern Languages has published two new briefings that will be of interests to Germanists in Higher Education in the UK. Firstly, UCML has responded to the government’s proposal for an English Baccalaureate. Secondly, the Council has produced a briefing document on work and study for the year abroad, focusing particularly on the need to protect year abroad provision from high tuition fees. Colleagues can access these documents on the AGS blog at <http://germanstudiesblog.wordpress.com/2011/03/28/briefings-from-ucml/> David Dr David Clarke Senior Lecturer in German Director of Undergraduate Programmes Department of European Studies and Modern Languages University of Bath Bath BA2 7AY Tel: +44 (0) 1225 386244 http://germanstudiesblog.wordpress.com/