Additional Access Measures. Outreach
Additional Access Measures. The University’s Student Experience Strategy guides everything we do. All members of the University have a role to play and a responsibility for the strategy. The relationship between student retention and the student experience is such that a positive experience and high levels of student satisfaction should be evident in excellent student retention.
Additional Access Measures. Context: The University of Northampton has a strong record in Widening Access as demonstrated by its diverse student body: 2009/10 enrolment data shows a current undergraduate student intake comprising 51% mature students, 26% from Black and Minority Ethnic backgrounds and 8% disclosed disabled students. Interestingly, although the majority of students are recruited from within a 50 mile radius of UN, our intake of BME students is much higher than the number of BME inhabitants of the area. Conversely, our intake of students from the white working class population is disproportionately low considering the socio-economic demographics of the local area. UN is also committed to Widening Participation so that all students, irrespective of their backgrounds, can develop their holistic potential and achieve both academic and pastoral success leading to future employability or further study. The University of Northampton’s new strategy for 2010 – 2015, ‘Raising the Bar’, sets a new and unique direction for a UK university: we aim to be the top university in the UK for social enterprise by 2015. We believe that this strategy gives us an exciting and unique access offer that will both attract and retain students from non-traditional backgrounds to higher education, and prepare them more effectively for graduate level careers in the future. We are setting out on this journey for two reasons: firstly, we strongly believe we must provide an education that prepares our graduates for the new world of work, a world in which social enterprise is an increasingly important part; and secondly, because we are committed to playing an active part in the improvement of our local community. We believe that the provisions of our Access Agreement are a key element in the development of our local community, a community in which all people with the ability to benefit from higher education are encouraged and enabled to do so. The implementation of Northampton’s social enterprise strategy has three main elements: a new student offer; the integration of social enterprise into teaching and learning and research throughout the university; and a long-term strategic project with local authorities, businesses, the third sector, and individual citizens throughout Northamptonshire, delivering significant improvements to the life of the county through support for decentralisation through social enterprise and the building of social capital. The new student offer is that from October 2011 all stu...
Additional Access Measures. 4.1 Broad overview of investment in outreach and student retention Example Activities Proposed investment Evidence base Comparison with arrangements prior to 2012/13 Total investment in outreach measures £270,000 Investment in retention (specific measures) Total investment in retention measures £110,000 TOTAL (Access and Retention) £395,600 4.2 Financial Support for Students
(i) Planned Investment as a contribution to the National Scholarship Programme
(a) Those who are within/or projected by their institutions if currently studying to be within the top 25% of attainment in our target schools and colleges (young and mature students)
(b) Care leavers (where fees are not already paid by the Local Authority) For those students offered a National Scholarship, it is intended that they should:
(a) Have a fee waiver of £2000
(b) Receive a £1000 cash payment to assist with the costs of studying
(ii) Plans for expenditure on fee waivers, bursaries and scholarships Type of award Amount For whom Number available CCCU Expenditure Total fee waivers, bursaries and scholarships £985,000
(iii) The amounts of support and eligibility for new entrants Name of award Amount Number of awards available Eligibility criteria
(iv) Financial Support for Continuing Students
Additional Access Measures. 4.1 Broad overview of investment in outreach and student retention* Total investment in outreach measures £175,000 Total Investment in Retention Measures £145,400 TOTAL (Access and Retention): £320,000
4.2 Financial Support for Students
(i) Planned Investment as a contribution to the National Scholarship Programme
(a) Those who are within/or projected by their institutions if currently studying to be within the top 25% of attainment in our target schools and colleges (young and mature students)
(b) People who are either currently subject to a care order or have previously been registered in the care of a local authority (where fees are not already paid by the Local Authority)
(c) Part time students (pro rata) who are paying more than £4,500 per year and studying more than 25% of a full time equivalent course provided they meet the criteria in either a or b above. For those students offered a National Scholarship, it is intended that they should:
(a) Have a fee waiver of £2,000
(b) Receive a £1,000 cash payment to assist with the costs of studying
Additional Access Measures. 4.1. The University already works closely with local partners on outreach programmes. Local outreach work will be enhanced through the introduction of a new sustained programme for groups of learners from schools in low participation areas who will receive detailed and focused information, advice and guidance, and academic support in order to enable them to maximise their chances of gaining entry to the most competitive institutions. We will build on the existing Pathways to Law programme, which combines work experience and networking opportunities with advice and guidance, by working to develop similar programmes focussing on other professional courses. The University will also build on the success of existing teaching fellow appointments in the physical sciences and mathematics, whose remit is to work within academic departments to develop subject specific outreach activities with schools, by making further appointments to support outreach in other academic areas. The International Gateway for Gifted and Talented Youth (IGGY) will offer free membership and access to its resources for eligible students from low participation neighbourhoods helping to raise their aspirations through on-line resources and networking events. We will continue to build on our successful 2+2 programmes, delivered in partnership with local colleges, seeking to extend the range of courses that we offer through this route.
4.2. The University is keen to explore the ways in which contextual data can be used to inform and support its access and widening participation aims, and will be appointing a member of staff to conduct research in this area. Initial work will focus on the ways in which contextual data can be used to support the targeting of outreach activity, the impact of contextual data on the admissions process, and the tracking of students with whom we have worked through our outreach events. The University has a strong track record of retention of students from all backgrounds and hence will be focusing its resources on measures to promote access and widening participation in the first instance, but contextual data will be included in subsequent monitoring of retention and student performance and action will be taken to improve retention in future access agreements should issues be identified.
4.3. A summary of current and proposed outreach work is provided in Annex 2.
Additional Access Measures. Given the predominantly post-graduate, professional nature of the IOEs provision, there is a limit to which the IOE can widen participation to its own programmes. With this is mind, the Institute's Access measures relate predominantly to supporting current students in completing their studies and progressing to further study where appropriate. The IOEs student body is almost entirely mature, and most often already based in employment settings. This brings with it particular challenges to ensure that students are supported fully, provided with flexible modes of delivery to enable them to balance the demands of academic study alongside demands of working life. Although small aspects of the Institute's academic offering, the Foundation Degrees and their related BEd/BA top-up route are fundamental to the IOEs contribution to widening participation. To ensure that the programmes are accessible, particularly to mature learners who may have missed out on the opportunity to enter HE through traditional routes, the Institute sets entry criteria which are based on a requirement of NQF level 3, rather than traditional A- Levels, as well as based on relevant employment experience. The IOE Foundation Degrees contribute to widening participation and lifelong learning by encouraging participation of learners who may not previously have considered studying for a higher level qualification. Academic knowledge and understanding is integrated with the development and support of vocational skills and competencies. The Foundation Degrees have the defining characteristics of employer involvement, accessibility, articulation and progression, flexibility, partnership, and the development of knowledge skills and understanding. It is also recognised that the students studying for our Foundation Degrees may have particular academic support needs following extended periods of time away from formal study. We have therefore integrated within the academic structure of the Foundation Degrees the core module "Understanding professional and academic texts". This module is designed to re-introduce learners to the conventions of academic texts and prepare them with the skills required for higher level study. The Institute is currently engaged in a thorough review of its post-graduate taught curriculum. An emerging outcome of this review is to reshape the Institute's provision to enable students to study in a far more flexible fashion with an increasing degree of modularity in professional sp...
Additional Access Measures. Responsible, Successful Graduates Figure 1: University of Manchester Extended Higher Education Progression Framework
Additional Access Measures. Summary Overview of current activity Aimhigher Access to Southampton Learn with US Support for Admissions Student retention and success
Additional Access Measures. As highlighted in section 5.1, Leeds Trinity University has an excellent track record with regards to developing and delivering innovative outreach initiatives, in 2013/14 Leeds Trinity University will further develop these initiatives by delivering the following outreach activity: Extend WP outreach to pupils under 14 years, including primary schools OFFA guidance has suggested exploring the opportunities around activities aimed at lower age groups – i.e. longer-term targets. Leeds Trinity University is well placed to do this as every year it places 560 Primary Education students into schools, and will launch a resource pack for students to use on placement in schools and encourage staff volunteers to raise awareness and aspiration with younger pupils. Have in place a resource pack for Primary Education students to use when on placement in primary schools highlighting the benefits of higher education 50% of the placement students to pilot the resource pack Pre workshop evaluations and post workshop evaluations with pupils who have taken part in the activity. Online tracking of resource pack usage. Staff and students from across the University to volunteer at targeted primary schools. 100 interventions to take place over the academic year. Manually track interventions on schools & colleges database. Qualitative feedback from staff. Leeds Trinity University Children’s University In response to OFFA guidance aiming at aspiration activity from lower age groups KS2 and KS3, Leeds Trinity University will investigate developing the Leeds Trinity University Children’s University, a national initiative which will work with primary schools across the Leeds City Region in particular targeting primary schools with high ratio of under-represented pupils. Children’s University activity will include attainment and aspiration raising programmes which support out- of-hours learning. Recruit 6 primary schools to take part in the Children’s University programme 6 targeted primary schools to be validated as “restricted learning destinations” 12 teachers to be trained as Children’s University validators 90 pupils to have achieved a Bronze award in the first year of the pilot 90 pupils to attend the first graduation ceremony Pre/Post evaluations to be carried out with each pupil Tracking of the pupils using FFT data and the National Children’s University Deliver an annual Children’s University lecture series for pupils and parents 200 parents/carers and pupils to attend the an...
