Sustained improvements in access
Nicola Sinclair, Head of Access, Participation and Outreach
“Access remains the biggest priority for the University in terms of closing gaps in disadvantage and under-representation. We have continued to increase the proportion of students from areas of deprivation and low participation in higher education, students of colour, those with disabilities, students in receipt of free school meals and those from the state sector.
The pandemic has raised significant challenges, disproportionately affecting widening participation students who have experienced higher levels of learning loss with long term implications. Meanwhile engagement with pupils and schools has been challenging and required rapid and wholescale transfer of activities and support online.
Strategic measures include focused work with under-represented pupils via target schools and educational partners including outreach, teaching enrichment and tutoring; fair access programmes advancing knowledge, skills and confidence; work with teachers and families to improve pupil support; contextualised admissions; tailored outreach and transition support; development of progression routes into higher education; and external partnerships.”
Sustained improvements in access
Nicola Sinclair, Head of Access, Participation and Outreach
“Access remains the biggest priority for the University in terms of closing gaps in disadvantage and under-representation. We have continued to increase the proportion of students from areas of deprivation and low participation in higher education, students of colour, those with disabilities, students in receipt of free school meals and those from the state sector.
The pandemic has raised significant challenges, disproportionately affecting widening participation students who have experienced higher levels of learning loss with long term implications. Meanwhile engagement with pupils and schools has been challenging and required rapid and wholescale transfer of activities and support online.
Strategic measures include focused work with under-represented pupils via target schools and educational partners including outreach, teaching enrichment and tutoring; fair access programmes advancing knowledge, skills and confidence; work with teachers and families to improve pupil support; contextualised admissions; tailored outreach and transition support; development of progression routes into higher education; and external partnerships.”
Who are our Exeter Scholars?
Exeter Scholars meet a range of widening participation criteria. Of those who went on to degree courses at Exeter in 2021, 52% and 56% respectively were from low representation and high deprivation areas, compared with 18% and 16% of their peers. These entrants were also more likely to be students of colour. Once at Exeter, they go on to succeed with 94% of our first graduating cohort achieving a 2:1 or first.
Record year for Exeter Scholars
Exeter Scholars is the University’s flagship fair access programme which works with students from under-represented backgrounds from across the UK to help them realise their academic potential and make informed choices about their future.
Supporting around 1,000 pupils annually and with entry points in Years 10 and 12, participation develops subject knowledge and skills, provides first-hand experience of student life, encourages peer support and allows students to work alongside academics from a wide range of disciplines. Fully subsidised, the programme gives pupils an understanding of university life, first-hand experience of a leading university, insight into academic research and its impact on everyday life and in-depth exploration of a specific discipline. Peer networking and skills development to support study and transition to higher education are key components.
The scheme also supports students once they enrol at Exeter with a package of pastoral, financial and practical benefits. Although delivered entirely online due to Covid, we continued to expand both participation and impact. During 2021/22, 430 Scholars achieved university places with 191 progressing to undergraduate study at Exeter. Of these 54% achieved AAA or higher.
Sachin – Exeter Scholar
“One of the main things I have learnt from taking part in Exeter Scholars is that university is a much friendlier and more supportive place than I initially thought. Everyone is helpful and people genuinely care about your wellbeing and want you to succeed. I have also learnt the importance of socialising and making new friends through the Exeter Scholars programme.”
50% of the 245 students enrolled on the Exeter Pathways to Law programmes have enrolled in a leading university.
Pathways to Law
Pathways to Law is jointly managed and funded by The Sutton Trust, and is offered at 13 UK universities including the University of Exeter.
The Pathways to Law at programme at Exeter is an important discipline strand within Exeter Scholars which aims to improve representation in the legal profession and enable students to learn more about studying law, legal careers and obtain first-hand knowledge from practitioners in the field.
Academic sessions include topics such as Criminal Law, Sources of Law and The UK Constitution, Negotiation, and Family Law and more specialised research topics such as Artificial Intelligence and the Law, Autonomous Vehicles and the Law, Medical Ethics, Mediation and Law and Business.
Employer engagement is a key part of the programme and students benefit from our strong links with a wide range of law firms and organisations who provide both session support, such as Client Interviewing & Networking and CV Workshop sessions, and localised work experience placements across the South West.
Since its inception at Exeter in 2013, 245 students have been supported on the Exeter Pathways to Law programme with an average of 20% successfully enrolling on a programme at Exeter. 32% of Exeter Pathways to Law students enrol at other Sutton Trust Partner universities whilst 50% have enrolled at a leading university.
With regards to the wider impact of the programme, and over the same 10 year timeframe, 92% of Sutton Trust students went onto Higher Education, with 7% having successfully enrolled at Oxbridge and 62% of students enrolling at another leading university.
Realising Opportunities
Realising Opportunities is a unique collaboration of 16 leading research-intensive universities working together to promote fair access and social mobility of students from groups under-represented in higher education. The programme provides support during post-16 studies to develop the skills to be successful at university.
The University of Exeter was one of the founding members of RO which was first created in 2010 and has continued to develop and evolve. Their evaluation has found that programme participation increases students’ understanding of research intensive universities and of university life. Two-thirds of the cohort started university which is almost double the rate for 18 year-olds, and better than a comparison group who participated in alternative outreach provision.
students have engaged with us online from across the UK.
Working with schools and colleges
Our interactions with schools changed fundamentally with the Covid pandemic which presented significant challenges for schools, pupils and carers, and particularly in supporting disadvantaged and under-represented students.
We moved online, working with pupils and teachers via virtual classrooms and through the development of our Discover University open access outreach programme, providing workshops, advice, guidance and resources for students, parents and carers, and teachers.
Our outreach staff soon became expert in engaging with students digitally, running informative, fun and impactful sessions and worked with partners to run regional and national conferences to support pupils preparing for higher education.
We engaged with around 22,000 students online from the across the UK, welcomed over 7,000 to interactive outreach sessions and reaching a further 6,000 through our downloadable resources.
The team refined their relationship management approach in 2020-21 which sees them lead specific geographic areas of the UK, enabling effective relationships with our target schools.
7000
students joined our interactive outreach sessions.
6000
students reached through our downloadable resources.
Students play key role in access
A significant proportion of our widening participation work is supported by current students, either through our 500-strong Exeter Student Ambassador Scheme or postgraduate research students who provide a variety of academic engagement with school pupils.
Our students informed, inspired and supported pupils by running research-led sessions; supporting fair access programmes; sharing their experiences; engaging in social media take-overs or tutoring as part of our Study Buddies programme or work with the Brilliant Club. Evaluation shows the importance of engagement with university students for widening participation pupils; while conversely our students gain a range of employability benefits.
Kingsley, Exeter Student Ambassador
“My favourite job as a student ambassador has been working on summer school residentials. This provides an opportunity to work with the same students over a period of days or a week, and it’s incredibly rewarding to see your relationship develop with the prospective students as their attitudes and aspirations towards higher education change. It’s a rare opportunity to feel like you’re making a real difference during a formative time of their lives.”
students from schools and colleges engaged in 90 discipline-specific sessions during 2020/21.
Enriching the school curriculum
Pupils meeting a range of widening participation criteria from 192 schools and colleges engaged in 90 discipline-specific learning and information sessions during 2020/21.
The University’s teaching enrichment programme enables schools to benefit from academic expertise and university facilities to support teaching and learning.
Working with schools and colleges with high proportions of under-represented students, we run subject conferences, workshops, lectures and create lesson-plans and teaching resources to engage pupils with exciting research-led sessions.
Activities on subjects as varied as astrophysics, climate change and social justice are designed to achieve particular learning outcomes as part of a wider framework of activities and school support and involve academic staff, researchers and student ambassadors working alongside the WP team.
We also run a variety of activities to enable pupils to discover a range of academic disciplines, particularly in the context of how they are applied and support career development.
Dr Ryan Hanley, WP Academic Lead for History
As the first member of my family to attend university, I’m really passionate about WP and making Exeter a welcoming environment for people from all backgrounds. My research is on Black British history, so I was very lucky to be working with young people during a time when issues around race and social justice were at the forefront of the national conversation. I was so impressed by the students I worked with – not just their ability, but their sensitivity, compassion, and commitment to understanding the world around them. I wanted to try to encourage that sense of excitement about what makes studying history at Uni so great – being an independent learner, finding out new stuff for yourself and making it part of a conversation with your peers, guided but not determined by the ‘expert’.”
Education partnerships in the South West
The University plays a direct role in supporting school improvement, learner attainment and skills development to enable social mobility.
We are an active partner in projects to unlock student potential and address regional skills gaps. We are a joint sponsor of Exeter Mathematics School which is designed to meet the needs of able mathematics students and rated by Ofsted as outstanding.
Partnerships to support skills and technology development also include the South West Institute of Technology and South Devon University Technical College. We are also part of the Ted Wragg Multi Academy Trust, a city-wide approach to support pupil attainment in Exeter which has led sustained improvements in school performance. In 2020/21 the University launched a new Education Partnerships scheme, joining forces with 50 schools and colleges, with the aim of providing a programme of structured support, advice and guidance to pupils.
teachers were involved in virtual CPD sessions.
Supporting educators during Covid
Teachers and advisers play a hugely important role in shaping attitudes to higher education and helping pupils make informed choices about their future.
Recognising the particular challenges posed by Covid, we extended significantly our communications, resources and support for teachers, launching a regular podcast and social media updates to keep schools informed about changes in university admissions and support, and running a series of virtual CPD sessions via our Discover University platform and with other Russell Group partners through Advancing Access, involving 578 teachers.
Teacher from the Royal Grammar School (RGS), High Wycombe
“A massive thank you from us all at RGS for coming all the way from Exeter to see us. We really do appreciate your time. The talk delivered was excellent – really informative, interesting and catered perfectly for the target year groups...so thank you! The boys who came for a one-to-one were all very grateful. I have already heard back from a number of students who have said how useful the talk and sessions were.”
Focus on state sector recruitment
The University is on a mission to improve substantially the proportion of our students who come from the state sector.
Although state sector students make up the majority of our undergraduate home intake, the proportion remains relatively low in comparison with the rest of the sector despite improvements in widening participation. Council made a resounding commitment to make a step change, increasing the proportion of home undergraduates from 65% to 80% while also enhancing our support for state sector students to progress into postgraduate study. Working in collaboration with students from the 93% Club, actions to date includes investment in outreach and educational partnerships, creation of a new series of foundation years, changes to our admissions practice and improved communications. Longer term actions will also focus on student experience and programme development.
Focus on state sector recruitment
The University is on a mission to improve substantially the proportion of our students who come from the state sector.
Although state sector students make up the majority of our undergraduate home intake, the proportion remains relatively low in comparison with the rest of the sector despite improvements in widening participation. Council made a resounding commitment to make a step change, increasing the proportion of home undergraduates from 65% to 80% while also enhancing our support for state sector students to progress into postgraduate study. Working in collaboration with students from the 93% Club, actions to date includes investment in outreach and educational partnerships, creation of a new series of foundation years, changes to our admissions practice and improved communications. Longer term actions will also focus on student experience and programme development.
ALUMNUS QUOTE – WHAT THEY DID, WHY GET INVOLVED?
Partnership counts
Partnerships to support social mobility were more important than ever given the challenges posed by Covid.
These included: Realising Opportunities, developing pupil skills, knowledge and confidence to succeed at a research-intensive university; Next Steps South West, working with regional partners to support students from low participation neighbourhoods to enter higher education; IntoUniversity, co-funding a centre with this charity which provides community-based academic skills support in the country’s most deprived communities; Pathways to Law with the Sutton Trust; Brilliant Club, engaging PhDs to deliver small group work in schools; and the SEREN network, a Welsh Government initiative increasing the progression of pupils into research intensive universities.