30 September 2011
Implementing better information for prospective students
UUK has worked closely with HEFCE, GuildHE and many others to improve the information available to prospective students. Our members are now at the stage of implementing plans for a key information set (KIS) for all undergraduate courses, as announced in June this year.
HEFCE today published a
circular letter about key information sets, drawing particular attention to HESA guidance to institutions about the information they need to collect.
The circular letter also notes that the KIS will be available to potential students in the following ways:
- in context on the websites of universities and colleges
- on a new official website that enables users to search and compare both KIS and Unistats data
- on the redeveloped UCAS course search tool (Course Finder)
- through comparison websites and facilities provided by other organisations.
Enquiries about the KIS may be directed to kis@hefce.ac.uk
UUK will continue to be closely involved through our participation in the Higher Education Public Information Steering Group.
21 September 2011
UUK responds to the Higher Education White Paper
UUK has published its response to the Higher Education White Paper: Students at the Heart of the System (published by the Department for Business Innovation and Skills in June 2011). In our response, UUK has said that the White Paper may not deliver all of the government’s aims and that the proposals, as they now stand, could lead to unintended consequences for students and universities.
We set out a number of principles which underpin a strong sector, including that:
- There needs to be increased revenue into the higher education sector to maintain quality and enhance the student experience.
- There should be an absolute commitment to promoting high quality and standards across all higher education providers.
- Students interests should be promoted through a regulatory framework that seeks to protect and promote the quality and reputation of UK higher education.
However, in UUK's view, some of the White Paper's proposals are in danger of undermining the diversity of excellence across the sector by having a negative effect on the overall quality and brand of the higher education sector, including the benefits which accrue from the wider UK brand identity. We discuss these in more detail in our submission (see in particular section 3.4).
UUK has played a central role as one of the sponsor bodies of the quality assurance system and is strongly committed to its continuous improvement. We broadly support the development of a more flexible, risk-based approach to regulation and quality assurance. We recommend that the Government should work with UUK and others to develop a risk-based approach to regulation and quality assurance while protecting the overall quality and brand of the UK higher education sector.
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