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This is a past event from 1 November 2023, 9:30am - 4:30pm (GMT)
They are unavailable to book
Join us on Wednesday 1 November as we bring together leading sector experts to discuss the current and future challenges for improving access, participation and student success in higher education.
Register now to either join us in-person in London or gain access to a livestream of the plenary sessions (breakout sessions will not be streamed).
Why should you attend?
This one-day conference will provide informative, timely content from the most pertinent speakers on the topic, as well as a wide range of opportunities to network, discuss, and make connections with colleagues within the sector.
You will also be able to access the recordings of the plenary sessions after the event.
If you have any questions about this or any other of our events, please contact us at events@universitiesuk.ac.uk or 07500 441505.
We allow delegates to cancel their bookings up to one month before the event and receive a refund. If this applies to you, please contact us at the email or phone number above.
If you want to stay up to date with our events, news and publications, you can sign up for our newsletters here.
This session will take stock of the first wave of Access and Participation plans; to discuss what worked and give practical advice for institutions starting to write their plans in January.
With the introduction of UCAS’ new sections and questions to add context and widen access in admission, this session will discuss how we can communicate these changes to students and encourage them to engage, alongside the opportunities to develop contextual admissions and increase student support from induction.
Woburn House: Refreshments and networking
This session will explore strategies and approaches for effectively supporting students' mental wellbeing in the face of increasing demand and mounting pressures on services.
White working-class boys are often under-represented in higher education. During this session, we will explore strategies and approaches to improve access for this demographic and how universities can incorporate these efforts into their Access and Participation Plans.
Dr Sarah O'Malley, Student Skills Developer, SOAS, University of London
Debby Hsieh, Business Development Lead UK and Europe, Studiosity
SOAS, a small specialist and research intensive London university, strives to provide an intimate, welcoming and dynamic experience for their students. With a focus on high levels of student engagement via a rich and distinctive curriculum, they make effective use of technology to support learning.
In this case study session, Dr Sarah O’Malley will share how SOAS embedded Studiosity’s out of hours, personalised and on-demand study help within their wider academic support offering to help improve student attainment, experience, wellbeing and ultimately success for their diverse body of students. Learn SOAS’s initial motivations and aims and the impact so far, and how they plan to build on current student engagement.
Woburn House: Lunch and networking
Removing barriers for people with disabilities to access and succeed in higher education required us to think about those unique adjustments that need to be made. This session focuses on providing the best support for disabled students, with a particular emphasis on guiding them through the complexities of the new DSA assessment process.
This session will provide insights into the challenges faced by estranged students and explore ways to provide them with the best support throughout their university experience and the future.
Your Access and Participation Plan for the next five years is in place, supported by a well-developed theory of change and a range of agreed activities and initiatives to improve students outcomes for identified cohort groups. But how do you know whether you are making effective progress against those targets and milestones year-on-year?
In this session, we explore the challenges of evaluating progress against identified gaps and consider how student engagement data can enable universities to know, in real-time, whether the initiatives that are in place are working. Having identified where the risks lie within the student body, how can universities work in partnership with their students to make real-time progression against defined milestones?
Dr Sally Andrews, Pedagogic Projects Development Manager, Staffordshire University
With institutions taking a range of approaches to closing their awarding gaps, this session draws on the latest evidence and best practice from the sector, particularly on how we evaluate progress.
Financial pressures and difficulties are known to impact students’ studies and their wellbeing, therefore supporting students in the context of the rising cost of living is a key priority for institutions across the country. This session will discuss how we can best support students at this critical time, particularly in the context of maintenance loans falling further behind inflation.
How do we leverage partnerships between local universities, schools and colleges to improve access for the most disadvantaged in our regions? This session will focus on strategies and best practice for local collaboration.
This conference will be useful for all university staff who have responsibility for or play a part in student access, participation and success. Possible titles are suggested below, but we encourage anyone interested in the topic to attend:
We have a range of sponsorship opportunities available at our events. Please contact Magda Graszka, Senior Events Manager, for more information: magda.graszka@universitiesuk.ac.uk
Our monthly updates are a great way for you to stay up to date with our work, events, and higher education news.