back on course What Works? Student Retention & Success Conference

1. back on course What Works? Student Retention & Success Conference Barbara Stephens, Project Director Alexis Peters, Senior Project Manager

2. What is back on course? • back on course is a HEFCE funded project operated by The Open University, working in partnership with UCAS • The project is designed to tackle the issue of undergraduate retention across the Higher Education sector in England • For the first year, the back on course team worked with UK undergraduate students who had withdrawn from full time study in 13 North West HEIs, as a pilot • As a result of the success of the pilot, HEFCE asked for the scheme to be rolled out across England in academic years 2010/2011 and 2011/2012 • Currently 107 HEIs are partnered with the scheme and the service has been offered to 40,000 early-leavers

3. What does back on course do? • We provide free, impartial information, advice and guidance to achieve a ‘positive outcome’ • Explore reasons for leaving and future opportunities • Confidential discussions tailored to student’s own circumstance • Clients may have multiple guidance interviews • Outcomes may be HE, FE, different modes of study, professional training, work or just opportunity to talk through what happened • We give students the information to make positive decisions about their futures • A chance to frame withdrawal not as failure but as an opportunity to reflect and make positive decisions

4. The back on course research project • Annual research conducted to feed back to sector (reports published in autumn 2010 and 2011) • Aims to identify characteristics of ‘at risk’ students more closely than previously • Brings back on course data and UCAS Apply data together

5. Research parameters and limitations • Research aims to sit between in depth smaller studies previously done and at scale HESA data • Data collected quantitatively using pre-defined categories developed from pilot research • Only early-leavers matched to UCAS dataset included in research

6. 2011 research report (1) 2011 Research at 3 different levels: • Characteristic data about who leaves HE • Who participates in back on course service • What early-leavers say about why they left

7. 2011 research report (2) Data analysis began in early summer 2011; at this point: • 19,570 clients offered service; 14,730 of these matched to UCAS data • 7,445 of these had been passed to the IAG service who had made pro-active attempts to contact these clients • 2,526 of these had been successfully contacted by the service, of which 965 had provided additional information

8. Key research findings from 2011 (1) • 12% of matched early-leavers had re-applied to HE and been accepted – higher than generally expected? • Younger students, those from POLAR groups 4 & 5 and those with A levels were more likely to cite dissatisfaction with their course • Mature students significantly more likely to leave early, twice as likely to use the BoC service and less likely to reapply to HE • 48% of early-leavers live within 25 miles of the HEI

9. Key research findings from 2011 (2) • Asian and black students are comparatively less likely to leave early than white students; disabled students no more likely • 47% of early-leavers are from the 40% more advantaged sectors of the population, but this reflects the profile of applicants – however, this is counter to the belief that early-leavers are ‘WP’ students • Characteristics of ‘no shows’ are different to other early leavers – more likely to be from 21-29 age group, ethnic minority

10. What might this mean? • Both the anecdotal and the quantitative data suggests that the extent to which the student identifies with the institution is crucial • Students who live less than 25 miles from the institution may be living at home, and not transferred their affiliation from home to HEI • Students living at home don’t have commitments to accommodation that may make it easier for them to leave • Understand the difficulty of forming individual relationships with students, but this may be a strategy that is needed in order to reduce numbers of students leaving • While declared disability at entry is not a key factor, developing illness or having it diagnosed while at the HEI may be • Anecdotal evidence suggests that for many, failing to complete their course is a personal tragedy

11. Questions and discussion Thank you www.backoncourse.ac.uk Barbara Stephens: b.m.stephens@open.ac.uk Alexis Peters: alexis.peters@open.ac.uk