Jonathan Neves Claire Slight surveys@heacademy.ac.uk Part-time Postgraduate Researcher trends from 2015: The student journey Jonathan Neves Claire Slight surveys@heacademy.ac.uk

The part-time postgraduate researcher journey Considering the student journey in terms of: Student demographics Journey into studying Motivations and career plans Experiences of studying Overall satisfaction and confidence 18/09/2018

Postgraduate Research Experience Survey Aims to gain feedback on the programme experience of PGR level students Aims to enable the use of feedback to enhance that experience Implemented locally – institutions decide how to administer the survey Runs every two years to allow time for enhancement by institutions, and to avoid over-surveying PGR students Includes ‘traditional’ doctorates, professional doctorates, Mphil (with and without a transfer to PhD) and Masters by research Includes both part time and full time students Confidential results All collected using BOS online survey tool PRES designed for enhancement, to be used alongside other more detailed (often qualitative) information from students and staff. The results are confidential therefore enables freedom to inform decisions relating to enhancement, without informing league tables which can be potentially damaging to the institutions who would most benefit from using the surveys as an enhancement tool. 18/09/2018

PRES redesigned in 2013 Now shorter, more focused in line with Vitae’s Researcher Development Framework and QAA descriptors of PGR study developed in response to sector feedback, streamlined and standardised Seven core areas: Supervision Responsibilities Resources Research skills Research culture Professional development Progress and assessment Relationship with supervisor and perception of support Connectedness to the wider research culture Provision of resources e.g. working space, library Awareness of responsibilities Development as a researcher and academic Experience of delivering teaching NOT currently focused on: Extent student engaging with their research programme Experience of structured teaching and assessment 18/09/2018

A steady increase in participation in PRES 2015   Population studying at PGR level in the UK 113,000 53,348 respondents to PRES 41% of sample… 18/09/2018 All Students

Developing the HEA surveys offer Consultation for PRES 2017 and beyond launched in March https://heacademy.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/pres-2017-and-beyond Concern to preserve trends where possible Wider review looking to improve reporting of results across HEA Surveys Consultation download: https://heacademy.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/pres-2017-and-beyond 18/09/2018

The part time picture What are the demographics of part-time students? What does the transition into PGR programmes look like for part-time students? 18/09/2018

Large increase in PT responses since 2011 2015   Population studying at PGR level in the UK 29,555* 9,513 respondents to PRES 32% of sample… 18/09/2018 Part Time Students

A spread of part time students’ ages Overall the majority of students were between 26 and 31 years old (32%) Impacts upon life experience, work experience, motivation etc 18/09/2018 Part Time/ Full Time Comparison

Higher numbers of female part-time participants The full time participants showed a relatively even spread between males and females The part time participants were more likely to be female Males are typically less likely to respond to online surveys 18/09/2018 Part Time/ Full Time Comparison 2015

Majority of part-time students worked before studying 18/09/2018 Part Time/ Full Time Comparison 2015

Part-time students’ programmes fit alongside other priorities Part time students more likely to be in paid employment and studying as distance learners. Studying takes place alongside other roles and life priorities 18/09/2018 Part Time/ Full Time Comparison 2015

Part time motivations and plans What are part-time students’ motivations to study? What are the career plans of part-time students? How do motivations and career plans relate? 18/09/2018

Part-time students more motivated by interest After logistical regression models to see what factors affect main motivations: tested discipline, age, gender, mode of study, English language proficiency and year of study. All had relatively low influence on motivations. Combined, they only explain between 2.2% and 3.1% of the total variability of the ‘interest in the subject’ motivation and between 4.9% and 7% of the total variability of the ‘career prospects improvement’ motivation. 18/09/2018 Part Time/ Full Time Comparison 2015

Students’ motivations differed by age Main motivation to pursue a research degree, by age Interest in the subject is the most important motivation for younger and older students. Middle-aged students were motivated by improvement of career prospects, this trend reflects the full time students’ trends also 18/09/2018 Part Time Students 2015

Motivations were nuanced, focused on development and opportunities Personal development and challenge “Improving my skills and knowledge” “This is something I wanted to do for myself and my own personal development” “I always wanted the challenge of doing a PhD” “It was simply a personal aspiration to achieve a doctoral award” “I wanted a challenge after a personal tragedy” Career development “Improve my career prospects” “Have to as part of my job” “Expectation from work” “To improve the service provision for disabled patients I work with” Taking opportunities “Funding was available” “The opportunity arose from the work I was already doing” “The opportunity arose which saved me looking elsewhere for a job Proving self “To prove to myself I was capable” “For myself to see if I could achieve” “Personal motivation to show I can do it Many of the comments related to development within current role were based within healthcare and clinical practice Many of the comments relating to having to do it as part of the job were based within academia: had to keep up with university practices relating to holding PhDs The slide highlights the range of motivations for studying a part time research degree – no one size fits all. May also reflect those studying professional doctorates 18/09/2018 Part Time Students’ comments 2015

Envisaged careers and motivations were strongly related for part-time students 18/09/2018 Part Time Students 2015

Part-time students pictured transitions into current and professional careers High percentage of part-time students chose other: showing nuanced nature of their career plans While around 45% of part-time students wish to pursue a career in academia in year one, only 36% are interested in that career path by year seven, and even fewer after that. The year of study explains around 8% of the variability of the career choice variable – a substantial effect. 18/09/2018 Part Time/ Full Time Comparison 2015

Career plans were nuanced and uncertain Portfolio careers/mixture of roles “I want to mix clinical, research and teaching” “A portfolio career developing what I am doing now, teaching, doing therapy, performing, researching” Uncertain “I am not sure what my next step will be on completion of my research degree” “I will think about this when I have completed my studies” Remaining within current role “I already have a career. I will wait to see where this research takes me…” “Already a senior lecturer but would hope to engage in more research in the future” Retirement/ending career “My career is coming to an end and so a doctorate will be the pinnacle of my achievements” “Dissemination of findings and retirement” Whilst the part time students on the previous graph did show higher numbers within ‘other’ and lower numbers within jobs within higher education and professional careers, some chose ‘other’ whereby they were already working within higher education, or returning to the role within which they had worked in during/before their PhD 18/09/2018 Part Time Students’ comments 2015

Students’ envisaged careers differed within different mission groups Those studying in Universities Alliance institutions were most likely to envisage an academic career in HE 18/09/2018 Part Time Students 2015

The research experience What are part-time students’ experiences during their research degrees? How do part-time students’ experiences compare to that of the full-time cohorts? 18/09/2018

Part time students scored lower across many of the scales Supervision scales, along with research skills development were the highest rated scales Overall satisfaction and confidence to finish on time were relatively similar for PT and FT 18/09/2018 Part Time/Full Time Comparison 2015

However, the scores on these scales have all improved since 2013 The part-time trend mirrors that for all students, as all experience scale mean scores improved slightly from 2013 (Supervision to professional development). 18/09/2018 Part Time Students

Part time students scored lower across the majority of resource scales Lower scores here may relate to being less likely to be based within the institution itself 18/09/2018 Part Time/ Full Time Comparison 2015

Part-time students scored lower across research culture scales Part-time students had less access to opportunities, and a positive research atmosphere Opportunities to engage with peers and staff can positively impact upon student engagement and development of skills: as highlighted by UKES Research culture was rated the lowest within the survey 18/09/2018 Part Time/ Full Time Comparison 2015

Part-time students scored their professional development lower across all scales Lower scores may relate to skills being developed before starting the degrees (during previous work and studying experiences) 18/09/2018 Part Time/ Full Time Comparison 2015

Part time students less likely to have taken part in conferences or placements/internships Communicating research to non academic audiences is important for dissemination and impact, and part-time students were more likely to have done so Research conferences are often seen as typical research programme opportunities, but part-time students were less involved in these than the full-time cohort Just over 3% of all students (1,600) stated they have not experienced any of the suggested opportunities. They are more likely to be part-time, self-funded and from outside the UK suggesting these are the more vulnerable groups when it comes to making the most of their studies; 18/09/2018 Part Time/ Full Time Comparison 2015

Students took part in different opportunities at different stages of their research programme survey results show a reassuring pattern that students experience various opportunities when they should experience them. That is, they tend to receive various training towards the beginning of their course, while they attend conferences, submit to a journal or receive career advice later in their studies. The pattern is the same for full-time and part-time students; 18/09/2018 Part Time Students 2015

Generally, upwards trends seen across comparable scales From 2013 the scales were: definitely disagree, mostly disagree, neither agree or disagree, mostly agree, definitely agree 2011 and 2009 scales were strongly disagree, disagree, neither agree nor disagree, agree, strongly agree As mentioned in section 2 it is inadvisable to make comparisons at scale level between PRES 2013 and PRES 2011 because of the extent of the changes to the questionnaire. Nonetheless there are some items which have remained the same, or which have received minor modifications, where comparisons may be more legitimate. 18/09/2018 Part Time Students 2009-2015

Overall satisfaction and confidence How satisfied are part-time students with their research programmes? How confident are part-time students that they will finish on time? 18/09/2018

Satisfaction differed across types of institution Those in Pre-92, Guild HE, Russell Group institutions average satisfaction was higher than the overall average 18/09/2018 Part Time Students 2015

Confidence to finish on time showed a similar pattern amongst institutions 18/09/2018 Part Time Students 2015

Those with a disability were on average less satisfied with their degree… Around 7% of all respondents (full time and part time) stated they have a disability- this negative impact on satisfaction and confidence is a challenge The impact of disability has also been highlighted in an upcoming HEA report by authors at the University of Southampton in which they found that being disabled had a significant impact on student experience and student engagement across the HEA surveys portfolio 18/09/2018 Part Time Students 2015

…and less confident that they would complete on time 18/09/2018 Part Time Students 2015

Having taken part in any of the opportunities related to increased levels of satisfaction… 18/09/2018 Part Time Students 2015

…and increased levels of confidence 18/09/2018 Part Time Students 2015

Students’ satisfaction and confidence decreased by year of study This pattern is similar to drop in levels of satisfaction and confidence for full-time students 18/09/2018

The part time experience Part time and full time students had broadly similar experiences: mostly satisfied Part-time students: had motivations which were nuanced, complex and changed over time, alongside career plans. spanned a broad range of ages and more likely to be distance learners were more likely to have been in work before and during their programme tended to score slightly lower across the areas covered within the survey, but scores have improved since 2013 tended to experience different opportunities depending upon year of study, in an expected pattern experienced a pattern of decreasing confidence over time experiences differed within different types of institutions with a disability faced challenges regarding satisfaction and confidence to finish on time 18/09/2018

Supporting part time postgraduate researchers Highlights importance of recognising the diversity of part-time students’ experiences, motivations and career plans Highlights importance of flexibility within institutions in ensuring students have access to resources and support needed to complete their research degree Highlights need for supporting those with disabilities in order to ensure they are satisfied and confident within their research Highlights need for support and encouragement to maintain confidence, particularly during fifth year of programme 18/09/2018

PRES Surveys@heacademy.ac.uk 18/09/2018