International Conference on Enhancement and Innovation in Higher Education Crowne Plaza Hotel, Glasgow 9-11 June 2015 Welcome

University of Stirling Students’ Union Stef Black, Lauren McKay & Shumela Ahmed Presentation Background: Accessing Higher Education: A Conference for Non-Traditional Students In April 2015, we hosted the inaugural Accessing Higher Education conference at the University of Stirling. The conference aimed to tackle and break down barriers faced by many non- traditional students. We hoped to bring staff and potential students together to discuss issues and drive solutions. We now need to think about where we go from here….

What do we mean by non-traditional? Care experienced Mature Low-income Veterans Young Carers Those with dependants Disabled From College 3+ year gap in Education

Why? Idea came from a School Officer, who was keen to host an event for care- leavers Care-leavers (care-experienced) are a hard number to quantify; not everyone ticks the box on UCAS/SAAS funding applications. After much discussion though, it became apparent that many of the issues we discussed affecting care-leavers were similar to the barriers faced by many non-traditional students thinking of entering into Higher Education; financial, social, worthy? We felt the need to start a National conversation on the matter, which tied in with the Enhancement Theme for this year of Student Transitions. Many of the barriers were perceived barriers; our biggest challenge was to remove the stigma attached to stereotypes as to why they couldn’t go to University.

IDEA PLANNING who? What? FUNDING QAA/ University IMPACT & EVALUATION …ongoing CONFERENCE April 15 th 2015 THE FURTURE; WHAT IS NEXT? ….and so it began

ACCESSING HIGHER EDUCATION: A CONFERENCE FOR NON-TRADITIONAL STUDENTS

Key Findings Key speakers were inspirational- both were from NT backgrounds Perceived barriers; lack of understanding, not lack of ability  CONFIDENCE OVER COMPETANCE Not believing in oneself; support and encouragement are key Attitudes of staff; they must be willing to support changes Small changes can make a difference; times of lectures, office hours, financial commitment up front (no hidden costs) There needs to be a more joined up approach across our own institution, as well as across all institutions in Scotland. Lack of clout; SAAS & UCAS didn’t take up offer of stalls A one-day conference is not enough; there needs to be a long-term strategy

LEGACY…where do we go from here? CHALLENGES PROMOTION UNDERSTANDING OF NON-TRADITIONAL FUNDING STAFF BUY-IN NATIONAL BUY-IN PRESTIGE FUTURE RESEARCH SHARING OF BEST PRACTICE …ANOTHER CONFERENCE? CHALLENGING THE STRUCTURES & PROCESSES AT OUR INSTITUTIONS OPENING THE DOOR TO HIGHER EDUCATION COMMUNITY OUTREACH WORK ATTAINMENT AND RETENTION/COMPLETION FE- ARTICULATION AGREEMENTS POSITIVE DESTINATIONS NUS & SPARQS- FUNDING

THANK YOU- ANY QUESTIONS?