1. INEQUALITIES IN THE TAKE UP OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES AFTER GRADUATION?
Dr. Sally Hancock
Department of Education, University of York
Access & Widening Participation Network, SRHE
9th March 2017

2. Professor Gillian Hampden-Thompson
Acknowledgements
Dr Paul Wakeling
Professor Gillian Hampden-Thompson

5. Shifting landscape Considerable growth in postgraduate numbers
Increases in UG and PG fees (and debt)
“the new frontier of widening participation… lack of access to postgraduate study is in danger of becoming a social mobility time-bomb”
(Alan Milburn, 2012)
Access to finance a significant barrier (OFFA)

6. What would equality look like?
Take up of postgraduate study is…
Consistent across graduates’ characteristics
Trendless across graduates’ characteristics
Associated with first degree attainment
(meritocracy)
We would expect variation across some characteristics, e.g. subject

7. Data ‘Understanding the Student’, Postgraduate Support Scheme, 2014-15
Who progresses (taught Master’s)
Destinations of Leavers of Higher longitudinal survey (2008/9 and 2010/11)
Who progresses (doctoral degrees)

8. Dataset 1
‘Understanding the Student’, Postgraduate Support Scheme,
Six research-intensive English HEIs
Large scale survey of first-degree alumni
(2009 and 2012) (n=2849)
Analysis of application data (2013 and 2014) (n=42,888)

9. Dataset 2 Destinations of Leavers of Higher longitudinal survey
2008/9 and 2010/11 UK doctoral graduates
Linked to Student Record
- socio-demographic characteristics
Response rate (n=4,731)

10. Progression to taught Master’s degrees

11. Some good news? Attainment
1st class or 2:1 more likely to progress to PGT and PGR

13. Some good news? Attainment
1st class or 2:1 more likely to progress to PGT and PGT
Debt per se not a predictor of transition
Higher debt (over 20k) associated with lower progression to PGR, but not when attainment and subject taken into account
Access to finance more important  loans
(see Wakeling, Hampden-Thompson & Hancock, forthcoming)

14. Parental HE
NS-SEC
POLAR

15. Average earnings
With PGT - M: £25,500 F: £22,500
Without PGT - M: £22,500 F: £19,500

16. Applications to taught Master’s degrees

17. Applications
60 per cent
Offers
60 per cent
Enrolments

20. Doctoral degrees

21. Initial observations Equally split by gender ~70% aged <35 on entry
Just over half have one or more parental HE
Vast majority from state school
Vast majority White British (~90%)
5.3% Asian; 1.2% Black

22. Initial observations Subject area 70% STEM; 19% AH; 11% SS
Varies little by gender, parental higher education, or POLAR
variance by institution type (Russell Group % STEM, 53.4% AH, 45.6% SS)
variance by age on entry (<50% of those aged 35 or over in STEM)
variance by ethnicity (85.5% Asian in STEM)

23. Initial observations Highest qualification on entry
~50% enter with a first degree only
~40% enter from PGT
NSSEC 4-8 more likely to transition directly (two-thirds)

24. Distributions by mission group

26. Further tentative findings
Black students
Less likely to enter from first degree only (and more likely to complete PGT)
Higher proportions aged >35 or older
Considerably lower proportions at Russell Group even within STEM (~44% compared to 65% of White British students studying STEM)

27. Reflections Persistent inequalities access & outcomes
Diversity is on the agenda
Loan scheme welcome
Better data needed

28. References
Boliver, V. (2013) ‘How fair is access to more prestigious UK universities?’, British Journal of Sociology, 64(2)
Boliver, V. (2016) ‘Exploring ethnic inequalities in admission to Russell Group universities’, Sociology, 50(2),
OFFA (2016) The challenges of widening access to higher education. Accessed 6th March
Wakeling, P. (2008) ‘Are ethnic minorities underrepresented in UK postgraduate study?’ Higher Education Quarterly, 63(1),
Wakeling, P. and Hampden-Thompson, G. (2013) Transitions to Higher Degrees Across the UK: an analysis of national, institutional and individual differences. York: Higher Education Academy.
Wakeling, P., Hancock, S., Hampden-Thompson, G., and Coxhead, A. (2015) ‘Understanding the Student: consortium research on taught postgraduate access and motivations’, in Strike, T and Toyne, J. (Eds.) Widening Access to Postgraduate Study and the Professions. University of Sheffield.
Wakeling, P., Hampden-Thompson, G., and Hancock, S. ‘Is undergraduate debt an impediment to postgraduate enrolment in England?’ Forthcoming.