New policy commitments and existing concerns over student support indicate an urgent need for systematic research on outcomes for students entering HE with vocational qualifications to ensure that they are fairly supported in the changing environment. This research is particularly pressing as illustrated by figures compiled by Pearson (2011) which reveal a 30% year-on-year increase in the numbers of those attaining university places with BTEC-level qualifications.
This project has three research objectives.
- A longitudinal multilevel analysis of data provided by the HESA to examine differences in HE outcomes and attainment for students by entry qualification controlling for the subject of study entry tariff student’s age mode of study (full/part-time) and type of institution attended.
- A qualitative study of the experiences of undergraduate students; both those recently transferring from secondary and FE and those in the final stages of their undergraduate programmes.
- To determine the extent to which relevant university academic staff feel differences in entry qualifications affect their teaching practice.
The impact of the project will be concrete evidence of changing outcomes for students with vocational secondary qualifications providing an evidence base for national policymaking and teaching and learning practice within institutions.