A presentation from the HEA's Research Conference: Promoting Equity in Higher Education 2010.
A burgeoning policy and research literature now exists with respect to widening participation in higher education. Far less is understood about the policies and practices of higher education institutions (HEIs) attempting to advance equity within the more specific arena of 'fair admissions'. Examining the UK's most selective HEIs a new mapping framework is presented to better understand and explain the different 'positions' taken by HEIs particularly with regard to the use of socially contextual data in decision-making. Case-study evidence from one HEI is then presented to demonstrate how equity should be understood as a plural multi-levelled and context-specific concept.
