HEFCE Priorities

John Rushforth

Director

Overview

• Context• Progression• Retention• Enhancement• Funding

Key Challenges for the Sector

• Quality student learning experience for a student population with increasingly diverse needs.

– Ensure access and progression.

– Support for innovation and development of curriculum and pedagogy.

– Enhance the standing of teaching and reward excellence.

Expansion of HE

• The economic case is strong• Social benefits• Increasing demand from potential students• Participation in UK is relatively low

Participation Rate Is Relatively Low

)

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

NewZealand

Sw eden Australia Iceland Korea3 UnitedKingdom

Italy2 Japan3 Austria Germany2

Country Net entry rates to tertiary type A (1st degree or equivalent

Source OECD Education at a Glance 2003

En

try r

ate

Social Class Gap Is Wide and Persistent

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2001

More Affluent social classes Less Affluent social classes All Classes

Strategic Objective

‘We want everyone to benefit from higher education who has the potential to do so’

Target Groups

Main (but not only) focus is 13-30; also:• Young people aged 13 to 19 from groups

under-represented in HE• Under-represented groups in work, or work-

based learning• People not in training, education or

employment

Student Progression

• Work place learning• Flexible learning• Vocational qualifications and higher

education• Life Long Learning Networks

Lifelong learning networks

• Regional or sub regional connections• Seamless progression routes• Guaranteed places• Credit transfer• Student support throughout career• Individual Learning Plans

Retention

• Something we are good at• Not just now but during time of change• A key element of WP strategy

– ‘We want everyone to benefit from higher education who has the potential to do so’

– PSA target

• Perception of HE

Figure 3Rates of Initial Entry and Survival in Tertiary Education Programmes 3-5 Years in Length

For 21 OECD Nations

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80

Rate of Entry

Rat

e o

f S

urv

ival

US

UK

Y= -.1026x + 78.23p=.54

Source: OECD, Education At A Glance, 2002, Table C2.1 (Entry Rates) and Table A2.2 (Survival Rates)

Sweden

Italy

Finland

Ireland

Netherlands

Iceland

Japan

Czech Republic

Rates of Participation and Noncompletion in UK Universities

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

83-84 84-85 85-86 86-87 87-88 88-89 89-90 90-91 91-92 92-93 93-94 94-95 95-96 96-97 97-98 98-99 99-00 00-01 Year

Percent Noncompletion Rate

Participation Rate

Participation Rate: the number of home domiciled young (under 21) initial entrants into full-time courses of higher education, expressed as a proportion of the averaged 18-19 year old-population of Great Britain

Noncompletion Rate: For 1983/4-1995/6 rate based upon a DfES comparsion of the number of starters and qualifiers; for 1996/97 and later based upon HEFCE projections applied to entering cohort of students.

Why do people drop out

• Academic• Financial• Personal• Social

Who is involved

– Schools– Academics– Institutional managers– Support workers– Students

Professional development

• The white paper calls for all new academic staff to have a teaching qualification(2006) and for external examiners to have induction and CPD for their role.

The opportunity is for HE staff to define the nature of this professional development and to engage with it

The challenge is to gain agreement from multiple groups with different agendas

National Teaching Fellowships

From 20 to 50 per year• Acknowledgement of different types of

nominee• Three institutional nominationsOpportunity for NTFs to be a powerful

advocates for TeachingChallenge to gain respect for the status of

teaching as much as research

Centres of Teaching Excellence

– 70 Centres – 200,000 - 500,000 per year for 5 years– Up to £2 million capital funding.

• Stage 1– The case for excellence

• Stage 2– The business case for investment value

• Announcement January 05

Opportunity of a reward for teaching

Challenge to make this an investment effective

The Higher Education Academy

• Current status– Professor Paul Ramsden – CEO– LTSN, ILTHE and NCT incorporated– Board established– The Council to be developed– Launch October 2004

Opportunity for a real voice for academics in policy and for new funding for R&D

Challenge – to create an effective new academy drawing together existing strands and increasing effectiveness of networks.

Higher Education Academy:an opportunity

• Ensuring continuity and development of – Professional accreditation– A voice for those developing teaching and learning– Informing leaders and managers about L&T issues– Strong subject networks– Dissemination, information, good practice, ideas and innovation– Coordination of enhancement projects/activities/agencies/networks

• Greater weight in the sector for teaching enhancement– Policy lobby– Focus for L&T activities– Conduit for dissemination of innovation and good practice– Support for scholarship of learning and teaching

Funding & Fees

• WP - £273 million to institutions in 2003-04:– £49 .2 million outreach– £10.3 million for disabled students– £213.1 million for retention

• Distributed on the basis of risk

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

12%

14%

4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30

A -level points

Perc

enta

ge n

ot

continuin

g

% not continuing versus A level entry points

Funding & Fees

• WP - £273 million to institutions in 2003-04:– £49 .2 million outreach– £10.3 million for disabled students– £213.1 million for retention

• Distributed on the basis of risk• HR strategies• L&T strategies• Additional funds for Professional standards

Funding Levels & Models

• Uplift for inflation• Spending review• The end of postcodes

– Ward participation– Educational achievement

• New PIs ?• T Funding Review

Fees as an opportunity

• Substantial step change• Unencumbered• Retention as an investment• Virtuous spiral

Future Issues

• Impact uncertain of Variable Fees– Debt versus cash– Govt rather than student– Market Position

• Office for fair access• Regional agenda

– Shortage subjects

Conclusions

• Complex and evolving area

• Interconnections means partnership

• Long-term issue