Making Sense of Diversity in a University Education

Much of the academic literature and institutional reports focus on widening participation in terms of student access to higher education, retention failure and employability of those who do remain and succeed once they graduate. There remains a gap in terms of understanding how these students engage within the University and in particular what resources can be useful to increase their educational performance and confidence.

Warwick has been successful in attracting increased numbers of Access students and recognises that an emphasis on supporting those students to realise the best possible achievements while they are here is crucial. This event, though covering the life cycle of Widening Participation from outreach, through retention, to progression, particularly focused on retention and more specifically on what we do at Warwick to ensure that our practices are open to and beneficial to all students from all backgrounds. Key members of the University spoke from their own perspectives on this subject, with the event being introduced by Christina Hughes, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Education (Innovation, Employability and Widening Participation).

Programmme | Photos

 Newsletter focussed on diversity:

 Introduction
Professor Christina Hughes, PVC for Education (Innovation, Employability and Widening Participation)

 Introduction
Paul Blagburn, Senior Assistant Registrar (Outreach)

 Outreach
Paul Whitehouse, English Dept. Widening Participation Officer

 Retention - Panel 1
Paul Taylor, Justin Greaves, Shannon Holland-Houghton, Will Curtis, Clare Allington, Lucy Gill and Claire Raistrick

 Rentention - Panel 2

 Progression (and open discussion)
Sue Bennett and Ann Wilson, Student Careers and Skills