French Adult Education at Blaise Pascal University, Clermont-Ferrand

Researcher: Tim Heenan
Supervised by: Will Curtis
Home department: DEPARTMENT OF LIFELONG LEARNING

Expected start date: 15/06/2015
Expected end date: 30/09/2015

I am a graduate electronics and software engineer who has been studying European Languages as a mature student at Warwick for the last ten years. I complete my European Studies degree this year and have a place for an MA in French and Francophone studies in the French Department at Warwick for academic year 2015 to 2016. I completed my dissertation on the French adult education system in April 2015.

I am going to Blaise Pascal University in Clermont Ferrand, down in the Auvergne in the middle of France to consult with their International Relations Vice President, and their Lifelong Learning Vice President to establish their approach to adult university education and see if any of their ideas could be applied here in the UK, especially at Warwick. I also have meetings arranged with UNEF, the equivalent of Warwick's Students' Union. Finally I will be holding semi-structured interviews with several people actually doing courses at Blaise Pascal at adults. These are mature students on different university courses who have already contributed via Skype interviews to my degree dissertation earlier this year. The overall aim is to identify and transfer in both directions the best practices for attracting adult students to university courses and making them feel part of the university community once they are start their courses.