Policy into practice - Access to university
Anne Longfield
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
The issue: Thousands of young people will start university over the next few weeks. But the stark reality is that young people with parents in professional positions are three times more likely to go to university than those whose parents are on low incomes.
Young people whose families have little or no experience of higher education and university are less likely to view it as a possibility, and often feel that it is not somewhere they belong.
Several organisations are trying to encourage young people from lower socio-economic backgrounds to pursue higher education and support them through the daunting application process. It's crucial that we support their efforts to raise the aspirations of young people from low-income backgrounds to give them the confidence and skills to go to university and compete for the most sought-after jobs.
CASE STUDY 1
IntoUniversity offers children and young people from disadvantaged backgrounds ongoing support to achieve and retain a university place. The service aims to address under-achievement and social exclusion among young people by offering an extensive programme of out-of-school study, mentoring, coaching and personal support.
The organisation builds relationships with young people from the age of seven and continues that support through university access and beyond. An evaluation by the National Foundation for Educational Research found that IntoUniversity was having a positive impact and the organisation is now planning an ambitious expansion programme.
CASE STUDY 2
Youth at Risk is a charity that works with young people in schools, prisons, probation services, adolescent psychiatric units, the government's New Deal scheme and the care system. It aims to build the self-esteem of young people from disadvantaged backgrounds who may never have considered university as an option.
Its Student Leadership Programme is aimed specifically at university students from communities who, for a range of reasons, have not previously participated in higher education, or who may fit the profile of being "at risk" of not completing their studies. Many are from working-class, black and Asian families and may find the experience of university at best challenging, or at worst alienating. The training programmes teach them interpersonal skills and convince them of their true potential, which increases attendance. Ninety-five per cent of participants rated their training as excellent or good.