University of the West of Scotland Outcome Agreement 2017/18 to 2019/20
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University of the West of Scotland
Outcome Agreement 2017/18 to 2019/20
Introduction
This Outcome Agreement sets out how the University of the West of Scotland will build on
our significant recent progress to help deliver the national priority areas identified by the
Scottish Funding Council (SFC) for 2017/18 to 2019/20.
In 2016, we refreshed our Corporate Strategy to 2020 to ensure it continues to set a clear
and focused direction for the University. We undertook extensive engagement with our staff,
students and other stakeholders to ensure our strategy enables us to deliver our ambitious
goals in the current environment. The refreshed strategy includes updated corporate
priorities and performance measures to ensure UWS remains clear about our ambitions in
light of recent developments, including political and economic changes. The strategy is
arranged around three core themes:
1. Student Success
We will deliver personalised and transformative higher education and ensure that our
students enjoy a rounded experience that includes exciting, extra-curricular activities such as
sport, volunteering and citizenship. We will achieve this through investment in, and
enhancement of, our teaching methods, environments and technologies to put our students
and their success at the heart of everything that we do.
2. Research, Enterprise and Engagement
Our international research presence and our partnership with business will inform and propel
our learning provision and create an enterprise culture that will support economic growth
locally and globally. Through the strengthening of our academic excellence and application
of our academic expertise, we will significantly increase turnover, broaden income streams
and contribute to the international development of knowledge.
3. Global Reach
We will be an international university that provides a springboard for all our learners to
contribute globally. We will deliver an academic portfolio that provides our students with
globally relevant skills, is internationally attractive and contributes to global reach.
Our strategy is based on a solid foundation that has been put in place over the last 120
years, since the University was originally founded in 1897. We are famed for being a
dynamic and responsive University that delivers exceptional vocationally oriented
higher education. Our Corporate Strategy sets out how we will ensure our graduates will be
work-ready, have globally relevant skills and the employees of choice for businesses around
the world because of their enthusiasm for learning and their ability to transfer knowledge into
practice.
UWS is a university that dares to be different. We are an inclusive organisation that
welcomes and values diversity. We lead the way across Scotland in widening
participation in higher education by some of the most under-represented sections of
Scottish society and are proud of the difference we make.
1UWS is well known for its work in building partnerships with business to support the
development and delivery of our programmes and placements for our students to ensure
they are work-ready on graduation.
We are investing in our learning and teaching infrastructure – including information
technology where we are currently implementing a £12 million investment programme to
make UWS one of the most IT-enabled universities in the UK. We are also investing in our
campuses to create modern and contemporary learning environments, where traditional
classrooms are replaced with more flexible facilities that promote group working,
collaborative knowledge development, and learner engagement. Our technical resources for
specialist programmes in disciplines such as the Creative Industries are second to none, and
we are delighted that STV has chosen UWS to be its partner in bidding for the licence to
operate local television programming in Ayr.
UWS is a university that is going places. We are building on a solid foundation and we have
much to be proud of. Whilst we continue to place significant importance on investment in our
learning environments, our success is driven by the people that make up this great
university.
We also know that we face a number of challenges. But we are determined to address these
challenges through investment in people and infrastructure, robust performance
management and ensuring our academic offer is continuously refreshed. We have a range
of enabling plans across the university that support our Corporate Strategy and these plans
will help us to address the challenges we face.
We are here for our students and it is their success that is at the centre of our Corporate
Strategy – Dreaming, Believing, Achieving.
SFC key priorities
SFC’s strategic plan priorities are: 1
• Widening access
• High quality learning and teaching
• World-leading research
• Greater innovation in the economy
• High-performing institutions.
UWS’ refreshed Corporate Strategy continues to sit well with these national priorities, and in
a number of priorities UWS is already a sector leader. UWS has mapped the Corporate
Strategy KPIs and other performance measures against SFC’s priorities to help ensure a
common direction of travel. UWS’ indicative targets against SFC’s strategic plan priorities
are set out in Appendix A.
1
SFC Guidance for the development of University Outcome Agreements: 2017-18 to 2019-20
2Priority 1: Widening access – learning that is accessible and
diverse, attracting and providing more equal opportunities for
people of all ages and from all communities and backgrounds
Widening Access and Retention Funding
UWS acknowledges the SFC’s Widening Access and Retention Funding which allows the
institution to implement a range of initiatives aimed at continuing its strong performance in
widening access and participation. 2 These initiatives include:
• Investing in the role of Programme Leaders (as part of a wider Student Attainment
Project) and other support staff
• Providing support for care leavers
• Developing partnerships with local colleges (UWS has two full-time College
Engagement Advisers who have a key role in promoting and supporting articulation
by Further Education students to the University)
• Widening the approach to contextualised admissions
• Transition programmes to support school pupils’ move to university.
UWS has also implemented a range of initiatives to improve retention rates with help from
this funding. These and other initiatives are discussed in more detail in Priorities 1 and 2 of
this Outcome Agreement.
Widening Access and Participation
UWS is widely recognised as one of Scotland’s leading institutions in widening participation
in higher education. In 2015/16, 27.6 per cent of Scottish-domiciled undergraduate entrants
at UWS (1,323 students) were from the 20 per cent most deprived postcodes, and 49.1 per
cent (2,356 students) were from the 40 per cent most deprived postcodes. We aim to
maintain this level of access over the period covered by this Outcome Agreement.
In 2015/16, over a fifth (20.9 per cent) of young, full-time Scottish-domiciled undergraduate
entrants to UWS came from SIMD20 areas, which was more than double the Scottish
average (10.4 per cent). UWS also had the highest proportion of Scottish-domiciled
undergraduate entrants to UWS from SIMD40 areas (40.0 per cent) by a considerable
margin, with the next highest institution Glasgow Caledonian (34.2 per cent). 3
2
Previously called Regional Coherence Funding.
3
http://www.sfc.ac.uk/PublicationsStatistics/statistics/higher_education_statistics/HE_perfor
mance_indicators/Participation_indicator_for_Scottish_HEIs.aspx
3Scottish HEIs with the highest percentage of young Scottish-domiciled entrants to
full-time undergraduate from SIMD20 (2015/16) 4
Institution From 20% most deprived areas
UWS 20.9%
Glasgow Caledonian 17.0%
Glasgow School of Art 13.5%
Dundee 13.0%
Abertay Dundee 11.7%
Strathclyde 11.5%
Stirling 10.4%
Royal Conservatoire 10.3%
Average for Scotland 10.4%
Our regional footprint means we not only address SIMD 20/40 challenges, but are also able
to tackle rural challenges – particularly in Ayrshire and in Dumfries and Galloway. We also
have a strong track record in providing higher education to students from care backgrounds,
and in articulating students from college to degree-level courses. In 2014/15, 57.0 per cent
of Scottish-domiciled learners articulated from college to degree level courses at UWS with
advanced standing compared with the national average of 47.6 per cent. 5
Over the period of this Outcome Agreement, UWS is committed to continued strong
performance in improving access for those from the widest possible range of backgrounds.
We already deliver far greater than the national average in this important area and our aim is
to maintain that position.
Around 11 per cent of UWS’ total current student population (eligible for SFC fees) are fees-
only. This is slightly higher than the average across the Scottish HE sector (around 8-9 per
cent). While the recruitment of fees-only students brings flexibility, and supports widening
access and articulation by FE learners, the university only receives around £1,800 per
student (around one quarter of the usual income of £7,000). This results in a notional income
deficit of several million pounds each year. Given the SFC’s recent funding announcement,
UWS continues to consider the implications (including financial) of reviewing its percentage
of fees-only students and is keen to discuss future funding arrangements.
UWS continually monitors and annually reviews its admissions procedures to ensure we are
responsive and applicant-focussed, and compliant with relevant legislation and best practice
in admissions. The University updated its Admissions Policy in June 2015 to include a
contextual admissions statement which reflects the admissions data. Following discussions
with Supporting Professionalism in Admissions (SPA), UWS is confident that existing
provision embeds this provision and ensures that appropriate data are used.
• Scottish Wider Access Programme (SWAP West)
UWS has the largest proportion of Scottish Wider Access Programme (SWAP) West
students progressing into its Degree provision – the majority of students progressing into the
4
http://www.sfc.ac.uk/PublicationsStatistics/statistics/higher_education_statistics/HE_performance_ind
icators/Participation_indicator_for_Scottish_HEIs.aspx
5
http://www.sfc.ac.uk/web/FILES/Funding_Outcome_Agreements_2016-
17/University_Outcome_Agreements_Summary_2015-16.pdf
4School of Health, Nursing and Midwifery. SWAP students receive pre-entry support to
university through Information talks on campus, Study Skills Days and guidance sessions
both on and off campus. UWS works in partnership with colleagues at SWAP West to
support and prepare students to make the transition from the programme to higher
education. UWS offers a wide range of progression routes from the SWAP West Access to
Humanities, Access to Life Science, Access to STEMs and also Access to Specialised
Programmes such as Primary Education, Nursing and Physics. UWS provides ongoing
support for these students and monitors their progression to ensure it provides appropriate
support when needed. UWS is involved in the governance of SWAP West as the University’s
Head of Student Recruitment, Admissions and Participation is on the Executive Group. UWS
academic staff participate in subject-related committees and the Senior Widening
Participation Development Officer is a member of the Access Co-ordinator’s Group.
Engagement with Local Schools
Since 2015/16, UWS has significantly expanded its engagement with schools. This is based
on a philosophy of providing interventions at each stage of the educational journey with the
aim of encouraging aspiration and developing skills and creativity. This will ensure all pupils
have an equal chance of accessing higher education or other educational and employment
routes at the appropriate point. This engagement both future-proofs our recruitment and
allows us to play a key role in our communities as an enabler of student success, focussed
particularly on low-participation areas and hard-to-reach groups in collaboration with our
local authority partners.
As a university with direct reach into nine local authority areas (excluding Glasgow), UWS is
uniquely placed to provide inputs to around a third of the school-age population of Scotland.
Our engagement framework in this area is at an early stage but already the potential of UWS
as a key partner for schools is becoming apparent.
The examples below give a sense of our direction of travel in this area. In addition to these
specific projects, all UWS academic Schools engage in partnership with local schools and
deliver opportunities for school pupils to visit our campuses and sample different subject
areas and activities as part of their public engagement activity. The focus of this in the past
year has been primarily on STEM subjects.
UWS’ current approach to widening participation involves a broad range of engagement
activities with schools and colleges, including:
- The Schools for Higher Education Programme (SHEP)
- Access to a Career in Teaching (ACT) Project
- Scottish Wider Access Programme (SWAP West)
- Ayrshire Chamber of Commerce Schools Event
- Pupils Exhibiting Potential (PEP)
- UWS Children’s University
• Schools for Higher Education Programme (SHEP)
As part of the national Schools for Higher Education Programme (SHEP) 6, UWS works with
schools with low progression rates to higher education through the SFC-funded FOCUS
West 7 ‘Routes for All’ initiative. All activities delivered in this programme aim to raise
6
www.sfc.ac.uk/access/SchoolsforHigherEducationProgramme
7
www.focuswest.org.uk
5aspirations of pupils in the SFC/FOCUS West selected schools. A team of approximately 50
fully trained Student Mentors is integral in the delivery of this programme, which aims to give
S5 and S6 pupils the necessary tools to progress to higher education.
FOCUS West is a joint collaboration between the six Higher Education Institutions (HEIs)
and partner colleges. Routes for All has been delivered since 2008/9 and is developed and
coordinated by UWS and Glasgow Caledonian University. Routes for All is available to all 37
Focus West Secondary Schools across a number of local authorities in the West of
Scotland. UWS delivers to 20 schools and Glasgow Caledonian University delivers to the
other 17 schools. In 2015/16, Routes for All worked with 849 pupils in 20 schools, and since
2010 has worked with almost 4,000 pupils in total.
Routes for All aims to raise pupils’ awareness and understanding of higher education and to
support the work carried out by schools and Skills Development Scotland. The programme is
tailored to support pupils who are considering applying for higher education courses. It has
been developed to give pupils the necessary tools to succeed in their journey towards post-
school education, preparing them to make the transition from school to College and then
University. In 2015/16, 2.7 per cent of Scottish-domiciled undergraduate entrants to UWS
(129 students in total) came from SHEP schools, compared to 2.4 per cent (92 students in
total) the previous year.
Routes for All has recently been reviewed and amended in response to feedback from pupils
and teachers and to deliver a more dynamic and higher impact programme in response to
the Commission on Widening Access report. In addition to being delivered in schools, the
revised programme also brings pupils onto both University and College campuses. It is a
two-year programme targeted at S5 and S6 pupils hoping to achieve 1-3 Highers by the end
of S6 and who are considering going to college to complete an HNC/HND and are likely to
articulate onto University. The in-school sessions often take place during Personal, Social,
Health and Economic (PSHE) education and are delivered by UWS staff and facilitated by
student mentors. The pupils visit a College campus in S5 and a University campus in S6
where they have a direct input from the College Engagement Advisers and learn about
articulation options and develop interview skills. The programme is continually strengthening
its relationship with key college partners and agreements are being developed for Routes for
All pupils to receive guaranteed interviews and early applications in some instances.
UWS also host visits from pupils on FOCUS West S3 Campus Days. Pupils from FOCUS
West schools take part in a series of group activities which are led by current students who
are studying at UWS and other partner universities. These pupils get the chance to meet
pupils from other schools, find out about the various routes to university and learn how to
take notes at a lecture.
• Access to a Career in Teaching (ACT)
The Access to a Career in Teaching Project (ACT) is now in its third phase, building on the
successful Access to Primary Education (APE 1999-2014) Project. The ACT Project
supports pupils who would like to become Primary or Secondary School teachers and
encourages them to return to teach in their own communities. Pupils from secondary schools
across the Glasgow area are selected from applicants who meet the entry criteria and who
can demonstrate their commitment to the teaching profession; 74 pupils were selected for
2016-17. This is a collaborative project funded by Glasgow City Council working in
partnership with the University of Glasgow and the University of Strathclyde. The Project
includes a series of organised events which incorporate study skills such as note-taking in
lectures and essay writing techniques. It also includes a placement in a local school and
supports pupils in their fifth year at secondary school through to submitting their UCAS
6application in sixth year. The Project dovetails with the FOCUS West Top-Up Programme as
each pupil progresses on to this Programme in S6.
• Ayrshire Chamber of Commerce Schools Events
Since 2012 we have been working in collaboration with the Ayrshire Chamber of Commerce
and more recently to promote the Developing the Young Workforce agenda to encourage
Ayrshire pupils to consider Higher Education. UWS has welcomed over 300 pupils over 4
events and hosts a one day taster event for S4/5 pupils from Ayrshire at the Ayr Campus. In
June 2016, 139 pupils from 14 Ayrshire Schools attended the event at which the University
delivered a range of workshops on education, science, aircraft engineering, politics, nursing,
and marketing. We also gave pupils an insight into radio broadcasting in the university’s new
state-of-the-art Ayr Campus radio facilities. These events provide pupils with first-hand
experience of a subject area that they are interested in pursuing as a career, as well as
providing an insight into university life. They also include an information session on the
university’s admission process for school teaching staff as well as providing an opportunity
for them to find out more about the university and tour the new campus.
• Pupils Exhibiting Potential (PEP)
We developed the PEP project in partnership with Renfrewshire Council as part of their
Tackling Poverty initiative. The project targets S2 pupils who have shown potential but have
poor engagement with school and provides access to ‘taster’ sessions taught by graduate
students followed by further project work in a chosen subject area. The project was
evaluated by surveying pupils before, during and after the activity and with follow-up
sessions later in the year.
The first running of the project in Spring 2016 involved 84 pupils from 11 schools. A detailed
evaluation is available. The post-evaluation indicated that the number of participating pupils
who would consider applying to higher education had increased from 57 per cent pre-event
to 74 per cent post-event.
The intervention is now being offered to other partner local authorities and is likely to run
again in Renfrewshire in 2017. The strength of the project lies in its joint development with
Renfrewshire Council colleagues and its targeting on specific needs as identified through the
Council’s Tackling Poverty Programme, part of the Community Planning Partnership in
which UWS participates.
• UWS Children’s University
In 2016 UWS partnered with Children’s University Scotland to deliver UWS Children’s
University across all four of our Scottish campuses. UWS Children’s University aims to
develop aspiration, creativity and engagement with learning and celebrate achievement in
children aged 5-14. It is based on providing and supporting opportunities for extra-curricular
learning in partnership with schools and other educational providers.
While other Scottish universities already partner with Children’s University, the UWS project
is different both in scale and ambition. The initial roll-out during 2016/17 is to 35 schools
across South Lanarkshire, North Ayrshire, Renfrewshire and Dumfries and Galloway, and
this number is likely to double in 2017/18 as more local authorities come on board. This
means that the reach of the programme will rapidly exceed 2,000 children and their parents.
In addition to supporting schools and third-party educational providers to deliver content for
UWS Children’s University programmes, we are developing our own bespoke content which
will focus on delivery by students linked to their courses or to volunteering opportunities for
our STEM Ambassadors. We are using our mobile campus facility to take provision directly
7to the schools, including partnering with BBC Scotland to deliver the Build It Scotland project
to our partner schools.
We see the UWS Children’s University as central to the development of our relationship with
primary schools and S1/S2 pupils in secondary schools. We will pursue it as the basis for
long-term links to support the promotion of higher education to pupils at an early age,
encourage participation and address hard-to-reach groups in support of closing the
attainment gap.
Articulation
UWS continues to be the lead university in Scotland for articulating students from other
institutions. The university has established formal partnership agreements with eight local
partner colleges, and students from up to ten additional colleges articulate into our courses
each year at either Level 8 or Level 9.
In 2015/16, 1,238 students (61.7 per cent) articulated into UWS courses with advanced
standing. In 2014/15, UWS articulated over a quarter of the total articulation with advanced
standing numbers for the whole of Scotland. 8 UWS has committed to articulate at least
1,200 Scottish domiciled students from colleges with advanced standing in 2017/18.
To date, around 1,900 students have progressed from college to UWS in 2016/17. Of these,
around 1,140 have articulated with advanced standing. The 200 additional funded places
have been delivered and the shortfall is therefore in the standard articulation places. Student
numbers on certain courses in Colleges have reduced and so the potential pool of applicants
from which all universities have been trying to recruit additional students has also been
reduced.
The University has made considerable efforts to ensure the transition of students from the
Colleges and some specific issues have been experienced in meeting entry standards for
particular courses. These areas have been adjusted for 2017/18 and additional agreements
have been put in place to use the ‘academy’ model in some areas to ensure progression at
an appropriate skill level.
With the end of specific funding for articulation hubs, we have embedded and made
permanent our two College Engagement Partner posts, to ensure that we continue to
provide high-quality support and guidance for transition and maintain our strong relationships
with College partners. This represents a significant investment in supporting articulation and
ensuring that expertise in this area continues to be at the core of our provision.
• Maximising progression
Articulating students have been and will remain central to UWS provision. UWS maintains a
range of courses that focus on entry at Level 9 and are aimed specifically at articulating
students and deliver some of our degrees on a franchise basis within Colleges in order to
maximise progression from College to University. This activity is currently being expanded
with new franchise arrangements at Dumfries and Galloway College, Ayrshire College and
New College Lanarkshire being planned for 2017/18.
Our formal College Partnership Agreements feature agreed learner pathways reviewed on
an annual basis. In addition, we have introduced formal articulation agreements for specific
8
http://www.sfc.ac.uk/web/FILES/Funding_Outcome_Agreements_2016-
17/University_Outcome_Agreements_Summary_2015-16.pdf
UWS had 1,076 students with advanced standing out of a total of 3,999 in Scotland for 2014/15.
8areas to ensure progression for particular subjects. These include social work and
computing pathways from Dumfries and Galloway College and our innovative Performance
Academy approach which provides an agreed pathway for students from Ayrshire College,
Glasgow Kelvin College and Fife College into performance and technical theatre courses
delivered through our unique Learning Theatre partnership with Ayr Gaiety Theatre.
Our College Engagement Partners actively seek new articulation routes to ensure that
opportunities for progression are maximised. In 2015/16 this included the development of an
innovative progression route from the HND in Complimentary Therapy at New College
Lanarkshire into our BSc Professional Health Studies.
In 2016/17 we reintroduced our separate ‘College to Uni’ prospectus, providing detailed
information on articulation routes for each individual College, ensuring that College students
have all the information they need to make informed choices. We have also obtained support
from our College partners for enhanced promotion of articulation routes through on-campus
publicity as well as maintaining the support activities detailed below.
Maximising progression from College to University remains at the core of our delivery, and
the baseline commitment to 1,000 places per year is more than achievable in the current
climate.
• Additional funded places
UWS receives 200 additional funded places each year, the largest allocation to any
university in Scotland. These places allow the university to increase our widening access
activities and to articulate more students than would otherwise be the case. We distribute the
places among our partner colleges, and allocate them to courses where traditionally there
has been significant articulation activity. UWS takes care to ensure that students identified
for additional funded places are treated similarly to other students, and that all students in
our partner colleges are aware and able to take advantage of the learner pathways into
UWS courses.
SFC will continue to fund additional articulation places in 2017/18 which will help UWS to
achieve its target to recruit at least 1,200 articulating students in that year. If the funding is
subsequently discontinued, the University will consider the feasibility of continuing to offer an
additional 200 places (without funding) to College students and discuss with SFC in the
context of our overall student numbers.
• Associate Student Scheme
The UWS Associate Student Scheme is offered to all students studying on a course that is
part of a UWS learner pathway to sign up. We have not linked it to the additional funded
places and will continue to offer it beyond the end of that scheme. In 2015/16, over 1,000
students signed up to the scheme, and in 2016/17 this figure is expected to increase further.
The Associate Student Scheme allows students to access a range of UWS facilities,
including the university library, sporting facilities, student unions, and the computer network
and virtual learning environment. Students also have access to information and guidance on
moving on to a degree programme at UWS, and receive academic support to help smooth
the transition from HN to degree-level study. This may take the form of in-college workshops
with UWS staff or visits to a UWS campus.
9• Transition Support
UWS builds relationships with colleges to allow them to promote articulation routes to higher
education in their recruitment. This allows students to begin planning their learner journey
from entry to college. UWS College Engagement Partners offer an induction module to
students on courses that are part of the UWS learner pathways. This includes an initial visit
to first year HNC/D students. We promote the opportunity to progress to UWS on successful
completion of their HND as well as giving them access to the Associate Student scheme to
help them make an informed decision.
For HND groups, the College Engagement Partners provide advice and information on
specific subjects, funding and decision-making processes. They also hold workshops on
UCAS information and generic study skills, and offer subject-specific support in line with
what the colleges feel is most beneficial for their groups. This is offered to the whole cohort
to avoid disadvantaging any student and to maximise the potential for students to articulate
onto our courses.
Once at UWS, Student Enhancement Development Officers continue to support direct entry
students to smooth their transition to the degree course. Ongoing support is then provided to
assist students completing to Honours in line with the university’s strategic objective that an
Honours qualification should be the norm for all our students.
• Subject-specific support
UWS’ College Engagement Partners have introduced Subject Liaison Groups over the past
year and these continue to expand. These groups bring together academic staff from all our
Partner Colleges and the University together with the Student Voice and support staff to
share information about course content, entry requirements and future developments in
support of greater collaboration between the institutions and the delivery of the College
partnership agreements. These groups have been successful and generated positive
feedback. They will be extended over the coming years to cover all the main subject areas.
The University has for many years delivered the ‘Next Steps at University’ bridging module
across a wide range of subject areas and formats including in-college delivery, summer
school delivery and on-campus delivery. This module is contextualised for different subject
areas and is a requirement where a college course does not meet the full amount of credit
for direct entry to a university course. In that context the Next Steps module ensures that no
college student misses the opportunity to progress on their learner pathway as a result of a
shortfall in credit, maintaining the UWS commitment to maximising opportunities for
progression.
Institutional Support at UWS
• Support for Care Leavers
UWS continues to develop and implement care leaver activity and support and has
increased the number of care leavers enrolled in the Institution. There has been a steady
increase in applications, offers and enrolments since 2008.
10UWS' Applications and Enrolments: Care Leavers
300
250
200
150 No. of Applicants
No. of Applications
100
No of Enrolments
50
0
2016/17 figures may increase in Trimesters 2 and 3
UWS has a comprehensive package of support in place for care leavers from pre-entry until
two years after graduation. UWS continues to work closely in partnership with the Centre for
Excellence for Looked After Children in Scotland (CELCIS) and other universities and
colleges through the West of Scotland Care Leavers Forum. The Forum came together with
colleagues from the East Forum in June 2016 for a seminar on Corporate Parenting
Reporting, and meets at least once a year working towards a common national framework to
share good practice and address the barriers to learning that Care Leavers encounter in
Scotland.
UWS identifies most Care Leavers at the application stage, at which point the University
contacts them to discuss what transition support we can provide. UWS has established
procedures in place with local schools, Activity 16+ Co-ordinators, relevant colleagues within
local authorities and the Scottish Throughcare and Aftercare Forum to provide support so
that pupils who are considering going to university can receive information, advice and
guidance to make informed choices regarding their education. A meeting with the young
person and their teacher or Throughcare Support Worker is encouraged to ascertain the
level of pre-entry support needed and to provide an opportunity for them to meet with the
Senior Widening Participation Development Officer and any other relevant colleagues from
services within the university in order to make a successful transition from school, college or
the community.
Contact with the Senior Widening Participation Development Officer is ongoing throughout
their studies to ensure that support can be provided quickly if there are any indications that
the student is having problems. The Senior Widening Participation Development Officer
works in partnership internally with colleagues from the Funding and Advice Team, Disability
Support Services, Accommodation, Counselling Services, Careers Service and Academics,
Education Guidance Advisors and Student Enhancement Developers within the University to
provide pre-entry and ongoing support for Care Leavers and externally with Throughcare
and Aftercare Workers to provide appropriate support.
UWS’ Senior Widening Participation Development Officer was part of the Steering Group for
the Who Cares? Trust’s new website (‘Propel’) which replaced the HE Handbook and
provides information on all aspects of going to HE for Care Leavers. 9 UWS also works
closely with Who Cares? Scotland to provide support for Care Leavers and created the
9
www.propel.org.uk
11Care’s Got Talent show for National Care Leavers Week in October 2016. This successful
talent show brought Care Leavers from the Isle of Lewis, Dundee, Fife, Glasgow and
Renfrewshire and was attended by staff from UWS, Renfrewshire Council and families and
friends of the young people.
We also work with the Scottish Throughcare and Aftercare Forum and provide information,
guidance and advice to members of these organisations to promote the support available to
care experienced young people thinking of going to university. UWS also advises and
provides case studies to Supporting Professionalism in Admissions (SPA) highlighting good
practice in supporting Care Leavers with the admissions process in Higher Education.
UWS is a committed ‘Corporate Parent’ and continues to work with local authorities to help
create and contribute to their action plans to support Care Leavers. We are also working with
Who Cares? Scotland who are currently providing updated Corporate Parenting Reporting
training for staff in order to provide guidance for the UWS Corporate Parenting Report. The
University is committed to working with our Community Planning partners as a Corporate
Parent to help them provide support and help to increase the number of Care Leavers going
to university.
• MCR Pathways
Along with the University of Glasgow, the University of Strathclyde and Glasgow Caledonian
University, the Royal Conservatoire for Scotland and Glasgow School of Art, UWS works in
partnership with the MCR Foundation providing an extended programme of provision,
including intergenerational mentoring, residential summer programmes and access to a wide
variety of widening access initiatives, designed to improve the educational outcomes and
rates of progression to Higher Education for Looked after Young People and Care Leavers.
This programme has been to 15 secondary schools in the Glasgow area.
Information on the support available for Care Leavers in Higher Education is provided
through a leaflet funded by Focus West and disseminated by the Senior Widening
Participation Development Officer to Local Authorities, Scottish Throughcare and Aftercare
Forum and other relevant organisations. By working with our College Engagement Advisors,
we also support articulating students who are care experienced with their transition from
college to Higher Education.
• Support for Carers and Young Carers
It is estimated that around 788,000 individuals are caring for a relative, friend or neighbour in
Scotland. This includes around 44,000 people under the age of 18. The definition of a young
carer is “a child or young person aged under 18 who has a significant role in looking after
someone else who is experiencing illness or disability” that would normally be expected of
an adult. For Young Carers, this makes them more at risk of not having a successful
transition and/or a positive destination on leaving school.
At UWS, we are developing our support for Carers and Young Carers thinking about coming
to university from local authority areas around our campuses through working in partnership
with Carer’s Centres; the Young Carers Trust; Unity Enterprise and other relevant
organisations to identify Carers and Young Carers so that we can provide information,
guidance and support. We offer pre-entry support to help with the transition to university-
level study and also provide ongoing support through the Widening Participation Coordinator
and relevant colleagues in Student Services to help students who are Carers have a positive
experience at UWS.10
10
Further information is available at www.uws.ac.uk/carers
12• Support for Estranged Students
UWS has recently engaged with the Stand Alone initiative which supports those students
who have lost contact with their families. Support for this group is being developed and
implemented and will be available following a similar framework to that of Care leavers. The
Senior Widening Participation Development Officer is working in partnership with the
SAUWS Caseworkers to target this group.
Student Gender Balance
In 2015/16, 66.2 per cent of Scottish domiciled undergraduate entrants were female, and
33.7 per cent were male. Projected figures for 2016/17 suggest this imbalance is reducing,
with 62.7 per cent of entrants being female and 37.2 per cent being male. UWS teaches in
many of the subject areas that demonstrate an uneven gender participation rate across
Scotland, such as nursing and engineering and in each of the identified subject areas our
student populations largely reflect patterns in wider society.
UWS held the Smart STEM 2016 event for female pupils from Renfrewshire in June 2016.
The event was co-ordinated by the School of Engineering and Computing who welcomed
133 female pupils from 19 schools (primary and secondary). Pupils participated in a wide
range of workshops led by both UWS and external companies and organisations, such as
Atkins Global, Fujitsu, Hewlett Packard, the Navy and RAF.
The School of Health, Nursing and Midwifery works closely with national organisations, such
as the Royal College of Midwives, NHS Education for Scotland and the Chief Nursing Officer
Directorate at the Scottish Government, to maximise the role of males in nursing and
particularly midwifery. All UWS’ marketing material features males prominently, and male
staff and students are encouraged to attend recruitment events.
For the 2017 Ayrshire Chamber schools event, the School of Engineering and Computing is
working with UWS colleagues to deliver two workshops – Engineering Management and
Engineering and Physics – to raise awareness of these subjects among female pupils.
• Equality Outcomes
In order to meet the Equality Outcome of ensuring a culture that is free from discrimination,
bullying, harassment and hate crime, and where people feel confident about being part of
the UWS community there have been a number of marketing initiatives to encourage
applications from under-represented groups. For example, since 2014 student ambassadors
have been used as role models to address gender stereotyping in Engineering, Computing,
Science, Sport and Health, Nursing and Midwifery when visiting primary and secondary
schools and current student images are used in prospectuses to address gender
stereotyping. The School of Engineering and Computing has also worked closely with
Corporate Marketing and produced several video testimonies from women studying
engineering and physics. These were used to promote the Athena SWAN website on
International Women’s day and are linked to a Social Media campaign to mainstream
Equality and Diversity issues and promote role models for women in Engineering and
Computing.
UWS has provided opportunities for staff and students to increase their knowledge and
awareness of Equality Diversity and Human Rights unconscious bias workshops have been
13introduced for staff and student representatives. In March 2015, UWS held its first student-
led transgender workshop.
14Priority 2: High quality learning and teaching – an outstanding
system of learning that is accessible and diverse where students
progress successfully with the ability, ideas and ambition to make
a difference
Retention
The percentage of Scottish-domiciled full-time first year undergraduate UWS students
returning to study in year two has increased in recent years from 85.6 per cent in 2013/14 to
87.4 per cent in 2015/16. However, UWS’ retention rate remains below the national average.
In 2014/15, the national average was 90.5 per cent. 11 The university aims to increase its
retention rate of full-time first year Scottish-domiciled undergraduate entrants to reach the
national average by 2019/20.
While retention rate at UWS are improving, the University recognises the need to make
further progress in this area, and in 2016 we took major steps to improve support for
students. Several support departments, including Registry, Admissions and Recruitment,
Library, Student Services and Sport were brought together under a single ‘Student Life’
grouping under a newly-created Director post. This new grouping aims to deliver a
seamless, efficient and effective student support service across all UWS’ campuses.
A major project aimed at improving retention, coordinated by the Student Life team, is
currently under way at UWS. It includes the following initiatives:
• MyJourney has been introduced at UWS to allow students to actively support their
own learning engagement and identify early those students who may need some
intervention to support their academic progress. The self-evaluation tool launched in
term 1 of 2016/17 and will break down perceptions about engagement using facts,
and facilitate meaningful discussions between personal tutors and their tutees.
• A Personal Tutor Toolkit is currently being developed at UWS to provide support for
personal tutors and will include a training programme, seminar series, support crib
sheet and suggested agendas for meetings throughout the academic year.
• UWS is planning to pilot exit and “keeping in touch” interviews for those students
considering withdrawing or have already withdrawn to help identify why students
leave.
• A further project is to set up a pre-entry Moodle site to give students a better
understanding of their programme before they start, as well as have an
understanding of their own learning style.
• UWS is working to develop a timetable which includes both contact time and
independent study time. This would be for the first term or first year of study and will
aim to help integrate students into university academic culture, ensuring they clearly
understand how much time they should be spending on their studies in order to have
a successful academic journey. This is particularly helpful for first generation
university students.
• Student Life recently reviewed the university’s Student Pregnancy and Maternity
Policy and has consulted on the support for student parents with stakeholders and
committees. UWS has the largest proportion of students who are parents in Scotland
(22 per cent), according to Bairn Necessities, a report commissioned by NUS
Scotland. The updated policy provides all student parents at UWS with clear
11
http://www.sfc.ac.uk/web/FILES/Funding_Outcome_Agreements_2016-
17/University_Outcome_Agreements_Summary_2015-16.pdf
15information on how the University will support them in their studies. While the
university does provide a range of information and support for parents, it is aware
that this information needs to be made more easily available on the UWS website.
UWS is also developing ways to welcome children to the library.
As part of the wider student support offered to students, UWS launched The Hub in
September 2016 to enhance the student experience at the University. The Hub area
provides a vibrant space for students, and includes self-help resources, a service desk and
both learning and social spaces, including The Hub Café and pop-up spaces for events and
campaigns. The Hub is the central information point for students at the University, bringing
together a range of student-facing facilities. For example, the Disability Service offers lecture
capture (where lectures are recorded, usually the slide show plus audio) and assistive
software is provided on all campus PCs with packages for mind-mapping, read-aloud and
enhanced spelling and grammar checking.
Students at UWS can access the Counselling Service at every Scottish campus, and choose
between a wellbeing appointment, counselling appointment or drop-in session. The Hub also
offers financial advice to students on statutory student support, such as student loans, grants
or bursaries, in addition to a range of Discretionary and Childcare Funds.
Recognising the importance of providing support to our students outwith core trimester
dates, UWS offers pastoral and academic support over the summer months and across
other student vacation periods.
STEM Provision
In 2015/16, over a fifth (22.1 per cent) of Scotland-domiciled undergraduate entrants to UWS
were to STEM subjects.
The School of Engineering and Computing has added seven postgraduate programmes to
its portfolio in 2015/16 to continue to build a market-attractive and relevant portfolio that is
aligned to the Scottish Government agenda. These include Masters programmes in
Information and Network Security, and Advanced Computing offering Big Data and Internet
of Things (IoT) streams. The MSc in Advanced Computing has also attracted DataLab
scholarships. The MSc in Information and Network Security is a clear response to the
Scottish Cyber Resilience Strategy (published November 2015), aligning to the Scottish
Government's priority to place Scotland as a world leader in cyber resilience. The School is
also looking to validate a BSc in Cyber Security in 2016/17 with a focus on graduate
apprenticeships.
The Civil, Mechanical and Chemical Engineering programmes, along with Engineering
Management programmes, now provide pathways for undergraduate students to progress
their studies at UWS. The MSc in Civil Engineering attracts sponsored places through
Construction Scotland Innovation Centre (CSIC). Dissertation topics will, wherever possible,
be provided by industrial partners to engage students with work-based problem solving. Site
visits will also enhance student employability and give them exposure to local industry and
an understanding of the economy. The research experience of, for example, the Civil
Engineering teaching team has been developed in recent years through partnerships and
knowledge exchange with local companies as well as international partners.
Civil Engineering also formed part of a successful REF2014 General Engineering return with
60 per cent of the research impact classed as internationally excellent or world leading thus
providing a rich learning environment with a synergy between education and research so
that graduates are career-ready to contribute to the economy. The Civil Engineering team
16has a proven record with the international market (e.g. through international grants, FP7,
Horizon 2020 and Erasmus), and have tailored their learning, teaching and assessment
strategies accordingly.
Health and Social Care Provision
The School of Health, Nursing and Midwifery reflects and responds to the changing
environment within health and social care, particularly following the introduction of the Public
Bodies (Joint Working) (Scotland) Bill (2013), and recognises the challenges of changing
demographics and integration of services. The shift in services, both from a national and
international perspective, is moving towards prevention, person-centeredness, enablement
and empowerment of individuals and support at home, valuing the role that all members of
staff play in the implementation and delivery of better integrated services.
The School of Health, Nursing and Midwifery aims to develop the skills that may be required
within the changing landscape of health and social care, enabling them to support the most
vulnerable in society through the delivery of person-centred, evidence based practice which
can make a difference to the communities they serve.
Careers and Employability
An increasing proportion of UWS students are entering positive graduate destinations. The
most recent HESA data for 2014/15 show that 95.1 per cent of Scottish-domiciled graduates
(1,449 students) entered positive destinations. This was an increase of 1.9 percentage
points compared to last year and was close to the Scottish average (95.2 per cent).
The number entering professional employment has increased by 4.4 percentage points
compared to last year, as Destination of Leavers from Higher Education (DLHE) data for
2015 leavers indicated that 60.2 per cent of Scottish-domiciled graduates (966 students)
were in a professional employment destination.
UWS is committed to ensuring our graduates are highly employable and able to make a
difference locally and globally. Employers are invited to engage within the curriculum through
a range of activities including guest speakers, Industrial Advisory Boards, work-based
learning activity and employability events. All programmes are subject to validation
procedures and subject health reviews that must include comment and revision from
industry, outlining that the curriculum meets the expectations and delivers skills that are
attractive to business. As well as individual employers, national agendas are considered
through proactive partnership with bodies such as Skills Development Scotland, Association
of Graduate Recruiters and Scottish Enterprise. These partnerships ensure resilience of
curriculum through awareness of skills gaps, priority sectors and targeted education delivery.
UWS’ refreshed Corporate Strategy 2017-20 includes a KPI which aims to see 85 per cent of
all graduates entering professional /managerial employment or further study by AY 2019/20.
UWS aims to raise the aspirations, confidence and employability of our students, and to
embed employability, graduate attributes, volunteering and citizenship across all our learning
programmes.
UWS Careers and Employability staff proactively engage with employers to increase student
employability initiatives and share enterprise contacts within the university. The service
provides advice, guidance and information to students and recent graduates. It supports and
encourages students with early career planning and to promote employability throughout
their studies through opportunity awareness, vocational knowledge and the development of
essential graduate attributes. Careers education is both embedded within the learning
17pathways and through co-curricular approaches. These include employability initiatives
which aim to increase student aspirations and support particular groups of students who may
face barriers to gaining graduate-level employment.
UWS Careers Advisers are linked to individual academic Schools to deliver subject-specific
careers education. Advisers also provide careers information at seminars, guidance
appointments and workshops across the university’s four Scottish campuses. The Careers
and Employability Service publishes a weekly student newsletter with details of events,
vacancies and labour market information. All students have access to the university’s online
career centre which provides a range of careers information and developmental resources.
The university aims to provide all learners on award-bearing programmes the opportunity to
engage in assessed work-related learning, and delivers a range of campaigns and
programmes to improve students’ career progression:
• The Student Success Campaign aims to raise awareness of the range of activities
that successful students and graduates have engaged in while at UWS. The campaign
aims to highlight the importance to current students of activities such as volunteering,
part-time work, participating in student competitions and pursuing global opportunities
in building confidence and achieving graduate employment.
• The Employer Mentoring Programme matches students in their final year of study
with a mentor in industry to help to bridge the gap between studying and graduate
employment. Mentoring has been shown to enhance the experience of non-traditional
students (such as mature students, or students who are the first in their family to go to
university) who often face different personal issues or barriers to employment.
• UWS Careers Advisers work in partnership with the university’s academic Schools to
organise subject-specific Employability Events. These events combine employer
presentations, networking and skills sessions to engage students with wider
employability issues while retaining a subject-specific focus. These events are a more
innovative approach to a traditional “job fair” and allow an opportunity to enhance the
professional and business acumen of our students and increase confidence in
networking.
• Careers and Employability Service staff have implemented a pilot Employability
Award aimed at improving graduate employability through articulation of graduate
attributes to employers. The award develops and builds on existing skills in career
planning, personal reflection, digital professionalism and vocational experience.
• Careers and Employability staff liaise with professional services colleagues to produce
bespoke resources for students, including information for targeted groups on topics
such as disclosing disability and international opportunities.
• Careers and Employability staff liaise with Scottish Institute for Enterprise and
facilitate the University Partnership with the Saltire Foundation to promote links
between employability and entrepreneurship.
The University’s academic Schools offer a range of initiatives to help UWS students reach a
professional destination within six months of graduating. For example, a cross-campus
careers fair is delivered within Health, Nursing and Midwifery; cross-campus delivery of
Aspiring Futures was delivered by the School of Business and Enterprise and Careers and
Employability staff; employer focussed employability events in the School of Engineering and
Computing and embedded employer input/events within the School of Media, Culture and
Society programmes.
18Strategic monitoring of data and promotion of staff access to graduate destination results
ensures specific cohorts can be targeted for tailored, embedded employability input. Aspiring
Futures reflects academic Schools and the Careers and Employability Services’ approach
towards integrated, embedded delivery where the School of Business and Enterprise
delivers a series of workshops to Level 10 students integrating career, academic and
employer input. In 2016/17 the module was also delivered to students studying Integrated
Health and Social Care, highlighting multi-disciplinary embedded work involving the Careers
and Employability staff and Academic teams.
Careers and Employability staff organise an internal annual Festival of Employability to
promote and highlight the importance of employability across the institution. As well as a
range of internal and external speakers, good practice of employability initiatives are shared
and showcased.
Building on recent success there is now a new and improved structure in place which sees
the Careers Service focusing on student facing services as part of Student Development.
This structure alongside other services within Student Life will strengthen visibility of student
focused delivery. A close partnership will be maintained with Research, Enterprise and the
newly formed Employer Engagement. These areas will work closely to enhance business
collaboration and optimise careers and employability opportunities for students and
graduates of UWS.
Internationalisation and Languages
UWS’ refreshed Corporate Strategy outlines a clear commitment to Global Engagement with
plans to internationalise our student body, our staff, our culture, our research and our
academic portfolio. The university recently appointed a new Vice-Principal & Pro Vice-
Chancellor of Global Engagement who will have executive responsibilities for the
internationalisation of the University’s activities and reputation. He will lead the development
and delivery of the University’s Global Reach Plan and the development of organisational
approaches that encourage global citizenship among the University’s students and staff.
UWS is committed to expanding its international connections and collaborations. In light of
recent political developments, this stance has been made clear by Principal Professor Craig
Mahoney who issued a statement the day after the EU referendum vote saying that “we
continue to support and encourage staff and students from around the world to come to and
be comfortable at UWS”. Furthermore, in response to the Home Secretary’s proposals to link
the quality of courses and institutions with their ability to recruit international students, the
Principal emphasised the economic, social and cultural contributions made by international
students and that “internationalisation is a major priority for us as is attracting overseas
students”.
UWS encourages students to gain an international experience. In 2015/16, 228 students
participated in outgoing mobility and in 2016/17 the anticipated number is 173. The drop in
numbers is due to the end of the Scottish Government’s match funding, which in 2015/16
funded 80 students. The number of students that took part in the Erasmus+ scheme is
expected to rise from 86 in 2015/16 to a projected 106 in 2016/17.
The School of Business and Enterprise held the Inaugural International Engagement Week
in October 2016. We welcomed 23 international academic delegates from 13 different
countries for a week-long visit to UWS. Each delegate was from a UWS international partner
and participated in a week of academic sessions, collaboration, as well as being introduced
to Scottish culture.
19You can also read
