Beyond Access to Social Mobility: the
challenges for different student groups
moving through Higher Education
Mary Stuart
Vice Chancellor
University of Lincoln
Themes
• What is the issue about Social Mobility?
• What is Higher Education’s role in creating
Social Mobility?
• Widening Participation and Social Mobility do they inter-relate?
• What impact should concerns about Social
Mobility have on what we do in HE?
• Extra curricular activities and graduate
employment
• Mass higher education is now a worldwide phenomenon.
More than 150 million students are enrolled in universities
worldwide, an increase of 53 per cent in just a decade.
Globally, 26 per cent of the relevant university age group
now participates in higher education, up from 19 per cent
in 2000. In many rich countries, more than half the eligible
population is in higher education and in some countries,
the figure is as high as 80 per cent. Even in much of the
developing world, enrolments are increasing dramatically
(THE, Sept, 2010).
The British HE ‘field’
•...in important respects choice of [and within]
university is a choice of lifestyle and a matter of ‘taste’
and further that social class is a key aspect of these
subtexts of choice...there is choice as class-matching
and thus also a form of social closure (Reay et al,
2005:29)
The British HE field
What is the ‘gold standard’ HE experience?
• Rite of passage from home
• Based on a growing to adulthood
• You live HE
• The ‘classroom’ is only part of this process
Milburn Report, 2009
• Access to the UK’s top jobs has become less,
not more, socially representative over time
Milburn report 2009
• 58/70 birth cohorts – 58 saw strong
trajectory of upward social mobility 70
flattened off.
• 75% of Judges, 70% of FDs, 45% of top
civil servants 32% of MPs were
independently schooled
The Role of Higher Education in Social Mobility
Graduate employment gives access to a
professional career ....
• ‘Employers said they found it increasingly hard to
fill graduate vacancies because students fail to
match academic achievement with leadership,
teamworking and communication skills’ (Milburn
report, 2009: 44).
The role of Higher Education in Social Mobility –
so what is happening
• Evidence that young people develop these
[communication, teamworking and leadership]
skills through...extra-curricular activities.
BUT
• ‘our evidence also suggests that there are fewer
opportunities for those from less privileged
backgrounds to benefit from such opportunities’
(op cit)
The Research
• HEA funded project looking at engagement with
extra curricular activities at University amongst
different student groups (2007/8)
• ‘snap-shot’ approach – 2 yr undergrads from 4
different type of institutions with different
demographics.
Ethnicity
New University (in
London) Institution 1
New University (in
London) Institution 2
Old University (in
London) Institution 1
Asian
20
22
23
Old University
(campus based in the
counties) Institution 2
2
Black
15
18
11
1
Non- UK
14
12
7
17
Other
3
6
5
4
White
43
40
54
74
Not Known
5
2
0
2
Institution type
New
Age:
Gender:
Disability:
Ethnicity:
SES:
Courses:
Religion:
Old
count
%
count
%
≤ 21 years old
210
62
228
79
Mature students
129
38
59
21
Males
141
41
145
51
Females
203
59
141
49
Disabled
6
2
8
3
Learning needs
16
5
26
9
White
148
43
243
86
Ethnic minority
195
57
41
14
Class 3b-5*
77
25
57
21
Class 1-3aI**
231
75
210
79
Vocational
259
75
86
30
Academic
85
25
201
70
No
114
33
182
64
Yes
227
67
103
36
n=
344
287
Pubs/bars
Prayer/Worship
Musical activities
Sport
Shops/cafes
Family committments
Films
Library
Internet Communities
Study
See Friends
University type
new university
old universities
0
1
2
3
4
Mean days per week (5-point likert scale)
5
Employed
yes
no
Total
Class category
Lower SES
39.1%
60.9%
100.0%
54.4%
45.6%
100.0%
50.9%
49.1%
100.0%
Higher SES
Total
• ECAs engaged in at the old universities are offering
more opportunities for social interaction. Students at the
older universities, which are campus-based, do
significantly more ECAs that are based around their
university sites , whereas those at the new university,
which is spread around multiple city-based campuses,
do significantly more solitary ECAs .
•Furthermore, those studying at the new university are
less likely to say that their commitments and activities
provide them with a good support network of friends
compared to those at the old universities.
Days per week in
Prayer/Worship
My commitments and
activities provide me with
a good support network
of friends (1=strongly
disagree, 5=strongly
agree)
Days per week keeping
family commitments
I have made good friends
at work (1=strongly
disagree, 5=strongly
agree)
Days per week in paid
employment
Days per week in
pubs/bars
Mean (5-point likert scale)
4
3
2
1
0
Black
Not Black
Ethnic background
Visiting the library
Keeping family
committments
Visitng pubs/bars
Visiting the Students'
Union
On councils/committees
Mean days per week (5-point likert scale)
4
3
2
1
0
Asian
Not Asian
Ethnic background
Mature students are spending more time in the library, with family
and in prayer
Visiting the
library
3.2
Keeping family
committments
Mean time spent per week (days)
3
In
Prayer/Worship
2.8
2.6
2.4
2.2
2
1.8
Young (<21yrs)
Mature
Age on entry to university
• It’s not enough anymore to get a 2:1, employers want
to see these extra things which is why I’ve just signed
up for the leadership programme where I’ll be going
round local schools and doing voluntary work there.
Tracey, Business, ‘Russell Group’ NE
It’s [university radio] enabled me to communicate with
people and work as a group. You never really do a solo
radio show, it’s always a team effort, and it's really
complicated so you have to be happy to rely on and ask
for help from others, which is something I have had to
learn to do. Oli, Psychology, ‘1960s University’ Scotland
Honestly I was a bit of a loner when I got here, not much
confidence. I had just moved to [] and didn’t fit into the
whole gang culture thing. I joined the law society and
made the effort more to approach people and make them
understand who I am, I got friends through that and
became more confident. Suzie, Law, ‘Post-92’ SE
• My university life tips towards the studying about 80:20
because I rarely go out. I’m happy with that as it’s for a very
good cause, this is going towards a very good degree and a
very good job at the end of it. And there’s a time for
everything, now it’s to study. Kwame, Law, ‘Post-92’ SE
The socialising that we did around the campus most
definitely did make me feel like a part of the uni, meeting
with other students and other campuses, there was a
strong sense of community and it was very rewarding to
experience the different cultures of the different
campuses. Sean, ‘Post ’92’ Alumni
• The friendships I made at university have helped me in the
sense that I’ve made so many contacts out of it. I’ve got
friends in industry who’ve come to me for help and advice
about different computing equipment, and those business
relationships have grown through friendships, so that’s
really important, to draw on these resources and networks,
that’s really helped me. Ravi, ‘Post ’92’ Alumni
• Obviously the degree is important because everyone
has to have at least a 2:1, it’s very important for them to
have that level of ability because unless you’ve been
unlucky, then lower than that really shows a lower level
of ability. Hannah, Communications software
• Some of them seem to think a 2:1 is enough, which may be
true for some companies but not for ours. They don’t
understand that we’re viewing 1000’s of applicants with a 2:1
and they need something extra to stand out from the crowd.
Laura, Audit/tax/advisory
• We actually do understand that not many graduates can
get relevant work experience so we do pay attention to
their hobbies, we’ll be looking at any personal project such
as helping a friend promote an event with digital media, or
developing online social networks, online business, as
long as they’re relevant to the job. Alice, Internet digital
marketing
• So if this wider HE ‘experience’ is vital – why is it
so socio-economically/culturally driven and what
can we do about it?
• White middle-class students ‘belonged’ and as
Bourdieu and Wacquant (1992) suggest ‘when a
habitus encounters a social world of which it is the
product it is like it is a ‘fish in water’, it does not feel
the weight of the water and it takes the world for
granted’ (127).
• Pay attention to cultural and social differences
• Be aware of what students are doing ‘after class’
• Engage students in debate and reflections about
their lives and the HE Field
• Create an environment where there is opportunity
for all students