26 October 2005
Academic Registry Annual Report 2005/06
Lynn Robinson, Academic Registrar
The Committee is asked to: Receive the Academic Registry Annual Report for information and
possible comment. The Academic Registrar will be happy to answer any questions at the meeting.
Paper History: The Student Affairs Committee has previously considered two separate annual
reports from the Academic Registry, one covering student issues and the other admissions issues.
The new combined report is a result of a review of the annual reporting mechanisms of the support
services conducted by the Registrar and agreed by University Planning and Resources Committee,
Senate and Council.
Proposed Route: Student Affairs Committee, Education Committee, University Planning and
Resources Committee and Senate will receive the report.
Academic Registry Annual Report 2005/06
This report provides an update on activities in the Academic Registry over the last twelve months and
on its plans for the immediate future. Full details of the Office’s aims and objectives, specific priorities
for 2005/06 to 2008/09, and action plan for 2005/06 can be found on the web at
www.bris.ac.uk/planning/safe/ssplans.
Annex A lists the sections that make up the Academic Registry as well as the main aims of the office.
Office-Wide
Overall operations - The achievements and future plans mentioned in this report are necessarily
selective and barely touch on the day-to-day operations of the office which last year included:
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processing 33,000 UCAS forms and 9,000 postgraduate application forms;
registering around 20,000 students annually and maintaining records for each of them;
processing approximately 80,000 unit registrations;
running almost 52,000 individual exam sittings for over 1,000 exam papers;
providing financial support for almost 1,000 UG and 800 PG students;
providing advice and guidance to approximately 1,000 international students and advising on
and sending to the Home Office 240 visa requests; and
servicing 10 major committees, excluding faculty committees.
Tuition fee income monitoring - After the shortfall of tuition fee income against budget in 2004/05,
considerable effort has been made across the Academic Registry, together with the Finance and
Planning Offices, to predict likely student numbers as far as possible in advance for 2005/06. The
registration process has also been monitored more closely than in the past, assisted by the on-line
registration process and use of bar-code readers for paper based registration. The aim is to have a far
more accurate picture of student registrations by 31 October than ever before.
Postgraduate Support – Support in the office for postgraduate student processes is still an
acknowledged shortcoming. Although considerable efforts have been made to improve postgraduate
admissions processes, registration and other processes and data quality still lag considerably behind
those for undergraduates. There is an acknowledged need in the University to address support for
graduate education and the Academic Registrar has continued to discuss ways of improving these
difficulties with the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Education), the Deputy Registrar and Director of the
Teaching Support Unit.
Nucleus – The Academic Registrar has chaired the Student Support Services Sub-Group of the
Nucleus project as well as being heavily involved in the re-modelling plans for Senate House with a
view to maximising the benefit to students of both developments.
Office web sites – A number of the office’s web sites, including the overarching Academic Registry
site, the EU Office and International Students Advisory Service sites, the Undergraduate Prospectus
site, and the Exams Office web site have been re-launched and updated into the new University
template. As described below, a new site specifically aimed at new students (immediately pre- and
post-arrival) has been developed
Student Recruitment and Admissions
Undergraduate Admissions
Centralisation pilot - Phase two of the Drama centralisation pilot was completed at the end of the
2004/05 admissions cycle. All applications to Drama undergraduate programmes are now assessed
centrally by admissions office staff, working to selection criteria agreed with the admissions tutor. Both
the Drama department and admissions office have been extremely happy with the pilot and plans are
in hand to extend the project to the Department of English and to joint programmes in the School of
Modern Languages.
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Customer Service Review - During 2004/05, the undergraduate admissions office has undertaken a
major review of customer service, focusing in particular on the way the University communicates with
applicants. Discussions have been held with all academic departments and a prioritised set of actions
for improvement identified, some of which will be implemented immediately.
Postgraduate Admissions
Online application and tracking - Development of an online application and tracking system is now at
an advanced stage and it is hoped that this will go live in pilot departments in November and in the
wider university during 2006/07.
Operational statistics - The Admissinfo online statistical reporting tool has now been extended to
provide postgraduate admissions data.
UK Student Recruitment and Widening Participation
Access Agreement - The University’s first Access Agreement was approved by the Office of Fair
Access (OFFA) earlier this year. From 2006, under the terms of the Agreement, the University will be
permitted to charge undergraduate and PGCE tuition fees at £3,000 per year. The Agreement also
contains details of the package of bursary and scholarships which the University will be offering to
help students from low income backgrounds offset the additional costs and details of our plans for
additional investment in outreach activity.
Organisational structures - The widening participation office and UK student recruitment office are
currently being merged with a view to providing greater coherence between general student
recruitment and marketing activity and the widening participation agenda. The current Head of
Widening Participation has moved to a new post and his successor will take responsibility for the
newly merged office.
Prospectus Review - Following a major review during the last academic year, the 2006
Undergraduate Prospectus, published in March this year has been significantly improved. A similar
review of the Postgraduate Prospectus is nearing completion and the review group’s
recommendations are due to be implemented for the 2007 edition, due for publication next summer.
International Student Recruitment
Marketing Plan - The marketing plan for international student recruitment has been updated and
includes plans to raise the profile of international recruitment. The appointment of an additional
international recruitment officer and additional non-salary funding, secured through the Strategic
investment Fund, is enabling the office to diversify the countries targeted which should help to protect
the University against fluctuations in demand. The Plan also identifies the need to assess the
feasibility of a University of Bristol Foundation Programme with the aim of providing a more stable
supply of well-prepared international students.
Committee Structure
The roles of the Admissions Steering Group and the Participation Strategy Group have recently been
reviewed and proposals to merge the two committees to form a ‘Widening Participation and
Admissions Strategy Committee’ are being developed. It is hoped that that the new committee will
provide more coherent strategic direction for undergraduate and postgraduate admissions and for
widening participation. It will be underpinned by three specialist implementation groups, providing an
opportunity for detailed statistical analysis and monitoring of operational activity in each of these
areas.
Faculty Office and Student Administration Developments
New Director/Faculty Offices
In February 2005, Jayne Storey took up as post as the Director of Student Administration, a new post
for the Academic Registry. Jayne has concentrated initially on the restructuring of faculty office
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support following the academic re-organisation in 2003, and on student systems developments.
Considerable progress has been made, including the appointment of faculty managers in all faculties
(with the exception of Medical and Veterinary Sciences) and formal devolution of all faculties from
Academic Registry with effect from October 2005. The faculty administrators’ roles have been refocused upon student administration; service level statements are being agreed between the faculty
offices and Academic Registry; and professional links, networks and reporting lines through Academic
Registry are being developed. The Academic Registry is also supporting the faculties in their aims to
move faculty offices out of Senate House and closer to their academic departments.
Student Finance
Student Finance Strategy - During 2004/05, the Student Finance Strategy Group (SFSG), and its subgroups, have been working on the arrangements for the University’s new fee, scholarship and bursary
arrangements for full-time undergraduates from 2006/07. The details of scholarships and bursaries
are now almost finalised and a group chaired by the Director of Student Administration has been
working on the considerable process and systems implications of the new arrangements. This work is
well advanced with recommendations to be made in October on necessary software purchases. The
purchases will be funded through a successful bid to the University’s Strategic Investment Fund.
Ready Reckoner - Work on the web-based ready-reckoner should be completed by the end of
October 2005. This will enable prospective students to work out what it will cost to study at Bristol
and what funds they will be eligible for.
Committee Structure - It is to be recommended to Education Committee that the SFSG extend its
remit beyond undergraduate student financial support issues in relation to the introduction of variable
tuition fees in 2006 so that it can take a strategic overview of all student finance matters (including
postgraduates) and ensure that they are in line with the University Plan and Education Strategy.
Office location - It is hoped that the Student Finance Office will be moved from the Students’ Union
Building to Senate House with effect from August 2006 to ensure that the office is accessible to
students during the first year of implementation of the new undergraduate fees. In addition, three new
staff will be appointed, funded from the increased tuition fees, to ensure delivery of the strategy.
Financial Support during 2004/2005 - Details of the support provided by the Student Finance Office to
students is appended at Annex B.
Student Systems and Information Developments
Undergraduate Student Support Arrangements 2006 – See Student Finance Strategy above.
Online Registration - Online registration has been extended to include returning postgraduate
research students (in 04/05 only returning undergraduates registered online) and new undergraduates
have been asked to check their records via Student Info as a precursor to paper registration. At the
time of writing 93% of returning undergraduates and 75% of returning postgraduate research students
had registered on-line. Full online registration for all students is being considered for 2006/07. These
developments enable improvements in the quality and timeliness of management reports on student
registrations and fee income.
Automated Transcript Production - This Project aims to provide graduating students with a transcript /
Diploma Supplement alongside their degree certificate at graduation, which is automatically generated
from the student records system. This is in line with QAA and Bologna Declaration requirements. The
pilot phase, with c. 85% of departments, has run successfully in 2004/05 and it is planned that it will
be extended to all departments and postgraduates in 2005/06 and 2006/07.
Student Info Developments - The Student Info application permits students to maintain their own
student record data online. It also allows us to easily communicate with students over key issues such
as their examination timetable and fees. During 2004/05, final awards were added to Student Info
and, during 05/06, it is planned that individual exam marks will also be displayed. This development
enables students to “own” their data, which improves data quality and key student processes.
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Future Developments - Key student systems projects for 2005/06 and beyond include the
implementation phase of the 2006 project; roll-out of the postgraduate admissions improvement
project; the replacement of the Marvin UCAS link; online payment of tuition and accommodation fees
(if prioritised and funded through the Student Finance Systems Project Board); the CECAS
replacement project; and implementation of the unit choice process review. It is also hoped that
further automation and improved reporting from SiTs will be developed, to the benefit of faculties and
academic departments, if sufficient project resource is made available.
Pre-Arrival Information for Students / Introductory Week
The secondment of Alison Calvert from the General Office to the Academic Registry for six months
during 2004/05 enabled a thorough a review of pre-arrival information for students to be undertaken.
This has resulted in vast improvements to the paper publications sent to new students for 2005/06
(especially the Reception and Registration brochures for all students) and the development of a
dedicated website for all new students. The appointment of Petra Armitage-Smith to the Academic
Registry will enable this excellent work to continue and a review of Introductory Week to be conducted
Examinations
Achievements and improvements to examinations during 2004/5 – An increase in the number of
examinations timetabled was again achieved within existing resources and, although there are still
difficulties with the amount of time and space available for timetabling examinations, generally the
examination periods were successful. The Exams Office worked with Faculty Offices to successfully
introduce Faculty Exam Boards University-wide, using the SiTS student record system to provide all
Faculty Examination Board paperwork and thereby moving away from manual localised systems.
Future Plans – A new Deputy Examinations Officer will be appointed following Dr Mora McCallum’s
appointment as the Faculty of Science Head of Academic Administration. The Examinations Office,
advised by the Examinations Consultative Group will, amongst other things, continue to explore new
and replacement examination venues; review invigilation arrangements; and consider future
examination and exam board timing including the possible introduction of Saturday exams
Research Degree Examinations during 2004/05 – The appointment of a Postgraduate Examinations
Administrator has meant that more tailored support is now available for postgraduate examinations
and this is leading to systems and process developments and greater use of SiTs to manage
postgraduate examinations.
Future Plans – The Postgraduate Examinations Office will be working with the Graduate Deans and
Teaching Support Unit to review the General Regulations for Research Degrees; the policies and
procedures for the appointment of external examiners for research degrees will be reviewed; research
degree examiners’ reports will be revised and improved; and it is hoped that further use can be made
of SiTS for managing research student examinations.
International Centre
European Office
EU Programmes and Projects - 2004/05 was an exceptionally successful year with the total amount of
EU project funding awarded to the University exceeding £2 million, including Erasmus, Leonardo Da
Vinci, Tempus and ESF projects and the MEDINE Thematic Network. Two new part-time members of
staff were appointed using project funding, increasing EU Office staff to seven. The University
remains one of the largest sending institutions in the Erasmus scheme and was one of only seven UK
institutions to be awarded the European E-Quality label for outstanding quality in Erasmus activities.
The Office will continue to promote the Erasmus programme and extend it to postgraduates, and also
to expand the Leonardo da Vinci programme to include students from science and engineering. The
Office also aims to bid for further funding for Tempus projects, together with Coimbra Group partners.
Bologna Declaration - The Bologna Working Group reported to Education Committee and the Office
continues to monitor Bologna Developments.
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Review of Student Exchanges and Placements - A review of student exchanges and placements was
undertaken to ensure that students undertaking a period abroad were adequately supported and
advised. This has now led to a full process review that is expected to report in spring 2006.
Coimbra Group – The Office’s involvement in promoting the Coimbra Group continues. The University
is represented on most of the Group’s Task Forces, with the Head of the European Office chairing the
Task Force on European Programmes in Education and Training. The Director of International Affairs
is a member of the Executive Board.
International Students’ Advisory Service
International undergraduate orientation – A revised orientation programme for new international
undergraduate students, was put in place in October 2005, which concentrated on study skills,
introduction to British culture and UK bank accounts. Approximately 120 students attended which was
disappointing and it seems that the Wednesday afternoon slot may have clashed with too many
departmental events which students were required to attend.
Advice for International Staff – Funds have been secured from the Personnel and Staff Development
Office and by savings made elsewhere in the International Centre to create a new post to increase
support for international students and to extend this support to international staff. A web site and
introductory materials for new international staff will be developed. The resources available to provide
advice to international students and staff remain limited despite increasing demands for support.
International Student Support Survey – Although a bid to the University’s Strategic Investment Fund
(SIF) to support the recommendations of this survey was unsuccessful, one of the recommendations
is being undertaken, a survey of international students, with funds secured from the Campaigns
Office. A number of the other recommendations in the report are being taken forward, albeit more
slowly than had been hoped, without additional resource and a further bid will be made to SIF this
year following re-prioritisation of the recommendations as advised by Education Committee and
hopefully allowing a more comprehensive international orientation programme to be established.
Immigration Issues – the Office continues to be heavily involved in immigration issues, including a
review of the date of winter graduations so that international students do not have the expense of
renewing their visas for only a few weeks. The University is also participating in a Home Office pilot
scheme relating to non-arrival of international students as part of national moves to minimise abuse of
the student entry route to the UK.
Senate Secretariat
Secretariat Team - Significant development of the Senate Secretariat team took place last session,
such that it now consists of 7 volunteer members from elsewhere in the Support Services in addition
to the core Academic Registry team members. The appointment of a Director of Student
Administration has relieved the Senior Assistant Registrar (Secretariat) of some responsibilities thus
permitting him more time to contribute to development of the Secretariat.
Committee Effectiveness and Communications - The Secretariat has contributed significantly to
dialogue throughout the year on the effectiveness of, and relationships between, Senate and its senior
committees. Within this, the Committee Servicing Procedures, first adopted by Senate in spring 2004,
have been reviewed and revised and their use extended to Council Committees because of their
perceived usefulness. The format of the Senate agenda has been revised and simplified, in
consultation with the Standing Committee of Senate.
UPARC Arrangements - Following discussions with the Vice-Chancellor’s Advisory Group and
University Planning and Resources Committee (UPARC) over the summer, the arrangements for
managing UPARC’s agenda will be re-focused to improve the Committee’s effectiveness and make
best use of senior staff time. The terms of reference and delegated authorities of UPARC and its
senior committees will be reviewed so that issues of University policy are discussed at the right level
and committees are confident about the level of authority, which they have to make decisions.
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Support for the Secretariat - The Senate Secretariat website will be reviewed over the next twelve
months, including links to other relevant pages. The support team for the Academic Registrar/Senior
Assistant Registrar (Secretariat) has been restructured to provide more flexible support for the
Secretariat as a whole.
Budget Summary
The Academic Registry was approximately £80k over budget at the end of 2004/05 and with
increasing staff costs, increasing non-staff costs in some areas, volume increases, and new projects,
will have a considerable challenge to meet budget in 2005/06. Two posts have been left temporarily
un-filled and a number of possible savings have been identified for the coming year. It is inevitable,
however, that these will affect the service which the office is able to provide.
Student Recruitment and Admissions – A successful Strategic Investment fund (SIF) bid was made
last year to increase international recruitment resources but bids to support widening participation and
increasing centralisation of undergraduate admissions were unsuccessful. The office continues to
struggle to fund overseas agents costs, as they have never been fully covered in the Office’s budget,
despite being a cost-effective way of recruiting international students. The increasing costs of
producing the undergraduate and postgraduate prospectus and of British Council Subscription mean
that the Office will have to work extremely hard not to overspend its budget in 2005/06. Clearly costcutting in the area of student recruitment could be damaging to University income.
Student Administration – Successful bids were made for SIF funding to support IT projects relating to
the 2006 introduction of higher undergraduate fees, UCAS developments, CECAS replacement and
postgraduate admissions developments but these numerous projects are also increasing consultancy,
testing, and training costs in the Student Systems and Information Office and this office is starting to
be extremely over-stretched. The increasing numbers of examinations which are timetabled centrally,
in addition to the shortage of large, University owned exam venues means that examinations costs
have increased by approximately £75k over the last two years. This includes the costs of invigilation,
hiring external exam venues and arranging transport for students and has not been accompanied by
any increase in budget.
International Centre - Activities were carried out within budget last year although the absence of a
budget for activities relating to the Worldwide Universities Network meant that these had to be
absorbed by the International Centre budget. The 2005-6 budget looks tight but achievable. Last
year’s bid for SIF funding for international student support was unsuccessful although the Alumni
Foundation provided funding for a survey of international student perceptions.
Senate Secretariat – The Secretariat continues to operate on a largely voluntary basis with staff from
various sections of the support services contributing to the team.
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Annex A
The Academic Registry comprises:
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Student Recruitment, Access and Admissions (incorporating Undergraduate Admissions and
Recruitment, Widening Participation, International Recruitment and Study Abroad Offices);
For 2004/05, Faculty Offices (Arts, Social Sciences and Law, and Science. The faculty offices
for Medicine and Dentistry, Medical and Veterinary Sciences and Engineering report direct to
the Dean)
International Centre (incorporating the International Student Advisory Service and European
Office);
Student Administration (incorporating Student Finance Office, Examinations and Higher
Degrees Office, Continuing Education Course Administration Service, Student Systems and
Information Office)
Senate Secretariat
The Academic Registry:
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plays a leading role in the development and implementation of University recruitment and
admissions strategies which facilitate the recruitment of a diverse and able student population
from the UK and overseas.
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strives to create a positive educational experience for all University of Bristol students, in line
with the Education Strategy, both through the services provided by the office and through its
contribution to educational policy development.
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facilitates effective University governance, academic development and internal
communication by providing secretariat support for Senate and its committees.
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monitors and contributes to regional, national and international priorities and developments in
higher education to ensure that the University is well placed to respond and to maintain and
enhance its strength as an institution.
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Annex B
Undergraduate Financial Support
Travel to Interview Bursaries - In 2004/05, 144 applicants from low-income households were awarded
bursaries, totalling £4,890.90.
Convocation Bursaries - In 2004/05, a total of 15 bursaries were awarded to students from BA and BS
postal code areas as part of a widening participation initiative, funded by members of Convocation
through the University’s Campaign for Resource.
Opportunity Bursaries - This scheme no longer runs as the HE Grant, which is administered along
with the Student Loan, has replaced it. However, in 2004/05, a total of £51,500 was allocated to
continuing students.
Access to Learning Funds - In 2004/05, the University’s total HEFCE allocation for undergraduate
support was £367,918. Our total spend was in the region of £314, 464 (this amount is to be
confirmed as the financial reconciliation is ongoing).
Postgraduate Financial Support during 2004/05
ORSAS (Overseas Students Awards Scheme) Scholarships (International Students) and University of
Bristol Postgraduate Research Scholarships - The University submitted 38 nominations for the annual
ORSAS awards. 31 of the nominations were successful and 23 of the successful nominees actually
registered as students of the University. A further 43 continuing ORSAS students renewed their
awards, bringing the total amount administered to £480,474. All successful 2004/05 candidates were
also guaranteed a University of Bristol Postgraduate Research Scholarship. This provides all
remaining tuition fees, a maintenance stipend of £5,000 and £500 towards project/travel expenses.
70 continuing University of Bristol Postgraduate Research Scholarships were also renewed bringing
the total expenditure to £974,539.50.
Dorothy Hodgkin Postgraduate Award Scheme (International Students) - In 2004/05, the University
was involved in the pilot for the Dorothy Hodgkin Postgraduate Award Scheme (DHPA). Awards are
funded 50% from participating Research Councils and 50% from one of five industrial partners linked
to the scheme. The University was allocated 7 awards valued at £75K per award. As all 7 were
awarded, the total scheme is valued at £1,575,000 for a three-year period.
Department for International Development (DfID) Shared Scholarship Scheme (International PG
Taught Students) - In 2004/05, the University was offered a total of five DfID scholarships. The
maintenance stipend is paid by the University, which totalled £43,420. The DfID pays for all fees and
travel.
Research Council Doctoral Training Accounts (Home UK and EU students) - The majority of Doctoral
Training Accounts are administered on behalf of the EPSRC, although the MRC and BBSRC also
transferred their administration to universities in 2004. During 2004/05, there were approximately
160 students in receipt of DTA funding totalling around £2.3 million.
Access to Learning Funds (Home UK students) - In 2004/05, the University’s total HEFCE allocation
for postgraduate support was £110,412. Our total spend was £27,357. This is significantly less than
in previous years because of a change in the ALF regulations. Bursaries for taught postgraduate
students will be introduced during 2005/06 to address the inflexibility of the current guidelines and
improve usage of these funds.
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