Despite these attractions and benefits, there remains a participation crisis amongst many working-class and marginalised people who simply cannot afford or are unable to enjoy these experiences, by virtue of these societal barriers.
...for many, attendance at university is based solely on financial standing and the ability to meet ever-rising costs of attendance and living...
With tuition fees steadily increasing under successive governments and standing at the current rate of £9,585 a year before living costs, for many, attendance at university is based solely on financial standing and the ability to meet ever-rising costs of attendance and living, rather than as a credible career choice.
Thankfully, an increasing number of universities are offering widening participation programmes to help combat this, with Newcastle University’s PARTNERS scheme being at the forefront of this.
...provides contextual lower offers to prospective students who meet their eligibility criteria and put Newcastle as their firm choice...
The scheme, which has been successful in bringing more marginalised populations into higher education for more than 25 years, provides contextual lower offers to prospective students who meet their eligibility criteria and put Newcastle as their firm choice, allowing for a Newcastle University that is diverse and in touch with society’s makeup.
Within a wide-ranging and inclusive eligibility criteria, the PARTNERS scheme provides access to higher education at Newcastle University by making it easier to meet the entry requirements of degree courses, as well as preparing prospective students for course study through the required PARTNERS summer school; running for 2 days in person and 2 days online, and ending with a constructive formative assignment that gauges academic performance before term time begins.
While significant strides have been made to increase the prevalence of underrepresented groups across campuses - in particular with the percentage of students in further education from Asian, Black, Mixed and Other ethnic backgrounds going up from 19.7% to 27.9% from 2014 to 2024, other government data recognises a decline in overall university attendance, with the total number of students in further education in England going from 3.6 million to 2.7 million within the same 10 year period - a decrease of 24.1%.
...PARTNERS and other widening participation programmes across the country is vital for any serious further education institution.
These trends therefore suggest that while strides are being made to increase access to further education for these underrepresented demographic groups, issues potentially relating to costs can be seen to price out students from participating in further education. Despite this, the work of PARTNERS and other widening participation programmes across the country is vital for any serious further education institution - by promoting the broadening of further education to all corners of society, as well as fostering differing viewpoints and ideology within an environment of debate and academic challenge.