O1 - Supporting ransition · ABLE Project 2015-1-UK01-KA203-013767 O1 - Supporting ransition into...

of 45 O1 – Report supporting student transition into higher education

RESPONSIBLE PARTNER: KU LEUVEN

PARTICPATING PARTNERS: KU LEUVEN, UNIVERSITY LEIDEN

ABLE Project

2015-1-UK01-KA203-013767

O1 - Supporting

student transition

into Higher

Education

a summary of the current situation,

strengths, and challenges at the

partner institutions

Strategic Partnership: 2015-1-UK01-KA203-013767


Output 1 – Supporting student transition into Higher Education

This baseline report will provide an overview of the current situation at the partner

The report will outline three areas. Firstly it will provide an overview of the challenges and priorities for the

partner institutions supporting student transition into higher education:

educational context and admission policies for the partner institutions

overview of existing initiatives in the transition from secondary education to higher education

including outreach, extended induction, the use of formative feedback practices and support within

the curriculum

current practices in student academic counselling

an overview of progression and attainment challenges for particular groups of students for example

widening participation students or students entering with non-traditional qualifications

Secondly, current data practices at the partner institutions that provide data to academics and support staff to

help them support student transition, including:

data collection and data management

algorithms for data analysis, reporting and visualization

existing processes for providing front line staff with data about individual students and student groups

Thirdly, the report will outline in detail the application of learning analytics to the context of the transition into

higher education. In particular special attention is given to the live project at Nottingham Trent University

where learning analytics is already in place for all NTU students.

"The European Commission support for the production of this publication does not constitute an

endorsement of the contents which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission

cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein."

This output is a result of the European Erasmus+ project ABLE (2015-1-UK01-KA203-013767)

https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/node_en

https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/node_en

http://ableproject.eu/

http://ableproject.eu/


1 TABLE OF CONTENT

1 TABLE OF CONTENT......................................................................................................................................... 1

2 Introduction .................................................................................................................................................... 4

2.1 Description ............................................................................................................................................ 4

2.2 Different partners .................................................................................................................................. 4

2.2.1 Nottingham Trent University (NTU) .................................................................................................. 4

2.2.2 KU Leuven ......................................................................................................................................... 5

2.2.3 Leiden University ............................................................................................................................... 6

3 Educational context ........................................................................................................................................ 7

3.1 Organizational structure education systems ......................................................................................... 7

3.2 Admission ............................................................................................................................................ 11

3.3 Incoming – progression ....................................................................................................................... 12

3.3.1 KU Leuven ....................................................................................................................................... 12

3.3.2 Leiden University ............................................................................................................................. 16

3.3.3 Nottingham Trent University (NTU) ................................................................................................ 19

4 Student counselling ....................................................................................................................................... 21

4.1 Career guidance in secondary/upper secondary education ................................................................ 21

4.1.1 Flanders/ KU Leuven1 ...................................................................................................................... 21

4.1.2 The Netherlands/ Leiden University................................................................................................ 21

4.1.3 United Kingdom/ NTU ..................................................................................................................... 22

4.2 Student counselling in higher education ............................................................................................. 22

4.2.1 KU Leuven1 ...................................................................................................................................... 22

4.2.2 Leiden University ............................................................................................................................. 23

4.2.3 Nottingham Trent University (NTU) ................................................................................................ 23

5 Overview of existing guidance in the transition from secondary to higher education / intake guidance .... 25

5.1 KU Leuven ............................................................................................................................................ 26

5.1.1 LUCI platform .................................................................................................................................. 26

5.1.2 KU Leuven: study career guidance .................................................................................................. 26


5.1.3 Positioning test – ijkingstoets ......................................................................................................... 26

5.1.4 Summer course ............................................................................................................................... 27

5.2 Leiden University ................................................................................................................................. 29

5.2.1 Matching: the right students in the right place............................................................................... 29

5.2.2 Leids studieplan - Leids studiesysteem ........................................................................................... 29

5.3 Nottingham Trent University (NTU) .................................................................................................... 30

6 Overview of existing guidance in the transition from secondary to higher education / progression guidance

32

6.1 KU Leuven ............................................................................................................................................ 32

6.1.1 Organization .................................................................................................................................... 32

6.1.2 Faculty Staff and research ............................................................................................................... 32

6.1.3 Implementation ............................................................................................................................... 33


6.2.1 Leids studieplan - Leids studiesysteem ........................................................................................... 34

6.3 Nottingham trent university ................................................................................................................ 35

6.3.1 Organization .................................................................................................................................... 35

6.3.2 Student dashboard .......................................................................................................................... 35

7 Data concerning the transition from SE to HE (academic analytics). ............................................................ 37

7.1 KU Leuven ............................................................................................................................................ 37

7.1.1 Student characteristics .................................................................................................................... 37

7.1.2 Prior education ................................................................................................................................ 37

7.1.3 Activities in transition...................................................................................................................... 37

7.1.4 Higher education ............................................................................................................................. 37



7.2.2 Prior education ................................................................................................................................ 38



7.3 Nottingham Trent University (NTU) .................................................................................................... 39



7.3.2 Prior education ................................................................................................................................ 39



8 Three strengths and three weaknesses ........................................................................................................ 40

8.1 KU Leuven ............................................................................................................................................ 40

8.1.1 Three strenghts ............................................................................................................................... 40

8.1.2 Three weaknesses ........................................................................................................................... 40


8.2.1 Three strengths ............................................................................................................................... 41


8.3 Nottingham Trent University ............................................................................................................... 42

8.3.1 Three strengths ............................................................................................................................... 42


9 Current practices in the application of learning analytics ............................................................................. 43

9.1 KU Leuven ............................................................................................................................................ 43


9.3 Nottingham Trent University ............................................................................................................... 43


2 INTRODUCTION

2.1 DESCRIPTION

This document is meant as a working document for creating finally the output O1 from A3: Literature

& Current Practices.

The report will include the facts and numbers relevant for the transition from secondary to higher

education:

educational context (admission policy),

overview of existing initiatives in the transition from secondary to higher education,

current practices in student counselling,

existing formative feedback initiatives in the transition from SE to HE,

data concerning the transition from SE to HE (academic analytics). This will at least include the retention and study success in general and for specific target groups (e.g. pioneer students or students with disadvantaged background), and

three strengths and three weaknesses concerning the transition per partner.

Furthermore current practices in learning analytics at the different partner institutes, with a focus to

the transition from SE TO HE, are summarized. In particular special attention is given to the running

project of Nottingham Trent University where learning analytics is already applied for starting

students.

2.2 DIFFERENT PARTNERS

2.2.1 NOTTINGHAM TRENT UNIVERSITY (NTU)

Nottingham Trent University (NTU) is mainly based in three sites in and around the City of Nottingham, in the

East Midlands region of the United Kingdom. It is one of the largest universities in the UK with approximately

26,000 students studying a range of undergraduate and postgraduate courses in a wide range of disciplines.

The University’s mission is to ‘deliver education and research that shape lives and society’. It has five strategic

aims include developing ‘confident and ambitious graduates equipped to shape society’, ‘to provide education

that promotes both intellectual initiative and the highest academic standards…’ and ‘to be recognized both

nationally and internationally for the effectiveness of our teaching and relevance of our research’.

The University’s origins stem from the creation of Nottingham Government School of Art & Design founded in

1843. Over the next 127 years the college evolved and joined with various other design, technical, and teaching

colleges. In 1970, they formally merged to form Trent Polytechnic. In 1992, following an act of Parliament,

Nottingham Trent University was formed.

Students learn in nine academic schools: Animal, Rural & Environmental Sciences, Architecture Design & the

Built Environment, Art & Design, Arts & Humanities, Education, Nottingham Business School, Nottingham Law

School, Social Sciences and Science & Technology. PhD students are taught in a separate graduate school. The

University has a strong focus on employability and links with employers. NTU has the fourth highest number of

students on work placement in the country and 94% of all graduates are in employment or further study within

6 months of graduation. The HIVE, NTU's enterprise and business development incubator has helped over 250

start-up companies.


NTU has 37 research centres including the John Van Geest Cancer Research Centre, the International Gaming

Research Unit, the Centre for Research in Advanced Textiles and the Centre for Business Performance and Lean

Leadership. In the most recent UK Research Excellence Framework (REF), 100% of Nottingham Trent University

research submitted under biomedical sciences, business and management studies, and psychology was found

to have world-leading or internationally excellent impact.

In 2014 Complete University Rankings, Nottingham Trent University was ranked 61st of 121 UK Universities.

The University is frequently listed as one of the top 10 most environmentally friendly institutions in the

country, with 100% of its electricity generated from renewable resources since 2009.

2.2.2 KU LEUVEN1

KU Leuven is a university, located in the centre of the historic town of Leuven in the Flemish part of Belgium.

With more than 55 000 students during the academic year of 2014-215

(http://www.kuleuven.be/prodstudinfo/50000050/dash.html), KU Leuven is the largest university in Belgium

and the low countries. KU Leuven has a very long tradition as a centre for learning. Today, it is Belgium's largest

and highest-ranked university and, founded in 1425, one of the oldest and most renowned universities in

Europe. As a leading European research university and co-founder of the League of European Research

Universities (LERU), KU Leuven offers a wide variety of international bachelor and master’s programmes, all

supported by high-quality, innovative, interdisciplinary research.

As of 2014, KU Leuven ranks as 55th globally according to Times Higher Education, 82nd according to QS World

University Rankings and 96th according to the Academic Ranking of World Universities. KU Leuven is

consistently considered to be within the top 100 universities of the world and considered as the best Belgian

university (together with UGent).

KU Leuven offers about 55 bachelor programs, 130 initial master programs, and 48 master after master

programmes in Dutch. Furthermore KU Leuven offers international programmes in both English, French, and

Spanish, and more than 2000 courses in English, including 8 Erasmus-Mundus programmes.

KU Leuven employs more than 11 000 persons: more than 1500 professors (ZAP), 5000 researchers (BAP), 1500

educational staff (AAP, OP1, OP2, OP3), and 3500 administrative and technical staff. In 2011 the research

expenses were 365 million euros, 635 PhDs were successfully obtained, and 98 spin-off companies were

created.

The numbers above show that KU Leuven is both a renowned research university and educational institute.

The faculties and centres of KU Leuven involved in the project are the Faculty of Engineering Science, the

Faculty of Science, the Faculty of Engineering Technology, the Faculty of Medicine, the Faculty of Psychology

and Educational Sciences, the Faculty of Arts, and LESEC.

The Leuven Engineering and Science Education Centre LESEC (see http://set.kuleuven.be/LESEC), founded in

2009, is a centre specialized in the domain covered by the project. The overall objective of LESEC is to

contribute to the advancement of Engineering and Science education on the basis of research evidence. The

three main project promotors of KU Leuven Tinne De Laet (Faculty of Engineering Science), Greet Langie

(Faculty of Engineering Technology), Carolien Van Soom (Faculty of Science) lead the LESEC research team that

focuses on a better orientation of incoming students. Finally, Tinne De Laet is the chair of the centre.

1 This section contains duplicate information of the corresponding section of the report http://stela-project.eu/files/STELA-currentSituation.pdf. It is repeated for convenience. The actual writing and reporting was done for the STELA project. Small changes may have been done to optimize the coherence with the reporting of NTU and Leiden University.

http://stela-project.eu/files/STELA-currentSituation.pdf



2.2.3 LEIDEN UNIVERSITY

Leiden University is one of Europe's foremost research universities. It is the oldest university in the

Netherlands, founded in February 1575, and currently ranks in the top 100 of most international rankings. The

university has approximately 23,000 students and 4,000 staff members. It consists of 7 faculties: Archaeology,

Humanities, Law, Medicine/LUMC (Leiden University Medical Center), Mathematics and Natural Sciences,

Social and Behavioural Sciences, and Governance and Global Affairs, which until recently was known as Campus

the Hague. The faculties offer a varied range of bachelor's, master's and PhD programmes. Most master

programmes are taught in English. In addition, two other units offer post-academic training: the Institute for

Environmental Sciences (CML), and the Graduate School for Teaching (ICLON).

As a European research university, Leiden University stands for high quality research and academic teaching.

Lecturers integrate their research in their teaching activities and the students perform in a challenging study

environment that is becoming increasingly international. The students prepare themselves for positions in

which they can put their academic knowledge and skills to good use. The research carried out in Leiden is of

the highest international standard and contributes to innovation centred on prosperity, wellbeing and culture

in a sustainable society. Leiden University focuses on pioneering scientific research and seek inspiration in the

scientific and societal challenges of the future.


3 EDUCATIONAL CONTEXT

The presence of different educational contexts is required to guarantee the transferability of the projects’

results to other countries within Europe. As highlighted in the ATTRACT project (2012), the educational context

in the different countries in Europe is different in many aspects: the admission requirements for higher

education, the student fees, the organization of pre-university education, the university funding, etc. In this

report we use the comparison framework proposed by the ATTRACT project to compare the educational

contexts of the different partner countries and institutes.

3.1 ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE EDUCATION SYSTEMS

The table below gives an overview of the organisational structure of the education systems in the partner

countries.

age

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

Belgium pre-school primary school

secondary

education

upper secondary

education

full-time compulsatory education part-time

the

Netherlands

pre-

school primary school secondary education

upper

secondary

education

full-time compulsatory education

United

Kingdom

pre-

school primary school secondary education

further

education

full-time compulsory education

As shown in the ATTRACT project, many European countries operate different categories of school in the

secondary and/or upper-secondary school systems. Often, students choose between a general/academic

strand of upper-secondary education, or a vocational one. This choice usually has implications for the subjects

the students would then study. In many cases, learners choose at a relatively early age (typically 15) which

pathway they will follow, and the choice they make can limit the fields of study open to them later on. The

table below shows the proportion of students following each of the main curriculum types in the partner

countries of secondary and upper secondary education.


Belgium The Netherlands United Kingdom

academic 35% 16% 75.4%2

vocational TSO: 33%, BSO: 30% 25% 24.6%

other KSO: 2% 51%3 0%

The universities represented within the project differ in terms of size, programmes offered, etc. The table

below provides background information about the participating universities.

NTU KU Leuven Leiden University

country

United

Kingdom Belgium The Netherlands

university type

general general general

core funding sources government

70%

(tuition) 75%

54 %

10 % (tuition)

private sources/

contracted research 19% 15% 29%

other 11% 10% 7%

national ranking4 #74- #1 #4

World universty ranking4 #601-800 #35 #67

# full time students4 30.144 42.503 21.222

Student: staff ratio4 15 41.9 17.1

2These numbers relate to the 2009/10 academic year for key stage 4 qualifications (end of secondary education, prior to further education) https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/180504/DFE-00031-2011.pdf 3 Source: http://www.onderwijsincijfers.nl/kengetallen/sectoroverstijgend/nederlands-onderwijsstelsel/stromen-in-het-nederlandse-onderwijs 4 These numbers are according to the World University Rankings 2015-2016: https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/2016/world-ranking#!/page/0/length/25

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/180504/DFE-00031-2011.pdf

http://www.onderwijsincijfers.nl/kengetallen/sectoroverstijgend/nederlands-onderwijsstelsel/stromen-in-het-nederlandse-onderwijs

http://www.onderwijsincijfers.nl/kengetallen/sectoroverstijgend/nederlands-onderwijsstelsel/stromen-in-het-nederlandse-onderwijs

https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/2016/world-ranking#!/page/0/length/25


International students4 27% 18% 10%

Female: Male ratio4 54:46 54:46 59:41

Performance breakdown:

teaching 16.5 59.9 50.5

10

August 2015

September 2015

October 2015

November 2015

December 2015

January 2016

February 2016

March 2016

April 2016

May 2016

June 2016

July 2016

August 2016

September 2016

KU Leuven

Leiden 5

NTU

start and end academic year

Exams

Resits

teaching period

dedicated study time

orientation initiative or summer course before the start of the academic year

Holidays

5 The organizational structure of the academic year of first-year students at Leiden University depends on the program. The common structure is that the academic year starts on August, 31th, the first semester runs from August, 31th to January 31th, and the second semester runs from February, 1st to June, 30th. (specific dates may vary). As an example: http://media.leidenuniv.nl/legacy/academische-jaarkalender-2015-2016.pdf. The table provides one example for geesteswetenschappen (http://www.hum.leidenuniv.nl/onderwijs/roosters/jaarindeling-voor-het-collegejaar-2015-2016.html).

http://media.leidenuniv.nl/legacy/academische-jaarkalender-2015-2016.pdf

11

3.2 ADMISSION

The table below provides a comparison of the university admissions procedures and requirements in partner

institutes. Since admissions criteria represent a substantial formal barrier to higher education, it is important to

highlight these criteria across each of the countries within the project.

KU Leuven Leiden NTU

centralized admission

no (except central

admission test for

Medicine, involved in

project)

For some programmes yes

does university have power over

student selection? no In some programmes yes

alternative

routes of entry

to the

university

prior experience/

qualifications

(mature student

entry)

yes (for > 21s) Yes (for > 21s) yes

access for foundation

programme n/a n/a n/a

aptitude test EVC procedure6 colloquium doctum

7(>21s) n/a

other n/a n/a n/a

general

admission

requirements

school certificate

exams

yes (students with

belgian secondary

education diploma or

Dutch VWO diploma are

admitted)

yes, admissions are

administered by a

national body

www.studielink.nl

yes, admissions are

administered by a

national body

www.ucas.com

ongoing

performance at

secondary level

yes no no

entrance exams

(managed by

institution)

no

only for mature

students without

required diplomas

no

6 http://www.kuleuven.be/onderwijs/traject/vrijstelling/evc 7 http://www.aanstaande-studenten.leidenuniv.nl/info/colloquium-doctum/

http://www.kuleuven.be/onderwijs/traject/vrijstelling/evc

http://www.aanstaande-studenten.leidenuniv.nl/info/colloquium-doctum/

12

other

n/a

(Flemish entrance exam

for Medicine and

dentistry)

no

interviews for some

courses (primarily art &

design)

typical

university fees

typically € 8908 For ‘15/’16 €1951,- £9.000

3.3 INCOMING – PROGRESSION

3.3.1 KU LEUVEN9

At KU Leuven, the situation depends on the faculty. Here, the description focusses on the faculty of

engineering, such that enough level of detail can be provided. Whenever available, the global KU Leuven

numbers are provided.

3.3.1.1 INCOMING STUDENTS

Generation students are students that subscribe to the university for the first time. Since 2009, the number of

generation students for the bachelor of engineering science has been fluctuating around 450. The percentage

of girls is around 14%. The percentage of generation students with a non-Belgian nationality and migrant

background is around 3%. About 15% of the students have a study allowance. This shows that the programme

is mainly recruiting male, Belgian students with a non-migrant background.

The programme assumes students followed secondary education with more than 6 hours of mathematics in

their program. Typically, at least 95% of the generation students had 6 hours of math or more in their prior

education. The vast majority of the students followed prior education that prepares well for the bachelor of

engineering. Moreover the majority of incoming students took a program on science and mathematics (64%) or

in Latin-science (24%).

3.3.1.2 PROGRESSION (FOR ALL PROGRAMMES AT KU LEUVEN)

3.3.1.2.1 SITUATION

When analysing progression and drop-out it is important to take into account the specific situation of the

bachelor of engineering science at KU Leuven. The most important characteristics are:

Open access: all students with a secondary education diploma can enter. There is neither a

requirement on prior education nor on prior achievement.

The subscription fee for the bachelor programs in Flanders is around 890 euro per academic year

(2015-2016).

KU Leuven has binding conditions after the first (only introduced recently in 2015-2016) and second

year.

8 http://www.kuleuven.be/studentenadministratie/inschrijvingen/studiegelden 9 This section is a duplicate of the corresponding section of the report http://stela-project.eu/files/STELA-currentSituation.pdf. It is repeated for convenience. The actual writing and reporting was done for the STELA project.

http://www.kuleuven.be/studentenadministratie/inschrijvingen/studiegelden



13

3.3.1.2.2 STUDY PROGRESS MEASURES

Students that show insufficient study progress, can be refused enrolment as a measure of progression

monitoring. The size of the refusal can vary but in any case it applies to all contract types, so for registrations

with a degree contract, credit contract, and examination contract.

KU Leuven uses three types of refusals which can also occur as mutual combinations.

Refusal on the basis of a very low study efficiency (only introduced in 2015-2016)

Starting Bachelor's and bridging programme students who have a very low CSE after one year (<30%)

cannot continue with the same programme.

Refusal after unmet binding conditions

Starting Bachelor's or bridging programme students who have a relatively low CSE after one year

(<50%) are given binding conditions in accordance with the CSE. After the second year within the same

programme, a refusal to register ensues if the CSE is still too low (<50%). This refusal applies to all

undergraduate programs and transitional programs at KU Leuven.

Refusal after sufficient examination opportunities for the same course

Students who repeatedly fail the same course, receive a refusal to register for the programmes

containing that course. In some cases this happens after two years, in other cases after three years.

The scope of the refusal of registration is for all programmes in which the course is included and for all

continuous programmes to those programmes and for all separate registrations for courses occurring

in those refused programmes. The refusal applies to all contract types.

o Refusal after two years of examination opportunities

If the student is registered with a credit contract, the refused registration will be for one year

after two years of failing the same course.

If the student is registered for a Bachelor's, bridging or Initial Master's programme the

refused registration will be for one year after two years of failing unless your cumulative

study efficiency (CSE) is at least 50%. In that case you will get another third year to pass the

course, or if possible to take another elective.

In the other programmes the student will not yet be refused after two years.

o Refusal after three years of examination opportunities

If the student has been able to include the course in his study program for three years and if

the student has not passed after those three years (and also cannot use a tolerance), then the

student will be refused registration for the next five academic years.

Additionally, students also get a refusal if they do not have learning account (Flemish measure). If a student’s

learning account is less than or equal to 0, the student cannot register with for credit contract at the KU

Leuven. Furthermore, the student cannot register for a diploma contract or exam contract for the programs

that work with study credit, unless the student already has a Master's diploma.

3.3.1.2.3 ADDITIONAL IMPORTANT REGULATIONS FOR STUDY PROGRESS (FOR ALL

PROGRAMMES AT KU LEUVEN)

3.3.1.2.3.1 TOLERENCES

Under certain conditions, in a Bachelor's programme students can use tolerance credits for courses which they

failed. Using a tolerance credit is a way of furthering the study progress.

Each student gets a tolerance entitlement of 10% of the number of credits which they effectively have to take

within a programme. It follows that the tolerance entitlement in a Bachelor's programme of 180 credits,

14

without exemptions, amounts to 18 credits. If a Bachelor's student has to obtain more than 120 credits in order

to graduate, then at this point he/she can use no more than 12 credits of the remaining tolerance entitlement.

Using a tolerance is subject to multiple conditions:

The students has a cumulative study efficiency (CSE) of at least 50%

The fail mark is a 8/20 or 9/20

The student has sufficient remaining tolerance entitlement

The course is tolerable.

If courses are not tolerable or if there are restrictions, then this is stated in the faculty education and

examination regulations or in the programme catalogue of the study programme:

Sometimes only a restricted number of credits is tolerable within a specific group of courses. This is for instance

the case for the programme: Bachelor of Engineering Science: architecture.

More info on: https://www.kuleuven.be/english/education/studyprogress/monitoring-

studyprogress/tolerances.

3.3.1.2.3.2 ORDER OF ENROLMENT – PREREQUISITES

Each course can specify binding prerequisites, i.e. other courses that you have been taking or have passed

before you can subscribe to the considered course. Different type of “order of enrolment specifications exist”:

STRICT: You may only take this course if you have passed or applied tolerance for the courses for

which this condition is set.

FLEXIBEL: You may only take this course if you have previously taken the courses for which this

condition is set.

SIMULTANEOUS: You may only take this course if you also take the courses for which this condition is

set (or have taken them previously).

DEGREE: You may only take this course if you have obtained this degree level.

These specifications originate from content-related matters and have as the final goal to ensure that a student

has the proper prior knowledge before subscribing to a course. On the other hand, these specifications might

have an impact on the study progress of students.

3.3.1.2.4 DROP-OUT AND STUDY DURATION

Almost 60% of incoming students obtains a bachelor diploma of engineering science, resulting in a drop-out of

about 40%. The percentage of students obtaining a diploma has increased steadily increase over the last years

(2009-2010 +7.1% with respect to 2005-2006). Similarly the drop out has steadily decreased over the last years

(2009-2010 -10% with respect to 2005-2006). Despite the increase of student obtaining a bachelor diploma, the

study duration has not increased significantly. Around 11% of the incoming students obtain a bachelor degree

with one year delay and 2.5% with two year delay. Despite the lack of binding requirements before the end of

the second year (kick out) until 2015-2016, 71% of the drop-outs already drop out before the start of the

second year (and even 21% during the first year). This is a result of the efforts of the Faculty to give early data-

based feedback to students. As the KU Leuven has binding requirements after the second year (see

introduction), the drop-out after the second year is, as desired, very low: only 4.31%.

https://www.kuleuven.be/english/education/studyprogress/monitoring-studyprogress/tolerances

https://www.kuleuven.be/english/education/studyprogress/monitoring-studyprogress/tolerances

15

Figure 1: Study duration of cohort 2009-2010.

Globally, for KU Leuven, 45% of the new students in a bachelor programme, drop out within 5 years. 53% of the

new students obtains the bachelor diploma after maximum 5 years.

At KU Leuven, 70% of the bachelor students that obtain the bachelor degree do this within the nominal study

duration (3 years) and 21% obtains it within extra year (4 years).

Of the students that drop out, 71% drops out during or after the first year. 26 % drops out during or after the

second year.

3.3.1.2.5 STUDY EFFICIENCY FIRST YEAR

Another important measure for study success, especially in the case of open access to the bachelor program, is

the study efficiency of students, expressed as the percentage of the credits obtained.

Over the last five years about 45% of the students obtain a very high study efficiency (>90%) after the first year.

A longitudinal analysis shows that about 91 % of these students obtain their bachelor degree within the

nominal duration. Around 20% of the students obtains a very low study efficiency (<30%). The longitudinal

analysis shows that none of these students obtained a bachelor diploma in the past. Around 16% of the

students have a study-efficiency between 60 and 90% and 18% between 30 and 60%. The longitudinal analysis

shows that these students are at risk of study delay or drop out.

Globally, for KU Leuven, 30% of the new students obtains a study efficiency lower than 30% after the first year.

41% of the new students has a study efficiency lower than 41% after the first year. 28% of the new students

has a study efficiency of 28% at the end of the first year.

16

Figure 2: Flow diagram showing the results of a longitudinal analysis on the relation between the study efficiency after the first year (3rd

examination period September) and the years needed to obtain the bachelor degree for the generation students of cohort 2009-2010.

3.3.1.3 OUTGOING GRADUATES

3.3.1.3.1 BACHELOR AND MASTER

Around 60% of the students that started the bachelor program obtain a master degree. Around 35% of the

students do not obtain a bachelor degree. Only a minority of less than 5% obtain a bachelor degree but not a

master degree. This low number is not unexpected nor undesired since the bachelor degree of engineering

science is not considered as finality, but as a preparation for the master of engineering science.



Approximately 5000 new students enrolled in the university in September 2014. Students with a diploma from

university preparatory education (VWO) are entitled to a place in a university of their choice, if they have taken

the right ‘profile’, which is a pre-defined combination of courses, and if they are not enrolling in a programme

with a numerus clausus, for which students are selected. In the university preparatory education students

choose a profile at the start of their fourth year. These profiles focus on arts and humanities, economics and

society, natural sciences and health and natural sciences and technology. Depending on the school, students

can take additional courses in math or any other course offered at the school.

The percentages of male and female students varies strongly between the programmes. Overall, 60 per cent of

the students in Leiden are female and 40 per cent are male.

3.3.2.2 PROGRESSION

3.3.2.2.1 SITUATION

When analysing progression and drop out it is important to take into account the specific situation of university

education in the Netherlands and in particular, Leiden University. The most important characteristics are:

17

Students can enter if they comply with requirements concerning their prior education: a diploma from

university preparatory education, a first year diploma of a university of applied science or a

colloquium doctum exam for students of 21 and over, which is administered by the university.

The tuition fee for the bachelor programmes in the Netherlands is a flat rate for all students and was

€1951 for the academic year of 2015-2016.

Leiden University has a binding recommendation regarding the continuation of studies in the first

year: students are required to obtain at least 45 out of 60 credits in their first year. Currently there is a

pilot in Leiden: it is the only university in the country that has binding conditions in the second year

too. Students need to have passed all first year exams and obtained at least 30 credits at the end of

the second year.

Leiden University offers a matching activity to all incoming students, which consists of an online survey

on topics related to the programme students selected in Studielink and students receive automated

feedback on their scores. Students who are flagged because they may be at risk are invited for an

interview on campus. These activities are not mandatory.

Every university in the Netherlands has an agreement with the department of education on a number

of ‘achievement indicators’: these are measures of student success such as progression rates, drop-

out rates, and so on. If universities do not meet the agreed thresholds, it may have financial

consequences.

3.3.2.2.2 STUDY PROGRESS MEASURES

Leiden University uses the Binding Study Advice at the end of the first year.

3.3.2.2.3 BSA-REQUIREMENTS

The first year has 60 credits, the overall bachelor has 180 points. At the end of the first year, a student must

have obtained at least 45 points in the first year. If they do not comply, they may not continue these studies at

Leiden University. They may or choose another program at Leiden University.

3.3.2.2.4 EXCEPTIONS

Excluded from these rules are the following (mostly unique) programs: African languages and cultures; China

Studies; Japan Studies; Korea Studies; South and Southeast Asian Studies; Life Science & Technology (LST);

Molecular Science & Technology (MST); Mathematics. Students of these programs do not meet the

requirement to achieve the first two years of 90 credits. If students of other courses have a study delay due to

personal circumstances, the Board of Examiners obviously takes this into account when giving its

recommendation. The condition is that students who have conditions reported this immediately to the

program.


The binding recommendation for continuation of studies was introduced in 2009 as a measure to increase

student success and encourage students to reflect on their choice of programme early on. If students unenrol

before February 1, they do not lose any rights to student aid. If students have doubts about their programme

for whatever reason, it is beneficial if they leave early.

Drop out for the university was 15.3 per cent in 2014. This was within the margins of the achievement

indicators for that year. This was slightly higher than previous years.

18


In the graph below the study efficiency of the first year is presented. The blue bar on the right indicates the

percentage of students that obtained 60 or more credits, the blue bar on the left indicates the percentage of

students who obtained 9 or fewer credits in their first year. In the year of ‘13/’14 79 per cent of the first year

students obtained a positive recommendation on continuation of their studies based on their achievements

alone.

The table below contains some more indicators of the efficiency in the first year. It shows that the percentage

of non negative binding recommendations has increased since 2009 when it was introduced. It also shows a

slight decrease of drop out after the first year of studies. The reenrolment in four years is also increasing.

Student success 2009/2010 2010/2011 2011/2012 2012/2013 2013/2014

Non negative binding recommendation 81% 85% 86% 84% 84%

Drop out after 1 year 17% 15,1% 14,9% 14,3% 15,3%

Switch after 1 year 7,6% 7,3% 8,1% 6,8% 7,7%

Bachelor efficiency 2006/2007 2007/2008 2008/2009 2009/2010 2010/2011

Reenrolment in four years 57,5% 62,8% 66,6% 70,1% 70,2%

Source: Jaarverslag Universiteit Leiden 2014: http://media.leidenuniv.nl/legacy/jaarverslag-2014-universiteit-

leiden.pdf



The number of bachelor students who obtain their diplomas in four years after first enrolment rose slightly in

2014 to 70,3 %. The number of students who obtain their master diploma within the set time frame, was 65

per cent for the one-year programmes and 71 per cent for the two-year programmes in 2014.

19



In 2013/14, there were 7,116 students studying on the first year of undergraduate courses at Nottingham Trent

University. The majority were new to the University, however, 563 were repeating their first year after failing

to pass all the required assessments the year before. Approximately 93% of these students were from the UK,

the remainder from within the EU (2%) or international (5%). The vast majority of students were studying on

full time or sandwich courses (courses that include a compulsory year work experience). UK students currently

pay £9,000 per year in tuition fees, paid for in most instances by students taking out loans from the

Government.

UK students commence their courses through two main routes. They firstly apply through the University &

Colleges Admissions Scheme (UCAS). Each university sets a tariff for their courses, in order to be accepted onto

that course, the university assesses whether or not the student is likely to achieve that tariff based on feedback

from the student and their teachers. Students can choose up to five different courses, these can be at the same

or different universities. In most instances the University makes an offer based purely on the strength of the

written application. In some cases, for example highly competitive art & design courses, students are required

to attend an interview and present a portfolio of work. Because students make their applications before they

know their college results, the offers are conditional on them achieving the qualifications that they and their

teachers believe that they are going to achieve. This situation creates the second route, known as clearing. As

the students may not achieve the grades that their teachers expect, they may fail or do considerably better

than expected, there is a second process that takes place in the third week of August. Universities will seek to

fill their courses with students and so there is a frantic period where universities seek to fill these empty

spaces. Students are often accepted onto degree programmes with lower entry qualifications or have a weaker

set of reasons for studying on that course. There is some evidence that students entering through this route

are more at risk of withdrawing early.

3.3.3.2 PROGRESSION

In 2013/14, 83% of students progressed from the first to the second year. Of those who did not, approximately

half had transferred to other courses or were repeating their first year. The remainder withdrew from

University for a range of reasons or failed their courses.

3.3.3.2.1 SITUATION

There are a number of studies in the UK that demonstrate how student progression is shaped by factors such

as socio-economic factors (Cousin & Cureton, 2014) and entry qualifications (NAO, 2007). This situation is also

the case for students at NTU. Male students, Black & Minority Ethnic (BME) students, international students,

mature students, students from poorer socio-economic backgrounds all tend to progress at a lower rate, tend

to achieve lower final degree classifications and in most instances are less likely to be in graduate

employment10.

Researchers at the University have conducted an analysis of the relationship between student engagement

measured in the NTU Student Dashboard and progression. There is a strong correlation between engagement

and both progression from the first year and final degree attainment. This outweighs demographic factors and

entry qualifications.

10 Male students are more likely to be in graduate employment.

20

The University is required to plan strategies for reducing early student departure by the Office For Fair Access

(OFFA). The access agreements are funded from the tuition fees paid by students. The University has in place a

Success for All strategy to reduce the attainment gaps between different student groups.


Approximately 7% of students drop out during the first year. The same proportion change degree programmes,

or have to repeat the first year.

In the UK, the normal qualification is a Bachelor’s degree. Relatively few students complete a Masters or higher

programme. Those that do, tend to come back to study after a period away from the University, and are often

funded by an employer.

Undergraduate degrees normally last for three or four years. At NTU, 2/3 of degrees are 3 years long, 1/3 of

students participate in a year in employment and so take 4 years to complete. Students are entitled to receive

a loan for one extra year (for example if they fail their first year or want to change course after completing a

year of study). There are also exceptional cases where students can receive funding for an additional year.


The UK does not use study efficiency as a measure. Undergraduate students are normally expected to

complete all 120 credits per year for each of the three years of their degree. Around 7-8% of students transfer

courses or repeat the first year. They are not normally able to take credits from one degree programme to

another unless the subjects are very closely related. Full time students must normally complete their degree

within five years, funding is only available beyond this time in exceptional circumstances.



The UK Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) report (2014/15) states that 81.6% of NTU full time

undergraduate students are expected to complete their undergraduate degrees, slightly ahead of the

benchmark target of 80.7%. This target is based on the demographic and entry qualification data for the

University. The average completion rate for the whole of the UK higher education sector is 81.3%. There is no

comparable data for postgraduate students.

https://www.offa.org.uk/agreements/Nottingham%20Trent%201617.pdf

21

4 STUDENT COUNSELLING

4.1 CAREER GUIDANCE IN SECONDARY/UPPER SECONDARY EDUCATION

Belgium The Netherlands United Kingdom

Standardized counselling system No No No

Qualifications required to become a

guidance counsellor

Master in psychology,

pedagogy, or educational

sciences No NA

Primary background humanities Not known NA

Below, each of the partners describes in more detail the career guidance in their country.

4.1.1 FLANDERS/ KU LEUVEN1

The central Flemish agency that handles the career guidance in secondary education is the “Centrum voor

leerlingenbegeleiding (CLB)”. They help individual students and assist schools in providing career guidance to

students.

The Flemish government also provides an online platform to assist the career guidance:

http://www.onderwijskiezer.be/v2/hoger/index.php. It includes information on all types of education,

programmes offered, etc. Furthermore it provides information on the study efficiency of particular

combinations of secondary education program and higher education program. Also tests to assess the areas of

interest (I-prefer: http://www.onderwijskiezer.be/iprefer/index.php) and study attitude (I-study:

http://www.onderwijskiezer.be/istudy/index.php) are available.

The Flemish government organized career information fairs (SID-ins), where students can explore future career

possibilities: both including the possibility of continuing education or for making the transition to professional

employment (http://onderwijs.vlaanderen.be/sidin).

The school of secondary education have a big responsibility in the career guidance. Often they offer different

opportunities for students to explore possibilities, make a self-reflection, etc. Moreover, the school provides

the student with a recommendation at graduation time, which is supported by a commission of school

teachers.

The universities and university colleges also share responsibility in informing students. Different universities

offer different opportunities including: program information days, online platforms for study choice

(https://www.kuleuven.be/luci/ and https://vraaghetaansimon.be/registreer), “trial” lectures, individual

counselling, etc.

4.1.2 THE NETHERLANDS/ LEIDEN UNIVERSITY

Career guidance in the Netherlands is a responsibility of the parents and het secondary schools. How they

organise this and what kinds of support they offer, is up to them. All secondary schools have a dean who is well

versed in the options for continuing education and this person is available to help students make decisions.

http://www.onderwijskiezer.be/v2/hoger/index.php

http://www.onderwijskiezer.be/iprefer/index.php

http://www.onderwijskiezer.be/istudy/index.php

http://onderwijs.vlaanderen.be/sidin

https://www.kuleuven.be/luci/

https://vraaghetaansimon.be/registreer

22

Schools tend to encourage their students to participate in campus visits and more intensive forms of career

orientation, such as ‘student for a day’ programmes.

The universities offer all kind of activities to future students. Open days and campus visits are open to

everyone, but Leiden also offers ambitious secondary school students opportunities to come to the university

to fulfill the university preparatory education mandatory ‘profile research project’, or to participate in junior

college and take selected courses from the university curriculum.

4.1.3 UNITED KINGDOM/ NTU

In the UK, careers advice is normally delivered by the individual educational institution (school, college or

university). There are qualifications in careers advice available, but not all advisers have them. As part of the

recruitment process, NTU provides student open days throughout the year. On these days, students are invited

to attend guest lectures and explore the accommodation, facilities and Students’ Union. Once students start at

NTU, careers advice is delivered through the NTU Employability team.

4.2 STUDENT COUNSELLING IN HIGHER EDUCATION

This section describes how the student counselling (ranging from mental health, housing, etc. up to course-

specific guidance) is organized at the different partner universities, with a special focus to the first year of

higher education.

KU Leuven Leiden University NTU

kind of tutors professional

Student mentors and

student counsellors. In

some programmes there

are academic tutors

(teachers)

Primarily staff

tutors with some

limited student-

student mentoring/

buddying

tutorial services

at faculty yes

Student counsellors at

faculty

In a minority of

faculties

central student

counselling

services

yes (study advice, student

health centre, social)

Yes, these include student

dean, mental health and

disability services.

Yes. Study support

offered through the

library and a wide

range of student

support offered

through student

support (mental

health, financial

support, etc.

Below, each of the partners describes in more detail the student counselling at their institute.

4.2.1 KU LEUVEN1

KU Leuven works with three levels of student counselling

http://www.ntu.ac.uk/employability/index.html

23

1. Academic advisors: The academic advisors are located at the different faculties. The organization

might differ for the different faculties. All faculties however provide study pathway guidance. The

main task of counsellors for study pathway guidance is to help student in making decisions concerning

their study pathway and study program. Typically, students can use these counsellors for all questions

having an impact on their study, ranging from personal problems to course related questions.

Depending on the question, the student is guided to the right branches of study support. Additionally,

most faculties are offering Tutorial services, which focus on helping students in the first year with

course related question, study methodology, etc.

2. Study advice centre: The Study Advice Service is located at university level and provides advice and

support for both national and international students on study-related matters. Students can consult

the study advice centre at any point in their study career: before you enter the university, while you

are studying at KU Leuven and after you have graduated. They organize private consultations and

workshop on specific themes such as “planning”.

3. Student services: The Student Services are located at university level. Different services are available:

social service, service for students with disabilities, student employment service, student legal

services, religion and philosophical diversity contact point, housing service, and the student health

centre.


Every programme has an officer for student counselling. These persons do not need specific qualifications for

this position. Often they are alumni from the programme. They advise students with issues in their

programmes and their private situation. On average there is one counsellor for approximately 1200 students. If

problems are too complex, they may refer students to other branches of student support, such as the student

psychologists. Some of the student counsellors also act as ‘vertrouwenspersoon’, a person to discuss issues of

conflict, discrimination or sexual intimidation with. This person can aid in solving these issues.

The student psychologists serve students from all the faculties and help students with all kinds of counselling.

They can also give students a certificate of dyslexia which entitles students to extra time on the exams.

In 2009 the university founded an organisation to aid students with impairments and disabilities. This

organisation is called Fenestra and works to increase the awareness of these issues in the university. The

universities need to make sure that students with disabilities can study without any barriers and have the same

opportunities to study. Fenestra helps students and programme coordinators to provide these opportunities

and they monitor how well disabled students are served on an annual basis.

There is also a student dean who can support students with conflicts or academic issues. There is also an

ombudsperson for the university who can help solve a wide range of issues in the university.


Student Support Services

Nottingham Trent University has a long-established Student Support Services department. The department

offers advice, guidance and practical support to students. Services include:

Financial support – money advice service, financial guidance and bursaries/ loans to students

Mental health support – practical advice for students facing mental health problems

Counselling – person-centred counselling for students

Disability support – a range of support for the different needs faced by students. For example, note

takers for students with physical impairments and writing support for students with dyslexia

http://www.ntu.ac.uk/current_students/services/student_support/index.html

24

Support for particular student groups – for example for international students

Advice for students regarding accommodation or problems with the University is provided by the Students’

Union Information & Advice Service.

Study support

Study support is primarily offered through the Library. One to one advice, workshops and drop ins are offered

to students to help them develop skills and confidence in academic writing, maths and information literacy.

Some faculties have also chosen to provide study support in particular areas of high perceived need.

http://www.trentstudents.org/sac

http://www.trentstudents.org/sac

http://ntu.ac.uk/library/developing_skills/academic_skills/index.html

25

5 OVERVIEW OF EXISTING GUIDANCE IN THE TRANSITION FROM SECONDARY TO

HIGHER EDUCATION / INTAKE GUIDANCE

The use of preparatory courses, tutoring and/or student counsellors during the transition from

secondary to higher education is very different among the partner universities. The table below

sheds a first light on these differences.

KU Leuven Leiden University NTU

preparatory

courses

yes (summer + online

SPOCs) ?

Only for

international

students to help

boost their

academic English

positioning test

yes (except for Medicine

with admission test) Yes, but is not binding no

kind of tutors professional student mentors

student mentors

and academic

tutors (teachers)

use of learning

analytics in

transition n/a n/a yes

tutorial services

at faculty yes No no

central student

counselling

services

yes (study advice, student

health centre, social)

Local study counsellors

and central disability

services, including mental

health services

yes (both study

support and

student services)

Finally, the table below provides the opportunity to highlight one of the initiatives per project partner taken to

support the student in the transition from secondary to higher education.

Tutoring practice in the picture

KU Leuven tutorial services of faculties e.g. http://eng.kuleuven.be/studenten/studentenbegeleiding

Leiden University http://www.studereninleiden.nl/universiteit/matching/

Nottingham Trent University

Student dashboard http://www.ntu.ac.uk/current_students/studying/student_dashboard/index.html

Below, each of the partners describes in more detail the initiatives at their institute concerning the transition

from secondary to higher education.

http://eng.kuleuven.be/studenten/studentenbegeleiding

http://www.studereninleiden.nl/universiteit/matching/

http://www.ntu.ac.uk/current_students/studying/student_dashboard/index.html

26

5.1 KU LEUVEN

At KU Leuven, the structure of guidance is different depending on the faculty and program. This document will

provide more details on the programmes and faculties involved in the ABLE project, all STEM faculties.

Whenever applicable, the global KU Leuven context is provided.

5.1.1 LUCI PLATFORM

The LUCI platform of KU Leuven (https://www.kuleuven.be/luci/), launched in 2014, is an online platform that

helps future students to create a realistic image of themselves, the expectations of higher education, the

programmes offered by KU Leuven, and their future. The overall goal is to support the study choice of future

students with an online tool. It includes different test that allow the students to explore themselves: academic

literacy, a preference test (I-Prefer), a study skills test (I-Study), a learning and study strategy test (LASSI), and a

study choice progress check (VST). Next, more programme-specific information is provided. This may include

dedicated tests (e.g. a demo of the positioning test – see Section 5.1.2) and online lectures. Moreover, for all

combinations of prior education and the targeted programme, numbers showing the study success (in terms of

study efficiency) of previous cohorts of students are provided.

5.1.2 KU LEUVEN: STUDY CAREER GUIDANCE

During the academic year of 2015-2016, KU Leuven has worked on a new vision related to study guidance,

which has resulted in a Vison “Study career guidance at KU Leuven” (“Studieloopbaanbgeleiding aan de KU

Leuven”). Starting from this vision, a mapping that makes an inventory of current practices at KU Leuven is

started. The mapping clearly shows the differences of the study career guidance inside different faculties.

KU Leuven distinguishes between two types of study career guidance: study-choice guidance and learning-

process guidance. Study-choice guidance aims at supporting the students in the process of making choices that

allow to develop their study career in connection with their “disciplinary future self”. Learning-process

guidance is the process that leads to a change in knowledge, skills, or attitudes. The process help a student to

connect with the disciplinary community, and to acquire the academic discourse that will help them to take

societal responsibility.

5.1.3 POSITIONING TEST – IJKINGSTOETS

The positioning test – ijkingstoets is a non-obligatory and non-binding test organized by different Flemish

institutes KU Leuven, UGent, UAntwerpen, VUB), that tests the prior knowledge and competences of future

students before the start of a STEM bachelor. An overview of the available positioning tests is available at

https://www.ijkingstoets.be/. How are the prior knowledge and competences with respect to the expectation

of the program and with respect to the other participants? The test serves three purposes. First for the

students that succeed (60%) in the test, it gives confidence in their abilities for the engineering program.

Second for the students that nearly failed the test, it is a stimulus to make extra efforts, take a summer course,

or an individual study program. Third for the students that badly failed the test, it encourages them to analyse

their performance, and if they do not expect to be able to do better, to stimulate to choose another study

program.

The positioning test started in 2013 for the Bachelor of Engineering Science, but since then has been developed

for different STEM programs. In 2015 the minister of Higher Education of Flanders has initiated a working group

supported by project money to more strongly develop the positioning tests and to evolve to an obligatory, but

still non-binding, test.

https://www.kuleuven.be/luci/

https://www.ijkingstoets.be/

27

The guidance for students related to the positioning test is organized by the different institutes and the

different faculties inside the institutes. For the STEM faculties involved in the ABLE project, the guidance is

done by the Tutorial Services (Science and Engineering Science) or the study advisors in the campuses

(Engineering Technology). In general, this guidance (except for a summer course, see below) is free. During or

after the positioning test, all students receive information listing all possibilities for guidance and feedback.

To prepare for the positioning test the student can consult the website (www.ijkingtoets.be) containing

example questions and/or questions answers of previous sessions. After the positioning test, every participant

receives his/her result and personalized feedback. In recent years this feedback also incorporates the

importance of the signals obtained from secondary education (study-choice advice received at school, and

study results in secondary school), and the expected impact of the result of the positioning test on the study

pathway (for an example, see Figure 3) .

Figure 3: Student flow of the participants of the engineering positioning test in 2013 until the June examinations of 2014 for the

bachelor of engineering science and the bachelor of engineering science: architecture at KU Leuven.

During the positioning test, the Tutorial Services of Science and Engineering Science organize information

sessions for parents where questions like “Which guidance is available at the university?” “What is tolerating a

course?”. Student scan meet the tutors and study counsellors and ask questions informally.

5.1.4 SUMMER COURSE

In the months before start of higher education (July, August, September), KU Leuven offers summer course that

support students in preparing for higher education

(http://www.kuleuven.be/toekomstigestudenten/voorbereidende-cursussen.php). Most summer courses focus

on refreshing and improving language skills (but Dutch and foreign languages), science, and math. Furthermore

some faculties offer courses on particular skills that are important for the programmes they offer (such as a

first introduction to architectural assignments).

The STEM faculties involved in the ABLE project have a strong tradition of summer course in mathematics and

chemistry (http://set.kuleuven.be/zomercursus). This is not surprising as mathematics is an essential

prerequisite for the STEM programs. The Faculty of Engineering Science organizes in cooperation with the

Faculty of Science a summer course on mathematics

(http://set.kuleuven.be/apps/zomercursus/inschrijven/modules_wiskunde.php). During five full days the students

repeat theory and make exercises. The summer course is targeting all students, not only the students that did

http://www.kuleuven.be/toekomstigestudenten/voorbereidende-cursussen.php

http://set.kuleuven.be/zomercursus

http://set.kuleuven.be/apps/zomercursus/inschrijven/modules_wiskunde.php

28

not pass the positioning test. The Faculty of Engineering Technology offers different summer courses on the

different campuses throughout Flanders (http://iiw.kuleuven.be/toekomstigestudenten/zomercursussen). +

http://iiw.kuleuven.be/toekomstigestudenten/zomercursussen

29

5.2 LEIDEN UNIVERSITY

5.2.1 MATCHING: THE RIGHT STUDENTS IN THE RIGHT PLACE.

Recently the Dutch government found that one of the reasons for drop out in the first year of university was

that students were ill prepared for their choice of programme. Universities were required to improve this

match between student and the programmes. At the same time, the enrolment date before which students

need to register their choice of studies in the online system Studielink was moved back. It would be up to the

universities to decide to turn this into a hard deadline or not. For the numerus clausus programmes this date

was already hard, for all other programmes students could enrol whenever it pleased them.

Leiden University chose not to enforce a hard deadline and to develop an online survey containing 80 some

questions on topics related to student behaviour, orientation towards the programme, prior achievement, etc.

Students receive automated feedback on this survey containing information on the perceived match between

the student and the programme. This feedback could reflect a positive, doubtful or negative match. In the

latter two cases the students would receive advice to reconsider their choice of studies. All the results of the

students would be forwarded to the study counsellors who would flag the at risk students based on their

answers. From experience they know a lot about what constitutes at risk students. These usually are students

who come in with credentials other than a VWO-diploma, students who are not used to put in a lot of effort in

their studies, and students who have not been to many (or sometimes any) orientation activities, such as

‘student for a day’ or campus visits. Based on the flags, students would be invited for an interview with the

student counsellor. The survey had been under development for quite some time. It was developed by a group

of researchers in the psychology department and had been piloted with two student cohorts before it became

the official matching tool early 2013 when the law on matching went into effect.

In Leiden it was up to the faculties to organise their additional activities based on the survey outcomes. Some

programmes invited everybody and organised an afternoon with activities related to studying and the

programme. Other programmes only invited at-risk students. When the matching tool and procedures were

evaluated late 2014 students counsellors confided that few of the at risk students turned up, while the

activities had taken a lot of time to prepare. They also shared that they needed more tools and research to help

them use the outcomes of the survey, and that the outcomes are already outdated by the time the students

come to university: they fill the survey in when they still need to sit their final secondary school exams, after

they do, they have a three month break in which they work or travel or do both. By the time they start at

university on September 1, the survey is already ancient history to them.

5.2.2 LEIDS STUDIEPLAN - LEIDS STUDIESYSTEEM

Leiden University has the Leiden Study System, which at some faculties starts with a (personal) talk between

student and student counsellor at the start of the study. As a student progresses, the Leids studieplan is

continued (Section 6.2.1).

30

5.3 NOTTINGHAM TRENT UNIVERSITY (NTU)

Widening Participation and outreach work

NTU’S Schools, Colleges and Community Outreach (SCCO) department organise and coordinate a range of

activities with schools and colleges. They promote awareness of the opportunities available in higher

education. The department raises students’ awareness of the options when it comes to higher education by

offering a range of programmes for schools and colleges to help pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds access

and succeed at university. SCCO provide advice to students to help them understand higher education and The

Universities and Colleges Admissions Services (UCAS, see section ‘choosing a course’ for more information) and

student finance to help them prepare for university. They put on a range of talks and workshops for students in

further education, and sixth form and colleges covering a range of subjects such as UCAS, finance, personal

statement (see next section for more information) in help as well as choosing your university options and

course.

Choosing a course

When deciding on what course to study at university students tend to look at university prospectuses both

online and paper. They may also visit university open days where they have the opportunity to view facilities on

offer as well as gather information about the course which they are wanting to study.

Students apply for university courses via the UCAS (University and Colleges Admissions Service) website.

Students usually apply for more than one university place at a time. The process is governed by a series of strict

deadlines. Student applications include information about their predicted grades at the college level education

(A levels and BTECs). Many courses also require lower qualifications in English, maths and science. Students are

also required to complete a personal statement detailing their interests in the subject, personal experiences

and skills relevant to the course. Students track their progress via the UCAS site.

At NTU, most students are offered a place at university primarily on whether or not they meet the minimum

qualifications required to get onto the course. On highly competitive, or specialist courses, for example in Art &

Design they are also required to submit a portfolio of work and attend an interview.

Pre-arrival support

Prior to their arrival at the start of the academic year, students from particular groups (including mature

students, students with disabilities and international students) are invited to attend bridging events. The events

give students the opportunity to meet other students from similar backgrounds. Current students also attend

giving new students the opportunity to hear about their experiences and can help with planning their life at

university.

Starting at NTU

Once students have confirmed that they are joining NTU and prior to arriving on campus, the University targets

a series of communications at them encouraging them to log on to the Starting at NTU site. The website

contains a series of resources to help students to plan starting their studies including information about logging

in to the VLE, finance, timetables and other university processes. The site also provides key information for

international students informing them about what travel documents they must bring when enrolling. Contact

details for NTU’s international support service are also provided.

Before students arrive at NTU the University requires students to complete a pre-entry course induction task.

The tasks themselves are fairly straight forward however it is important that students complete the induction

task as they may be needed in discussions and activities in Welcome Week.

https://www.ntu.ac.uk/study-and-courses/starting-at-ntu

31

NTU also produce a Starting at NTU guide for students who have been offered a place providing them with a

step by step guide. This explains what they need to do before joining as well as what to do when arriving as

well as providing information on welcome week and settling into to university. The guide offers students with a

checklist of tasks and are broken down into three categories: Before arriving, when students arrive and settling

into life at NTU.

Welcome Week

Welcome Week takes place at the start of the academic year. NTU hosts a range of varied activities and events

designed to welcome new students to NTU. The week gives students the opportunity to make friends with

people who are similar as well as meet and learn from those of other backgrounds and cultures. There is a

website dedicated to welcome week providing information on all activities on offer enabling students to plan

which events they may want to attend pre arrival to NTU. The website also contains details in their location,

meeting points as well as travel information.

Programme induction

New student course inductions take place during Welcome Week and offers students a programme of activities

designed to help students orientate themselves to their new course. Students meet their personal tutors as

well as other students on their course and in their seminar groups. Students are also given the opportunity to

explore the campus as well as being introduced to the services and facilities on offer such as the library. The

structure of the year is explained as well as what modules they will take. On most courses, students don’t have

any module options for first year. There is more choice in the second year when there are opportunities to

specialise and in the final year where they choose their dissertation/ final year topic.

https://www.ntu.ac.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0024/203928/4170b-UG-Starting-at-NTU-2016-web.pdf

http://www.ntuwelcomeweek.co.uk/

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6 OVERVIEW OF EXISTING GUIDANCE IN THE TRANSITION FROM SECONDARY TO

HIGHER EDUCATION / PROGRESSION GUIDANCE

6.1 KU LEUVEN

At KU Leuven, the structure of guidance is different depending on the faculty and program. This document will

provide more detail on the STEM programs that are part of the ABLE project. This guidance during the STEM

bachelor consists of three pillars subject-related and learning process guidance, study-choice guidance, and

ombudsman service. Only the first two pillars are relevant for this project.

6.1.1 ORGANIZATION

The faculties involved in the ABLE project, all related to STEM – Science Technology Engineering and

Mathematics - have a strong tradition of subject-related guidance for first-year students, the so-called

“monitoraat” or “Tutorial Services”. This subject-related guidance supports first-year students in learning of the

often challenging mathematical and scientific subjects in the first year of the academic bachelors. This subject-

related guidance matches closely with the learning-process guidance as stipulated in the KU Leuven vision. The

Faculty of Science, Engineering Science, and Bio-Engineering Science use the dedicated Tutorial Services to

provide this support. On the other hand, the Faculty of Engineering Technology uses a campus-dependent

organization where often the lectures are responsible for this support. For non-first year students lectures and

teaching assistants are responsible for the learning-process guidance.

Due to the increased flexibility in higher education and the plethora of choices offered to students, the need

for study-choice guidance has increased heavily in the last 10 years. For the Faculty of Science and Engineering

Science, that already offered dedicated subject-related guidance, the study-choice guidance for first-year

students have been mainly integrated in the Tutorial Services. In the Faculty of Engineering Technology and

Bio-Engineering dedicated persons are assigned for the study-choice guidance. As the need for study-choice

guidance decreases for second year students and beyond, some programs and faculties assign the study-choice

guidance to teacher or program directors for these non-first-year students.

6.1.2 FACULTY STAFF AND RESEARCH

The members of faculties that are responsible for supporting first-year students are highly qualified. For

instance, the staff of the Tutorial Services of the Faculty of Science and Engineering Science provide a high-

quality service thanks to its highly qualified staff. The staff members all have a master diploma in Engineering

Science, Bio-Engineering Science or Science rendering them subject-experts. Furthermore, they have excellent

coaching skills, such that they can provide the students with personalized coaching on top of the subject-

related support. The training workshops and information sessions offered by the central Study Advice service of

KU Leuven supports their professional development. The faculty student support services are continuously

aiming at optimizing its service and adapting to new trends in student counselling. To this end, they actively

participate in conferences such as the European First Year Experience Conference

(http://www.uib.no/en/efye_2015). Notably, the faculties are also involved in research on first-year student

support, as the presence of the head of these faculty services and some staff members in the LESEC’s (Leuven

Engineering and Science Education Centre) research team on “incoming students and first-year experience”

shows (http://set.kuleuven.be/LESEC/structure-lesec/research-teams).

http://www.uib.no/en/efye_2015

http://set.kuleuven.be/LESEC/structure-lesec/research-teams

33

6.1.3 IMPLEMENTATION

The main format for supporting students, both subject-related as study-choice-related, are personal

appointments between a study advisor and a student. Additionally, group sessions in a variety of formats and

electronic online support (question forum) is provided. In the recent years the STEM faculties involved in the

project have started with a data-based feedback approach, that informs students on the progress of their study

career. More and more students receive information on their position with respect to peer students and the

possibly impact on their study career (shown by the study duration of students that had similar results in the

past).

34


6.2.1 LEIDS STUDIEPLAN - LEIDS STUDIESYSTEEM

Students studying in Leiden have a right to good education and proper guidance. For their part, students must

meet certain requirements in order to progress through their studies smoothly and successfully complete the

program.

Leiden University has the Leiden Study System. This means that students receive additional guidance on the

progress of their studies. Part of this guidance consists of a (personal) talk between student and student

counselor at the start of the programme. There are also plenty of teaching hours, (small) mentoring groups and

academic discussions. In their second year, students have to construct a plan that helps them to graduate on

time and get their points. In the first year of university applies - in addition to the extra supervision - a Binding

Study Advice (BSA), as explained in Section 3.3.2.2.2). Between 2014 and 2016 Leiden University participated in

a pilot to enforce a BSA in the second year, but after evaluation this pilot was abandoned: the costs

outweighed the benefits for the university and a national board determined that such a BSA could not be

upheld in the light of the law on higher education.

6.2.1.1 STUDY PLAN

At the end of the first year students make a study plan. This encourages them to plan the study also in the

second year and further progress in their study program. Adequate feedback from a study advisor helps

students to study as successfully as possible. The overall goal is that students obtain their bachelor degree after

three years and progress to the master.

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6.3 NOTTINGHAM TRENT UNIVERSITY

6.3.1 ORGANIZATION

Most transition advice at NTU is offered through the personal tutor. There is no single model across the

University for two reasons: firstly, responsibility is delegated to the faculties and secondly the courses are often

very different in size. The personal tutor role is therefore filled by a personal tutor, year tutor or, on small

courses, the course leader.

The University currently offers a system of group academic tutorials. The tutorials offer support and

opportunities for students to explore their personal goals, approaches to study and understand the core

elements of becoming a student in their discipline. In addition, all teaching staff are expected to provide office

hours where students can speak to their tutor about problems with their studies. Ideally, students will use

these opportunities to discuss their feedback with their tutors. In reality, only a relatively small number of

students do so, and these are often those students who are strongly motivated or confident to ask for help.

At the time of writing, the University is reviewing this model. It is expected that over the next few years,

courses will offer a mixture of 1-1 and group tutorials. These are likely to include both academic and pastoral

elements.

Where students face more complex challenges, they are referred onwards to specialist help, usually Student

Support Services or the Library.

6.3.2 STUDENT DASHBOARD

Nottingham Trent University has developed a Student Dashboard in partnership with the technology company

Solutionpath. Solutionpath provide the core analytical algorithm and have built the Dashboard after

consultation with the project team at NTU. The Dashboard analyses the student’s engagement with their

studies. This is currently done by analysing the student’s electronic footprint. The Dashboard uses the following

data sources:

Card entry to buildings

VLE use

Coursework submitted through the VLE

Library use

In 2015-16, two new data sources were added: access to electronic resources and attendance. In future years,

these will be added to the algorithm. Based on this data, the Dashboard assigns students one of the following

engagement ratings:

High

Good

Partial

Low

Not Fully Enrolled (students who either never completed enrolment at the start of the year or who

have withdrawn since the start of the academic year)

Researchers at the University have analysed the data from the 2013-14 academic year. There is a strong

association between average engagement and both progression from the first year and final degree outcomes.

When tested against other factors, for example demographics or entry qualifications, student engagement was

a more important predictor of success.

36

So far the Dashboard development has been through the following phases.

1. Pilot phase (2013-14) – testing with four first year courses

2. Phase 1 (2014-15) – initial roll out across the institution, large scale problem solving and development

3. Phase 2 (early 2015-16) – adding data sources and snagging

4. Phase 3 (from Easter 2016 – summer 2017) – trialling the use of the Dashboard with pilots and tests in

each School. This phase will focus on looking at what works. For example, trialling the use of notes,

alerts or follow-up and referral work with students.

In the upcoming phases each faculty will trial different aspects of the Dashboard. At the same time, different

aspects of the University’s tutoring system and student support will be explored.

37

7 DATA CONCERNING THE TRANSITION FROM SE TO HE (ACADEMIC ANALYTICS)

This section contains an overview of the data available at the different partner institutes that can be potentially

used for the project. So far, include all the data that is available, even if it might not be used for the purpose of

the project.

7.1 KU LEUVEN

7.1.1 Student characteristics

gender

date of birth

place of birth

7.1.2 Prior education

program in secondary education

school of secondary education

% in secondary (self-reported) (for Faculty of Engineering Science, Science, Engineering Technology)

7.1.3 ACTIVITIES IN TRANSITION

Participation to summer course on mathematics (for Faculty of Engineering Science, Science,

Engineering Technology)

Participation to online preparatory course on complex numbers (for Faculty of Engineering Science,

Science)

Activities in online preparatory course on complex numbers (edge-EdX) (for Faculty of Engineering

Science, Science)

Participation to positioning test (for Faculty of Engineering Science, Science, Engineering Technology)

Result on positioning test (for Faculty of Engineering Science, Science, Engineering Technology)

7.1.4 HIGHER EDUCATION

All information on programme of study: courses subscribed to

Results on mid-term trials (mock-exams)

All summative evaluation: all grades on the different courses

Activities on the learning platform Toledo

Appointments made with the Tutorial Services (for Faculty of Engineering Science, Science)

Information on the order of enrolment specifications (see Section 3.3.1.2.3.2, available from central

KU Leuven database)

38



Age

Gender


Diploma granting access to university

Subject profile if students enrol based on a VWO-diploma. There are four profiles: Arts and

Humanities, Economics and Humanities, Science and Health nad Science and Technology

Extra subjects in VWO-exams

VWO grades obtained in year 5 and 6

School


The university offers open campus days and more intensive and specific activities where students take

classes and spend a day on the faculty.

For talented students there are options to start taking special classes before they graduate from

secondary education

Matching tool described above.


All summative evaluation: all grades on the different courses. Some programmes also register partial

exams

There is some information available on the use of the online learning platform Blackboard.

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7.3 NOTTINGHAM TRENT UNIVERSITY (NTU)


Date of birth

Gender

Ethnicity

Disability status

Socio-economic background

Nationality


Secondary and college level qualifications

Mature students can enter via access courses designed to help them develop the skills to cope with

learning in higher education

International students are required to possess qualifications equivalent to the UK courses and must

possess a suitable level of English language competency


A significant programme of targeted outreach work aimed at students from socio-economically

disadvantaged backgrounds is delivered by the University’s Schools, Colleges and Community

Outreach team.

Some taster sessions are delivered as part of the Open Day programmes

All students are required to complete pre-entry induction activities in the summer before the

commence their studies. These are usually small scale research activities designed to introduce

students to research and independent learning.


Grades achieved

Attendance

Student engagement (measured in the Dashboard)

Library use

Card swipes to enter particular buildings

Use of electronic resources

Feedback through the VLE and whether they have read it or not

Disciplinary judgements

Time off sick

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8 THREE STRENGTHS AND THREE WEAKNESSES

8.1 KU LEUVEN

8.1.1 THREE STRENGHTS

Availability of data: KU Leuven has a well-organized data warehouse where the students’ academic

data is stored. Moreover, the data is available through standard reports to a selected group of faculty

staff.

The willingness to use data for data-supported student counselling: KU Leuven, and the Faculty of

Engineering Science in particular has in the recent two years demonstrated that the data available in

the data warehouse can be used for providing feedback to students. In particular they have showed

that the data allows to position a student with respect to his/her pears and to provide a student with

an idea of the impact of the current situation on the future study pathway (by showing how students

in a similar situation did in the past).

In-house expertise and experience on both learning analytics, student support and counselling: KU

Leuven is a research-based university with research expertise in learning analytics, student support,

and student counselling. Moreover, KU Leuven tries to use this research expertise to influence the

daily practice of student support and counselling, as is demonstrated by this project.

8.1.2 THREE WEAKNESSES

Availability of data for student counsellors and tutors: While the KU Leuven has a well-organized data

warehouse and standard reports for selected group of faculty staff, the data has so far been mainly

targeted to policy makers, deans and vice-deans, and program-directors. Therefore, most reports

concern data of the overall student population, rather than on the individual student. Moreover, the

data is not available for student counsellors and tutors that could potentially use this for providing

data-supported advice to students.

Limited man-power for supporting students: As most universities, KU Leuven has limited resources

that have an impact on how students can be supported. Typically, for a group of more than 200

freshman students, there is only one student counsellor, who often still has other responsibilities too.

Therefore, the time that can be spend in individual counselling is limited. Counselling is freely available

for all students, so upon request, a student will always be able to speak to a student counsellor.

Special target groups are often invited for a conversation. However, the student counsellors typically

don’t have the time to meet all students individually at the start of the academic year, when exam

results have become available, etc.

Drop-out: As the Flemish University can’t select students, a lot of students enter programs without the

right motivation or qualifications. This typically results in a drop-out of about 40% in the bachelor

program. Therefore, during the first year at university, a lot of students in the program are not in the

right place. This results in a challenge for the student counsellors, and for the program as a whole.

Timely feedback and guidance are a result greatly needed at the university.

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8.2.1 THREE STRENGTHS

Availability of data: University Leiden has a centralized database (uSis) where the students’ academic

data is stored.

The willingness to use data for data-supported student counselling: Leiden university KU Leuven, and

the Faculty of Engineering Science in particular has in the recent two years demonstrated that the

data available in the data warehouse can be used for providing feedback to students. In particular they

have showed that the data allows to position a student with respect to his/her pears and to provide a

student with an idea of the impact of the current situation on the future study pathway (by showing

how students in a similar situation did in the past).

In-house expertise and experience on student success: Leiden University is a research-based

university with research expertise in student success. A particular strength is the in-house expertise on

factors influencing student success and the research around the SKC (study choice check).


Availability of data for student counsellors and tutors: While Leiden University has a centralized

database (called uSis), only a limited set of people have the expertise to construct queries on the

database and to use these queries. Therefore, study advisors typically depend on experts to get

relevant data. As a consequence, the fact if data from the data base is used by student counsellors

depends on the particular faculty or program. Moreover, it has been noticed that the data in the

centralized database is not always easy to interpret and that different programs use the centralized

database differently.

Limited man-power for supporting students: As most universities, Leiden University has limited

resources that have an impact on how students can be supported. Typically, for a group of more than

200 freshman students, there is only one student advisor. Therefore, the time that can be spend in

individual counselling is limited. Counselling is freely available for all students, so upon request, a

student will always be able to speak to a student counsellor. Special target groups are often invited for

a conversation. However, the student counsellors typically don’t have the time to meet all students

individually at the start of the academic year, when exam results have become available, etc.

Study progress: In the Netherlands, few additional progress measures exist after the first year. While

the Binding Study Advice (BSA) drives students for good study progress in the first year, progress often

slows down in the subsequent years. Moreover, the Netherlands has a liberal educational system

where students can freely combine different study programs (without spending extra subscription

money). As a result, many students combine different study programs and take more years than the

nominal study time to complete their program. This situation makes it on the one hand hard to track

study progress and on the other hander to find incentives to stimulate good study progress .

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8.3.1 THREE STRENGTHS

Use of data to underpin retention and progression activity. NTU has been commended for its use of

data in supporting student retention (National Audit Office, 2007). The University has gradually

increased the availability of data to managers and academics to support their roles. This includes a

Cognos central student planning database providing management information about recruitment,

progression and attainment and more recently (2013-14 onwards) the Student Dashboard learning

analytics resource.

Strong focus on outreach and supporting students from historically disadvantaged backgrounds.

NTU recruits students from a diverse range of socio-economic backgrounds. Although disparities of

attainment do exist, the University has invested time and staff resource to better understand these

differences and implement strategies to reduce them. This includes 3 years of School/Faculty based

action research projects and a series of interventions such as unconscious bias training.

Expertise in transition into the first year. The University has a 10-year history of delivering a

centralized Welcome Week programme to build up students’ confidence and provide a diverse range

of activities to help them cope with the early transition into higher education.


Reducing existing attainment gaps. Whilst the University has an in-depth understanding of the

progression and attainment gaps between different student groups, it has proven far more difficult to

reduce these disparities.

Busy staff & competing priorities. Whilst there is great interest in reducing disparities and improving

the student learning experience, staff are faced with a range of competing priorities: research,

management, entrepreneurship etc. These often mean that adopting changes to improve the student

experience can be frustratingly slow.

Exploiting the data provided by the Dashboard. The Dashboard project team has found that whilst

there is strong interest in the Dashboard learning analytics resource, there is still considerable work

required to actually exploit this intelligence. The Dashboard is therefore potentially transformative,

however we expect considerable work is required to actually bring about changes that significantly

improve the student experience.

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9 CURRENT PRACTICES IN THE APPLICATION OF LEARNING ANALYTICS

This section focuses on the current practices at the different institutes where learning analytics is applied to the

context of the transition from secondary to higher education.

9.1 KU LEUVEN

Firstly, KU Leuven has a research team that focuses on learning analytics. An overview of the learning analytics

applications that have been done in the recent years can be found in http://stela-project.eu/files/STELA-

currentSituation.pdf, section 7. None of the developed tools and interventions where specifically targeting

students in the transition from secondary to higher education, and additionally, none of the development have

progressed beyond a research status. However, the underlying expertise can and will be useful for the project.

Secondly, the data ware house of KU Leuven, and the reports originating from it, can be interpreted as learning

analytics. In particular they provide data visualisations of the academic data of student cohorts. The well-

established data warehouse is used over the entire university. The learning analytics report mostly focus on

policy, ranging from institution-wide to programme-specific. Additionally, subset of the data is available to

selected staff within faculties, such that data, also in individual student level, can be retrieved. The Faculty of

Engineering Science is the first that has been using these data to inform first-year students on their progress,

and the impact on their future study pathway (see Section Error! Reference source not found.).

So far, beside the large efforts on academic data and the KU Leuven warehouse, learning analytics is not placed

high on the KU Leuven’s policy agenda.


Similar to KU Leuven, Leiden University does not have a full-scale learning analytics implementation. The Web

Information Systems research group and the Extension school have however an active interest in learning

analytics. Moreover, the Leiden University is centrally exploring possibilities for collaboration with external

learning analytics providers that can provide learning analytics solutions that can support students and staff in

order to improve student success. Additionally, Leiden University believes that the MOOC platforms, and

Coursera in particular, provides an excellent opportunity to gain valuable experience with learning analytics.


During the 2013-14 academic year, NTU piloted the use of learning analytics using the NTU Student Dashboard.

The pilot was conducted with four courses, twenty-two staff and 400 first year students. The overall pilot was a

success, staff reported that the information provided had helped them in their interactions with students. It

was agreed that that Dashboard would be rolled out to all courses for the 2014-15 academic year. The

University moved from a pilot project to a business as usual structure. The Dashboard’s management was

integrated into the NTU academic governance structure, formally reporting the University’s Academic

Standards & Quality Committee.

In September 2014, academic colleagues were briefed on how to use the Dashboard in a series of roadshows.

These were supported by workshops and briefings throughout the year. In December 2014, researchers

analysed the progression and attainment data from 2013-14. As might be expected, there was a strong

association between student engagement measured by the Student Dashboard and both progression from the

first year and final degree attainment. Moreover, the findings also appeared to show that engagement was a

more important predictor of success than demographic factors and entry qualifications.



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The greatest challenge remains the problem of operationalizing the information provided by the Dashboard

into actions for ordinary staff to take to support their students. We believe that the ABLE Project will give the

University the opportunity to explore these themes in more detail.

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