A Closer Look at Higher Education Minority Ethnic Students and ...

More documents

Recommendations

Info

and colleges (for their HESA student record) to categorisethemselves to an ethnic origin group (using the ethnicityclassification based on the Census, which has come into standarduse (see further details in Glossary at front of this report) and alsosee Technical notes (Appendix B).It was recognised throughout the study, however, that there arecomplicated issues in defining ‘ethnicity’ and ‘minority ethnic’and also the use of the standard ethnic groups. Ethnicity is amulti-faceted phenomenon, subject to different individualinterpretations (eg physical appearance, cultural heritage, familyorigin, etc.). British society has become increasingly ethnicallydiverse, not only in terms of the origins of its minority ethnicpopulation, but also their languages, religions, socio-economicstatus and lifestyles, which means that the data on the minorityethnic population can be ‘cut’ in different ways. The ethnic groupsin standard use are intended to help in analysis, by distinguishingbetween communities with common characteristics relating toorigin and cultural norms. But as there is generally little directiongiven to help individuals know what aspects of their ethnicitythey should consider when deciding which group they are in,inevitably they have some drawbacks and are subject to somestatistical error. 1We found significant differences both between, and within, theminority ethnic groups of students and graduates surveyed in theresearch, where factors such as generation of immigration (ie UKborn, first or second generation immigrant), country of familyorigin, religion, socio-economic status, gender and geographicallocation were important distinguishing variables.In addition, the boundaries of the minority ethnic population, asdefined by the standard ethnic groups, are not static: there arenew immigrant groups, including recent asylum seekers andrefugees (eg from eastern Europe, Kurds, Somalis), some of whommay not be captured by the standard non-White groups. Mainlyfor this reason, and also because of their relatively small numbers,it was not possible to consider them separately in this research,but we recommend that they are given further research attention,as they are likely to face some particular problems.A further complication in data collection and analysis of differentethnic groups, has been the change made in the ethnic origincategories 2001 (adopted in the 2001 Census of Population, andalso in HESA student data from 2001 onwards, see Glossary). Thishas meant that some of the earlier years’ data on students byethnic group are not directly comparable with those for 2001onwards.1 Discussed further in introduction to the fourth national survey ofEthnic Minorities in Britain: Diversity and Disadvantage, Modood et al.,(1997), and also the Cabinet Office Strategy Unit Report, op. cit.).Why the Difference? 3
Though we have recognised the complexities in defining ethnicityin this research study, and the diversity of the minority ethnicgroups in Britain today, one of the main given objectives of ourresearch was to identify the differences between the individualminority ethnic groups in undergraduate study, and the reasonsfor them (using the Census categories of ethnic origin). Wheredata are felt to be sufficiently reliable, groups have beendisaggregated by other variables (eg by gender, age) to identifysub-groups of interest, but small numbers in many places haslimited this, or made it possible only by combining some groupstogether (as shown in the Glossary and also in Appendix B).1.2.2 Higher educationIn terms of higher education coverage, the research was confinedto home (ie UK-domiciled) 1 undergraduate students, and soexcludes postgraduate students. Its geographical coverage wasEngland, or English institutions, rather than the whole of the UK.It covers all undergraduates, full- and part-time, on degree andother courses (which we refer to for brevity as sub-degree), atuniversities and FE colleges, though most of the data relates touniversities rather than HE in the FE sector (now known as theLearning and Skills sector). Where there is any divergence fromthese definitions of scope, it is explained in the text.1.3 MethodsThe research comprised a relatively complex, multi-stage projectwith linked stages, undertaken over the last two years. It consistedof a literature and data review to assess the existing availableevidence, plus surveys and interviews with key targeted groups.These comprised:• A national survey of just over 1,300 current undergraduatestudents in both FE and HE institutions, in Spring 2002. Inaddition, a small number of survey respondents (30) wereinterviewed in more depth to explore issues further, andinterviews were also undertaken at each of the 29 HEinstitutions participating in the survey.• A national survey of almost 1,000 potential HE entrants,currently in Year 13 (or equivalent) in schools and colleges,plus in-depth interviews with a subset of 42 of them, betweenOctober 2002 and February 2003.• A survey of 80 parents of current students, and in-depthinterviews with 13 of them including ten from minority ethnicgroups, undertaken between December 2002 and February2003.1 ‘UK-domiciled’ excludes students coming to study in UK from overseas,who are classified as foreign students for fee-paying purposes.4Why the Difference?
Page 1 and 2: RESEARCHWhy the Difference?A Closer
Page 4: AcknowledgementsThe authors would l
Page 7: 5.3 Difficulties affecting academic
Page 13 and 14: • Black or Black British: Black C
Page 15 and 16: • A range of factors affect HE en
Page 17 and 18: These are generalisations, and ther
Page 19 and 20: However, one year on, some (and par
Page 21 and 22: ecommendations are made (see Chapte
Page 23: xxii
Page 28 and 29: • A follow-up survey of 103 gradu
Page 30 and 31: survey. In total, 262 agreed to be
Page 32 and 33: there has been some dispersion over
Page 34: average economic returns to HE good
Page 37 and 38: London. 1 Many minority ethnic pupi
Page 39 and 40: 2.3 Different post-16 education cho
Page 41 and 42: data for Black groups shown in the
Page 43 and 44: students are, on average, older tha
Page 46 and 47: • ‘A’ level route: Fewer mino
Page 48 and 49: 3. Influences on Decision Making an
Page 50 and 51: what to expect at HE (and the diffe
Page 52 and 53: In our discussions with potential e
Page 54 and 55: Figure 3.1: Likelihood of students
Page 56 and 57: identified as being the most debt a
Page 58 and 59: less well (Pakistani, Bangladeshi,
Page 60 and 61: this is likely to vary between mino
Page 62 and 63: • Understanding better the effect
Page 64 and 65: approximately 196,000 in 2001/02, w
Page 66 and 67: Table 4.2: Higher Education Initial
Page 68 and 69: • in terms of the percentage shar
Page 70 and 71: mostly due to the popularity of nur
Page 72 and 73: • While the highest male particip
Page 74 and 75: • Those currently on courses lead
Page 76 and 77:
mixed area, and having family exper
Page 78 and 79:
qualification. How they (and their
Page 80 and 81:
lower than the White figure (male a
Page 82 and 83:
5. Student Progress and Experiences
Page 84 and 85:
information on how these factors af
Page 86 and 87:
(48 per cent), and Black Caribbean
Page 88 and 89:
performed during their studies, alt
Page 90 and 91:
affected by the different socio-eco
Page 92 and 93:
‘I probably haven’t done that w
Page 94 and 95:
5.7 SummaryThis chapter has shown t
Page 96:
6. Output and AttainmentHere we foc
Page 99 and 100:
However, if only first class degree
Page 101 and 102:
qualifications. It has also shown t
Page 103 and 104:
available), study/IT facilities, wo
Page 105 and 106:
7. Transitions to the Labour Market
Page 107 and 108:
confirmed by our potential student
Page 109 and 110:
Figure 7.1: Student plans after com
Page 111 and 112:
‘You get to the final year and yo
Page 113 and 114:
Figure 7.2: Labour market success i
Page 115 and 116:
male and female minority ethnic stu
Page 117 and 118:
Figure 7.3: Unemployment rates (%)
Page 119 and 120:
with most of the rest slightly or r
Page 121 and 122:
output are recruited straight away
Page 123 and 124:
7.6.2 Satisfaction with jobThe smal
Page 125 and 126:
graduates opting to take these cour
Page 127 and 128:
graduates. This may be mainly subje
Page 129 and 130:
expanded graduate supply and growth
Page 131 and 132:
A recent BIC survey was generally p
Page 133 and 134:
obtained from them, therefore, refe
Page 135 and 136:
It is also important to note, as ou
Page 137 and 138:
marketing/publicity said they gave
Page 139 and 140:
presenting an image of an organisat
Page 141 and 142:
groups. One interviewee suggested t
Page 143 and 144:
Positive images and marketingThere
Page 145 and 146:
EvaluationWhile initiatives to wide
Page 147 and 148:
• pre-recruitment activities in H
Page 149 and 150:
ethnic students, there are some spe
Page 151 and 152:
do so at the traditional 18/19 age,
Page 153 and 154:
Policy implicationsThere are a numb
Page 155 and 156:
9.3 HE Participation and choicesMin
Page 157 and 158:
with higher concentrations of minor
Page 159 and 160:
A further recommendation relates to
Page 161 and 162:
Issues of race relations and equal
Page 163 and 164:
minority ethnic groups than White g
Page 165 and 166:
there are some data reliability iss
Page 167 and 168:
BibliographyAdia E, Roberts D, Alle
Page 169 and 170:
Department for Education and Skills
Page 171 and 172:
Pollard E, Pearson R, Willison R, (
Page 173 and 174:
Table A1: Higher Education Initial
Page 175 and 176:
Table A3: Undergraduate White and m
Page 177 and 178:
Table A5: White and minority ethnic
Page 179 and 180:
Table A7: Socio-economic class (NS-
Page 181 and 182:
Table A9: Main problems or difficul
Page 183 and 184:
160 Why the Difference?Table A11: U
Page 185 and 186:
Table A13: Further study or trainin
Page 187 and 188:
did not happen. In future, we recom
Page 189 and 190:
B.2.1 Survey approachA quantitative
Page 191 and 192:
ooster sample also included the ‘
Page 193 and 194:
was generally well matched except f
Page 195 and 196:
Table B4: Representative sample: ed
Page 197 and 198:
174 Why the Difference?Table B6: Ed
Page 199 and 200:
Two intra-survey mailings were unde
Page 201 and 202:
Table B8: Graduate sample by main e
Page 203 and 204:
Table B10: Ethnic origin of parents
Page 205 and 206:
Table B12: Occupation of parents, b
Page 207 and 208:
having good coverage of all minorit
Page 209 and 210:
Table B14: Sample profile by ethnic
Page 211 and 212:
than the UCAS accepted applicant po
Page 213 and 214:
they were tested for statistical si
Page 215 and 216:
‘enablers’ and ‘inhibitors’
show all

A Closer Look at Higher Education Minority Ethnic Students and ...

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?