Widening Participation Research Projects
Mentoring students in the Creative Industries
This report conducted by Rosie Jones explores the impact of an Industry Mentoring Scheme on widening participation students studying creative industries courses in Higher Education at a Further Education college, drawing particularly on Bourdieu’s theories of social capital and habitus and Wenger’s communities of practice to support analysis offered. Specifically, the report examines the importance of social capital in gaining graduate employment and the impact that a student’s habitus has on their ability to circumnavigate the labour market. It looks at how mentors in the industry can act as ‘brokers’ to enable students from widening participation backgrounds to gain knowledge and experience of new communities of practice that may otherwise have remained elusive.
Read more here: Mentoring FE-based HE students in the Creative Industries
Young People in Supported Accommodation: Understanding the Barriers to Higher Education
This research project funded by UniConnect and led by Joanna Tolley was in two parts. The first aimed to understand the experiences of homeless young people and those living in Brighton and Hove's supported accommodation when trying to access higher education, and how they are being supported around this. The second adopted a participatory action research approach to support young people's caseload to access education and, ultimately, higher education.
Read more here: Sussex Learning Network.
