Equal Opportunities for All - Implementing Equality at Third level
The IUA-SIF1 Equity of Access Project
The universities have been engaged in widening access activities with under-represented groups for over a decade. Although significant progress has been made over this period, barriers to HE persist, particularly for those students most educationally disadvantaged. IUA was awarded funding through the first round of the HEA Strategic Innovation Fund to begin a process of reform and mainstreaming of existing supplementary admissions routes for under-represented groups of students. The two routes in question were the Higher Education Access Route (HEAR) and the Supplementary Information -Applicants with a Disability. All seven universities and the DIT are working collaboratively on this initiative. The project focuses on students who experience educational disadvantage because of a disability and/or socio-economic background and as a consequence, don't reach their full academic potential at second level.
The Higher Education Access Route (HEAR) has been a very important vehicle for targeting and admitting students to the higher education (particularly to the universities) since its establishment in 2001. The expansion in the number of applicants and offers to disadvantaged students is a clear indicator of the success of this scheme. In 2000 (pre-HEAR) a combined total of 175 places were offered through special access mechanisms across the seven institutions. In 2007, this figure was 821, representing a quadrupling in numbers over that period. Operating through a network of 'link' schools nationwide (all of who are designated disadvantaged by DES), the participating institutions support and encourage students to make application to third level and offer concessions on entry standards where there is clear evidence that the applicant has the ability to benefit from higher education but has experienced educational disadvantage at first and second level because of socio-economic background.
There is a wealth of knowledge, expertise and data across the HEAR institutions, which will form the basis for future development of HE access policies and procedures nationally. Over the past number of months extensive analysis has been carried-out on HEAR (2005, 2006 and 2007 schemes). The analysis has focused on reporting the main outputs from HEAR, including:
In its analysis and any future reporting of findings the IUA is acutely aware of the sensitivity and confidential nature of HEAR data. Therefore all data used in the analysis has been made wholly anonymous so that no individual applicant, family or school can be identified from the findings of this research. IUA would anticipate publishing some elements of the data as part of a short qualitative review of HEAR since its establishment in 2001 and in the context of reforming the existing scheme and placing it in a national footing.