News and blog

UCAS data reveals a record number of disadvantaged students have secured spots at university or college this year. But progress on closing the gaps between disadvantaged students and their more affluent peers is slow.

Sara Rashid, TASO research intern and BA History student at University College London examines the barriers – such as poverty and racial inequities – that keep South Asian students, particularly Pakistanis and Bangladeshis, underrepresented in UK higher education.

A new TASO report explores how a theory of change approach can help support interventions to address the ethnicity degree awarding gap.

Working flexibly with six fantastic higher education providers helped the commissioned evaluation team from Staffordshire University and Advance HE learn more about what works when getting started with theories of change and evaluation planning – it’s not always easy, but it doesn’t need to be scary.

Birmingham City University (BCU) is a large and diverse university with a focus on practice-based learning. At BCU, we are dedicated to developing widening participation interventions that have meaningful impact on the lives of our students and we jumped at the opportunity to be a part of the ethnicity degree awarding gap project with TASO.

The Office for Students has emphasised the importance of a whole-provider strategic approach to delivering and robustly evaluating widening access and participation initiatives. Dr Emma Thompson, Head of Enhancement at the University of Southampton, discusses some of the challenges and the university’s approach to cross-team working in tackling the ethnicity degree awarding gap, working alongside TASO as part of its Theory of Change project.

Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) is one of six universities participating in TASO’s Theory of Change project which seeks to support the development and evaluation of interventions that aim to close the ethnicity degree awarding gap. As the project draws to a close, Dr Iwi Ugiagbe-Green reflects on the experience and the importance of embedding evaluation.

The University of York wants to ensure that efforts to close the ethnicity degree awarding gap are central to ‘business as usual’ in departments. As part of TASO’s Theory of Change project, the project team at the University of York is seeking to integrate ethnicity degree awarding gap considerations into its annual departmental action planning and reporting cycle. The team reflect on their experience.

Chido Chipato, Student Success and Inclusion Coordinator at the University of Southampton, discusses the University of Southampton’s Awarding Gap Project and how culture, community, and curricula (‘the three Cs’) are central to the project’s development.

TASO CEO Dr Omar Khan shares his thoughts on a busy year at TASO, and discusses opportunities for 2024.

Dr Mandy Crow and Jared Patel from Loughborough University discuss the five things they have learned from their involvement on TASO’s project to develop theories of change and evaluation plans for interventions addressing the ethnicity degree awarding gap.

As part of our ‘Ethnicity degree awarding gap’ project, our new blog series presents views from our partners about their experiences, thoughts and aims for the project partnership.