From support to success

Effective academic support can set students on the path to success, provide them with the tools to flourish on their studies, and help them back on track when they wobble. But most academic support systems weren’t designed to meet students’ needs at the scale and complexity that is seen in contemporary higher education. In particular, many personal tutoring systems are creaking at the seams, and are serving the interests of neither academics nor students.

In this event, drawing on research undertaken by Wonkhe in partnership with Solutionpath and Kortext, and seven institutions that are developing their approach to academic support, we explored the building blocks of an effective academic support system. We also tackled the elephant in the room – that financial challenges make a “full-fat” system all but impossible in most cases – and address questions of human-data interaction, and how to evaluate whether your academic support system is doing what it is supposed to – enabling student success.

Hosted by Wonkhe editor Debbie McVitty with David Gilani, head of student engagement and advocacy at Middlesex University; Nicky King, associate pro vice chancellor for education at the University of Exeter; Rachel Maxwell, principal advisor (academic, research and consultancy) at Solutionpath; and James Gray, founder and chief executive at Kortext.