Lorraine Gearing Coventry University European First Year Experience EFYE 2015 Conference Introduction My interest in the local day commuter student Pose a series of questions ID: 290313
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Balancing education and campus experience for the local student: Making Fresher’s Week Relevant to All
Lorraine GearingCoventry University
European First Year Experience (EFYE) 2015 ConferenceSlide2
Introduction
My interest in the ‘local’ / ‘day’ / ‘commuter’ studentPose a series of questionsTry to provide some answersLook at institutional changes
European First Year Experience (EFYE) 2015 ConferenceSlide3
A New Student?
AgeInternationalEthnicityDisabilityGenderFirst generation HE learner
…..
LOCAL
European First Year Experience (EFYE) 2015 ConferenceSlide4
Which University?
Course / programmeReputationRankings…Convenience
European First Year Experience (EFYE) 2015 ConferenceSlide5
Have things changed?
Cost of degrees in EnglandReluctance to add debtSchool pressure to enter Higher EducationNervous to leave home
Current situation
Relationships
European First Year Experience (EFYE) 2015 ConferenceSlide6
Expectations
New learning experienceFriendshipsClubs or societies…Purpose of Freshers’ week
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What is Freshers’ Week anyway?
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Research Project
Begun with the concept of a “Freshers’ Week” in a post ‘92 universityNarrowed to local students who emerged as a specific groupSurveys on specific subjects that had a different demographic pattern1-2-1 interviews with local pre-university and current students
European First Year Experience (EFYE) 2015 ConferenceSlide9
Findings
Terminology changesFreshers’InductionWelcome WeekPeriod changes1 week
2 weeks
First term / semester
European First Year Experience (EFYE) 2015 ConferenceSlide10
Choice or Convenience
Current student interviewsTo be honest I only really looked at THIS UNIVERSITY as I didn’t want to move far and it was a bit easier for me to get here than
A or B
I’d already made the choice I wanted to stay local, so this is why I chose
THIS UNIVERSITY
I chose it because it was local
I deliberately chose local universities,
especially THIS ONE
I chose a local university because I didn’t want to move away from home.
European First Year Experience (EFYE) 2015 ConferenceSlide11
Choice or Convenience
Pre-university student interviewscost of living is one thing that has worried meYes, they are all local. It’s important for me to travel there as I will be staying at home. I personally wanted to move out but my parents persuaded me to think of the cost and so then I thought I might as well stay at home, so I might as well save all that money anyway
It seemed like an easier choice to
make
I personally don’t like change and it makes sense to stay here. Most of my friends are
here
I want to live at home because it is easier for me
European First Year Experience (EFYE) 2015 ConferenceSlide12
Freshers’ Activities
European First Year Experience (EFYE) 2015 ConferenceQuestionnaire – 23 responses enrolled in a general IT course
18 students considered themselves local (78%)
14 students attended all/majority of freshers’ week activities (60%)
Questionnaire – 51 responses enrolled in a specialist Music Technology course
26 students considered themselves local (51%)
28 students attended all/majority of freshers’ week activities (55%)
98% found the week useful, with a particular emphasis on
Registration
course related activities
Meeting tutors
Approached activities as a consumer
Made a choice between mandatory (
eg
registration) and optional (
eg
quiz)
Local students were less likely to engage with social activities and identified primarily with their course rather than with being a university studentSlide13
How can universities engage the local/commuter student
Student / course analyticsUse the local student Invite prospective students to a planning sessionHave one social event that they can bring their friends to
Motivation drivers for local students to attend
Buddy up
European First Year Experience (EFYE) 2015 ConferenceSlide14
Final comments
Nothing has changed apart from doing a different course and paying a lot more moneyIt’s definitely easier to leave because we’ve got that financial security blanket. We don’t have to pay for our own house, our own utilities etc
, so I think that you should target a day student more than an independent living student
.
European First Year Experience (EFYE) 2015 ConferenceSlide15
European First Year Experience (EFYE) 2015 Conference