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We investigated the narratives of enablers and barriers to entry into law communicated through 650 UK tweets posted under the twitter hashtag #mypathtolaw in 2018. Law students, solicitors, barristers and legal academics used this hashtag for sharing their personal paths to a legal career. We use Ricoeur's theory of dialogues between the archaeology (past) and the teleology (future) of the self. This has previously been applied to legal ethics, but never before to understanding access to the legal profession. Our findings show that tweeters had a strong narrative of agency and ability to succeed against adversity -- perhaps underplaying structural barriers. Notable through its absence is the reference to structural barriers, such as class, school, and university type and the converse individual narratives of perseverance. We find that poor or discouraging careers advice had been a significant barrier. We conclude with recommendations for schools, universities and the legal profession around diversifying the narratives used to showcase legal careers and suggest that universities engaging in training for careers advisors may further widen participation.

Professionalising outreach and evaluation work would enhance the quality and rigour of provision, benefit widening participation students and achieve regulatory requirements (Bowes et al. [2019]. "The National Collaborative Outreach Programme End of Phase 1 report for the national formative and impact evaluations." Office for Students; Rainford [2020]. "Working with/in institutions: how policy enactment in widening participation is shaped through practitioners' experience." "British Journal of Sociology of Education" 42 (2): 287-303). This article presents practitioners' experiences of how social justice can often feel unaligned to the technical expertise required in rigorous project design and evaluation. Professionalising outreach would achieve both improved practice and meet practitioners' needs for development and a united professional voice. A professional body sharing standard methods of practice, offering CPD and skills would elevate outreach practitioners to a 'professional' standing (Eraut [1994]. "Developing professional knowledge and competence." Falmer Press).

In England, more students from a wider range of backgrounds participate in higher education than in previous generations. This has led to a focus on how students from diverse backgrounds can fit better with existing higher education institutions. This is often framed in terms of 'deficits' that these students have to overcome to more closely resemble the 'implied' or 'ideal' students around which institutions are, often unconsciously, modelled. We flip this focus by thinking about how educational institutions can evolve in response to diverse students. We use the theoretical lens of the hidden curriculum to explore student perceptions of 'ideal' students. Findings are based on research with eight students as co-researchers and 24 further student participants in an academically selective English higher education institution. We find that there are many aspects of hidden or assumed practices within universities students encounter when first coming to higher education. Focusing specifically on learning environments and curricula, we found that ideas about an implied student were evident in the institution, that this mattered for the experience of learning -- and that consciousness of hidden processes helps. We conclude by suggesting that instead of focusing on how to change students to fit institutions, institutions need to be open and adaptable to all students.

Higher Education Institutions in England are an integral part of the government's social mobility strategy. Contextualisation of undergraduate admissions decisions has emerged as a key tool towards progressing social mobility objectives. The present paper builds on our previous 2013 research by describing findings from 15 qualitative interviews with stakeholders in contextualised admissions. Stakeholders were drawn from government, non-governmental and third sector bodies including those representing the voice of schools and young people. We find that data challenges continue to be a main barrier to the application of contextual admissions. Respondents thought that more consistency and transparency between universities would be helpful to assist applicants and those who support them to better understand contextual data use in undergraduate admissions. Views are divided about whether differential admissions offers represent the most important application of contextual data. Respondents saw potential for using contextual data beyond admissions for supporting students at university and into further study or employment.

Highly selective higher education institutions (HEIs) are simultaneously mandated to enable access for populations which have traditionally been excluded ('equality'), and to ensure that admitted students have the potential to succeed in higher education ('excellence'). This article uses original empirical case study data from 2018, from nine highly selective English HEIs, to explore current uses of contextual data in undergraduate admissions. The results show that all participating HEIs thought holistically about their applicants. In particular, HEIs considered the context in which applicants had achieved their grades, and aimed to identify academic potential not captured by those grades. However, ideological and theoretical disagreements, as well as practical barriers, hamper a more widespread and consistent application of contextual data in English undergraduate admissions. The article therefore identifies further practical steps for HEIs and other stakeholders that would enable a more valid, evidence-based and coherent position on contextual data use across the HE sector. Overall, advancing more consistency in how contextual data are used might enable greater certainty among applicants, and those advising them, regarding how applications for admissions are likely to be judged. Ultimately, contextual admission policies have the potential to increase diversity among the admitted students at selective HEIs.

This project investigated the postsecondary education aspirations of 27 secondary school-aged students living in greater London, England and greater Boston, Massachusetts, USA. An innovative research design was implemented to support a technology-facilitated international focus group allowing for exchanges between the US and English students. Using human ecology theory, the findings show that differences in students' exosystems, specifically the financial aid and loan repayment processes, influence student postsecondary education and career aspirations. US student concerns about affordability and loan repayment made aspirations lower and more localized. In contrast, English participants felt comforted by their government's deferred loan repayment process, so they did not express such strong constraints on aspirations based on financial considerations. Both English and US students were influenced similarly by the mesosystem when making decisions about which postsecondary institution to attend. In conclusion, altering exosystem policy and influencing mesosystem relationships could impact postsecondary education aspirations for low-income students.

This original study followed up ten beneficiaries of a UK charity‐led programme that supported disadvantaged students in applying to elite US universities. First interviewed in 2015 during their early university days in the United States, in our 2019 follow‐up all participants had graduated. Six remained in the United States and four had returned to the United Kingdom, with only one returning to their pre‐university community. They reported benefitting immensely from their international opportunities and were nearly all in high‐paying graduate jobs or high‐profile graduate programmes. Drawing on Bourdieu's concept of the 'cleft habitus', which can result from rapid and substantial shifts in field, we found that this was rare. Rather, the majority had undergone a 'wholesale escape', replacing their originary habitus with one that was consistent with their new field. The significance of the study is that the findings allow us to propose the concept of 'helicopter mobility' to describe individualised approaches to social mobility, whereby those considered to have merit are removed from their communities without questioning or affecting wider structural inequalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pro-Vice-Chancellors (PVCs) form the second-tier leadership of UK higher education institutions. However, their role and position remain under-theorised and under-researched. The present article explores the extent to which a PVC Education role requires core expertise in education or generic managerial skills. Using a mixed-methods approach, we first establish the disciplinary backgrounds of PVCs Education in Russell Group (RG) and post-1992 institutions. Fewer than one in five PVCs Education have a disciplinary background or additional formal training in education. Second, we conducted 24 semi-structured interviews with PVCs Education, Heads of Education Departments and Heads of Learning and Teaching units. These interviews suggest the PVC Education role requires managerial skills, usually acquired in previous headships, as well as academic credibility and knowledge of institutional processes rather than particular expertise in education. In sum, generic managerial skills rather than educational expertise are paramount for understanding the profile of PVCs Education in UK universities.

We present the experience of 10 British low-socio-economic status students who were supported by a charitable scheme to be internationally mobile and who are currently studying at a range of highly selective universities and liberal arts colleges in the North-Eastern United States. Based on semi-structured interviews and the discussion of artefacts symbolizing their experience, findings show that by moving across national contexts, cultural cues of socio-economic difference such as the vernacular become less recognizable, thus reducing the likelihood for 'social identity threat' and feeling of not belonging. The self-concept and habitus of these students is transformed, as they adopt the upper and middle-class dispositions and career pathways associated with elite college culture, thus suggesting the possibility of a wholesale escape of habitus.

We audited the websites of all 57 undergraduate medicine course websites at UK universities for 2020 entry, looking in particular for the clarity of information regarding contextual admissions (CA). 49 programmes featured 47 distinct CA policies, using 26 different contextual markers, 8 programmes had no CA policy. Half (51%) of these courses with CA described clearly how they used CA, some allowed candidates to evaluate their own eligibility. However, the burden currently falls on individual applicants to understand the CA system at each medical school. Medical schools should present CA information clearly and accessibly so that applicants can make informed choices where to apply, having a one-stop for accessing all CA information across medical schools would also lessen the research burden on applicants. This could increase applications from a more diverse range of applicants. Other degree courses might use this study as a springboard to reflect on their CA policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reviews the findings from a UK nationwide project on the causes of differences in student outcomes in higher education. The project was commissioned by the Higher Education Funding Council for England and reported in July 2015. We found that universities with an embedded, institution-wide approach that engaged senior managers, academic staff, professional service staff and students as stakeholders and agents in the differential outcomes agenda were most promising in decreasing progression gaps. Universities use targeted and universal interventions to affect change. Initiatives that tackle assessment and the content and meaning of curricula are a promising stream of interventions. Overall, more evaluations on what works and sharing of practice will further enable the sector to support all higher education students in reaching their academic potential.

Progression to higher education in England varies markedly by region, with lower rates of participation outside of London. While some previous studies have explored challenges in accessing higher education in rural and coastal areas, there is a lack of research which considers both individual-level and geographic effects in relation to regional variations in HE progression. In this study, using multivariate regression analysis, we examine whether regional differences in transition to higher education can be explained by the rural/coastal nature of the geographic area in which young people grow up, by area-level deprivation, or by the characteristics of young people living within these regions. The analysis uses the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England, a representative cohort study. These data have been linked to information on the proximity to the coast. Consistent with other work, we find that individual differences and area-level deprivation predict HE aspirations and progression. The newly introduced coastal/rural indicator also predicts HE aspirations and progression, but this is mitigated by the inclusion of individual differences and area-level deprivation. However, we find that unexplained regional differences persist. In particular, the South West of England emerges as a regional cold spot for HE. Consequently, policy makers should consider the role that regional dynamics may have in influencing the choices and constraints faced by young people. The approach may also be applicable to understanding inequalities in progression to HE in other countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the relationship between legal practice and type of university attended and degree course studied for English and German lawyers. For England, some of the analysis is only based on data for barristers. We find that university attended matters a great deal for English barristers if they tend to have graduated from elite universities within the stratified British higher education system. In contrast, the flat German higher education system is also mirrored in the profile of lawyers, where graduates in the top jobs come from a wide range of institutions. For Germany, attainment at university and graduating in law are keys to unlocking elite positions whereas the status of university seems second to none in the British system, trumping having studied law as a first degree. The paper thus empirically confirms anecdotal insights that knowledge and skills directly related to law matters more for early career entry in Germany and generic skills and socialisation at elite universities matters more for transitioning into elite legal employment in England. It is unclear from the available data whether the different structures mean that the social make-up of the legal professions differs, but it is clear that different ways of accessing this key profession operate in the two contexts.

This article reviews the idea of contextualising applicants to higher education in order to widen access. First, the meaning of contextualised admissions (CAs) is discussed before laying out the rationale for contextualising applicants and the beneficiaries of the policy. The final sections discuss key critiques of CA and conclude by arguing that CA does go some way to addressing the access challenge. To fully realise its potential as a policy intervention though, it is most helpfully part of integrated support for students throughout university and is mindful of the role of universities in wider society to create more equal progression trajectories for young people from a range of backgrounds.

This special issue introduces a set of article addressing the question of what "fairness" means with respect to the distribution of access to higher education. Articles herein address the criteria that "should" be used to allocate funding, offers of admission at selective institutions, and conceiving and assessing "merit." Collectively, the articles confirm the self-sustaining, cumulative nature of economic, cultural, and educational advantage, the ideal of equal opportunity in access to higher education notwithstanding.

This article focuses on questions and attitudes towards higher education in the British Social Attitudes (BSA) survey series. First, we analyse the changing BSA questions (1983-2010) in the context of key policy reports. Our results show that changes in the framing of higher education questions correspond with changes in the macro-discourse of higher education policies. Second, we focus on the 2010 BSA survey responses to investigate how attitudes towards higher education are related to respondents' characteristics. Respondents' socio-economic position predicts attitudes towards higher education. Graduates and professionals are most likely to support a reduction in higher education opportunities, but those who have so far benefitted least from higher education are supportive of expansion. One interpretation -- with potential implications for social mobility -- is that those who have already benefited from higher education are most inclined to pull the ladder up behind them.

A questionnaire was administered to 1,929 applicants to Oxford University, including measures of trait anxiety, behavioural response to examinations and to breakdown in relationships. 635 of these applicants were admitted to the university and of these, 383 also responded to a questionnaire administered 4 years later, just before their final examinations. The classification (first, upper and lower second, third class) and marks in the final examinations were obtained and the relationship between the personality measures and academic performance were calculated. Women showed higher anxiety scores than men at both times of testing. Women who obtained the best (first class) degrees scored significantly higher on anxiety than those who performed less well. In contrast, there was no such difference in men. Explanations for anxiety having a facilitatory effect on academic performance of women at Oxford University are proposed.

The article investigates unequal admissions patterns at the University of Oxford. Statistical work shows differences in admission rates by social class, ethnicity, gender, qualification status and secondary schooling. In-depth interviews with admissions tutors, college and university officials and observations of eight admissions meetings provide insights into the processes behind those admissions patterns. Results illustrate that adjustment of applicants' performance in the light of their schooling can account for the statistical observation of a lower chance of admission for private school applicants compared with their state school counterparts. The advantage in admissions chances enjoyed by post-qualification applicants appears to be related to the lower risk they pose with regards to their attainment. Little direct evidence is found, however, to explain inequalities in admission rates by social class, ethnicity and gender. A tentative suggestion is made that homophilic tendencies among selectors might account for these unequal admissions rates. It is recommended that future research should use different methods, such as experiments or detailed observations, to gain a better viewpoint on these proposed mechanisms. The article concludes by considering implications for policy and the social stratification literature. (Contains 1 table and 7 notes.)

This paper examines the stratification of the curriculum according to parents' education, gender, ethnicity and school sector in England, focusing on year 10 subject choices. Using the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England, we analyse both year 10 subject choices and the factors that may motivate these choices, such as liked and disliked subjects, attitudes to subject choice and the extent to which choices were shaped by parents, teachers or the young people themselves. The social structure of curriculum choice is mapped using Multiple Correspondence Analysis, which reveals the hierarchy of subjects. (Contains 1 table and 5 figures.)

This article examines the cause of school type effects upon gaining a first class degree at Oxford University, whereby for a given level of secondary school performance, private school students perform less well at degree level. We compare the predictive power of an aptitude test and secondary school grades (GCSEs) for final examination performance, using data from the Oxford Admissions Study. Both metrics are predictive of final degree performance but the school effects are only statistically robust for arts students. Private school students perform less well in final examinations relative to their GCSE results when compared with state school students, but they do not under perform relative to their aptitude test scores or in gross terms. It is therefore argued that teaching effects, associated with private school students, distort secondary school grades as an indicator of academic potential in higher education when compared to state school students. (Contains 6 tables, 6 figures and 4 notes.)

This study contributes to the literature on educational transitions, specifically whether an equalising of opportunities at early educational transitions translates into more equal participation patterns at later stages (Spill-over versus maximally maintained inequality hypotheses). The case study approach used in this paper compares the enrolment profile of postgraduate students at a prestigious, research-led British university with the profile of the postgraduates' undergraduate degree-awarding institution. The database for this research consists of government statistics and two purposefully administered surveys, one of undergraduate students (n = 709) and one of postgraduate students (n = 502). The study finds that the intake of new postgraduates is largely drawn from the most prestigious universities thus suggesting that graduates from lower tier institutions do not self-select themselves for further study at Oxford. The results lend support to the meritocracy hypothesis regarding the attainment levels of new postgraduate students and their propensity to gain government funding. There are, however, some discrepancies in transition patterns that advantage the already privileged. This lends support to the maximally maintained inequality hypothesis and suggests that there are social justice concerns in postgraduate education.