As the UK sits on the verge of a major change in the financing of both universities and students, this study seeks to capture and analyse attitudes to money, borrowing and debt among contemporary young undergraduates. It reports findings from a qualitative study of 62 individuals in the second term of their first year at university, these being…

This article focuses on an exploratory study, undertaken in 2009-2012, which explored student transitions from a foundation degree (level 5) into the third year of a BA honours degree (level 6). Direct entry students and staff from an early years programme at a post-1992 British university and second-year foundation degree students and staff from…

This paper investigates the role of personal networks in academics' learning in relation to teaching. Drawing on in-depth interviews with 11 academics, this study examines, first, how and what academics learn through their personal networks; second, the perceived value of networks in relation to academics' professional development; and,…

This study highlights the importance of international spectator sports in the maintenance of collective identity among international students. No research has been conducted on the international student experience of sport fandom away from home and on the impact of such a following on national identification. Using qualitative findings from…

This article explores the extent to which it is possible to incorporate global learning within the further education (FE) curriculum, drawing on the findings from the "Global Learning for Global Colleges" (2009-2012) research and development project, funded by the Department for International Development (DfID). Against a background of…

This article reports on and discusses the findings of an investigation carried out to explore the expectations of an English language enhancement course (ELEC) held by a group of undergraduate students at an Australian university. For the study, a mixed-methods approach was utilised, with two instruments: a survey with a combination of closed- and…

Higher education is rapidly expanding and diversifying across all regions of the globe. Much of that growth has been absorbed by the expansion of the private and for-profit sector, a trend that is particularly prevalent in Asia. Higher education is not only expanding but is also becoming increasingly global, with a mix of different corporate,…

Students need support to complete research masters degrees. Many of the studies aimed at enhancing the student experience to date have tended to focus on structural aspects of the degree, the academic needs of the students or the qualities of the supervisor. Few studies focus on the support needed to complete research masters degrees and even…

This paper presents a study of students' experiences of joint supervision practices and supervisors' professional work in doctoral education in one department of a Finnish university. A qualitative methodology was used to explore students' experiences of joint supervision practices and an inductive protocol was used to analyse the…

Researchers claim that a rise in the language of learning has led to education being seen as a commodity and the learner as a customer, leading to a market model in FE. To ascertain the impact the language of learning has had upon practitioners' understanding of education, their practice and their professional identities, semi-structured…

Learning in the teaching workplace is crucial for the development of all trainee teachers. Workplace learning is particularly important for trainee teachers in the lifelong learning sector (LLS) in the UK, the majority of whom are already working as teachers, tutors, trainers or lecturers while undertaking initial teacher education. However,…

Volunteer trainee teachers (trainee teachers who teach on an unpaid basis and not on a pre-service course) are present in a number of institutions across the lifelong learning sector (LLS) in England, giving the opportunity to gain entry into the teaching profession to those who might otherwise face difficulties in accessing paid teaching. Whilst…

This article presents empirical research exploring adult returner students' patterns of learning via qualitative analysis of a series of semi-structured interviews. Interviewees' comments shed light on the relation between patterns of learning on the one hand, and study skills, epistemological issues and attitudes to peer interaction on…

Ethical considerations are inherent to programme design decision-making, but not normally explicit. Nonetheless, they influence whose interests are served in a programme and who benefits from it. This paper presents an analysis of ethical considerations made by programme design practitioners in the context of a polytechnic in Aotearoa/New Zealand.…

Non-traditional students entering Higher Education (HE) via university-based foundation courses often encounter significant personal risk upon their return to study, and this can be exacerbated by a lack of understanding of the academic demands of HE at the point of entry. As part of a wider qualitative, grounded theory study of the effect of…