Art & Design receives ratings on a number of scales of the UK's National Student Survey (NSS) that are less strong than those for some other subject areas. Art & Design, along with performing arts, is characterised by a relatively high level of part-time (PT) staffing. PT staffing data are set against NSS ratings for post-92…

This article reports on a survey of the expectations and experiences of first-year students who were enrolled in 2010 on programmes in Art & Design in the United Kingdom. The survey covered 20 institutions and received 778 usable responses. The results indicate considerable variation in both expectations and experiences, and provide a basis…

Relatively inexpensive studies that go beyond the boundaries of individual institutions have considerable attraction, particularly at a time when resources are under significant constraint. These studies can be viewed as existing under the rather larger umbrella of "supra-institutional research". Three examples illustrate the argument and some…

Datasets are often under-exploited by institutions, yet they contain evidence that is potentially of high value for planning and decision-making. This article shows how institutional data were used to determine whether the demographic background of students might have an influence on their performance: this is a matter of particular interest where…

Institutions outside the US have been relatively slow to develop a formally constituted institutional research capacity (rather than undertaking research into institutional functioning as the need is perceived), perhaps because of differences in the way that higher education is organised in their countries. Some examples of engagements in UK…

Conducted semi-structured interviews with senior managers responsible for retention and completion at English universities with success in student retention. Analysis suggested that success in retaining students from lower socioeconomic groups required a strong policy commitment to access and retention, backed up by practical action. A number of…

A study of student failure or withdrawal from higher education in six institutions in northwestern England investigates the relative influence of 36 possible reasons for withdrawal. Respondents were 1083 full- and part-time students. Results for noncompletion, including institutional and student variables, and their cost to the public purse are…