The Supporting Disadvantaged Students in Higher Education Conference 2025
Past and Present Supporters Include:
Overview:
Disadvantages including race, gender and class play a significant role in shaping student experiences and outcomes in higher education. Challenges persist for disadvantaged students in higher education enrolment, academic attainment, social integration, and post-graduation outcomes. While higher education (HE) institutions are facing economic challenges, it is essential that they continue to provide and improve support for disadvantaged students.
- The gap between disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged students entering more selective universities has widened to the highest level on record (2024, The Independent)
- White graduates had higher employment/further study rates than all other ethnic groups and this gap increased with time since graduation (2024, DfE)
- The proportion of students eligible for free school meals at 15 who progressed to higher education fell from 29.2% in 2021/22 to 29% in 2022/23 for the first time (DfE)
Join us at The Supporting Disadvantaged Students in Higher Education Conference 2025 to hear from university leaders, charity sector professionals, and policymakers on key issues facing disadvantaged students and HE institutions. Key topics will include improving access to HE, reducing dropout rates for disadvantaged students, creating inclusive student communities and strategies for supporting disadvantaged students to ensure success post-graduation.
Why Attend:
✓ Hear high-level keynotes on the latest updates and guidance on supporting disadvantaged students
✓ Gain practical insights into how to implement effective support systems to ensure that disadvantaged students achieve academic success and personal development
✓ Engage with senior colleagues from the sector to discuss strategies for creating inclusive student communities
✓ Gain 8 hours of CPD points towards your yearly quota
For more information or to make a booking please call 0330 058 4285
Agenda
Registration
Chair’s Opening Remarks
Keynote: Understanding the Challenges Facing Disadvantaged Students: Progress, Setbacks and the Way Forward
- Addressing disparities between state and privately educated students in HE
- The Importance of providing scholarships, bursaries, and grants to support disadvantaged students
- Outlining the role that ethnicity plays in shaping students’ experiences of HE
- Strategies for continuing pre-covid progress in disadvantaged students’ attainment and enrolment
Case Study: Providing Access and Participation Plans to Support Disadvantaged Students
- Strategies for creating effective programs that encourage disadvantaged students to realise their full potential
- Advice on engaging with parents and schools to ensure HE institutions are reaching the students who need it the most
- Guidance on providing students with support with applications to facilitate greater enrolment into HE institutions from disadvantaged students
Keynote: The Role of Faculty in Empowering Disadvantaged Students in Higher Education
- Understanding faculty’s role in challenging biases, promoting diversity, and fostering an inclusive classroom environment
- Strategies to support disadvantaged students in academic success and personal development
- Guidance on advocating for institutional policies and practices that promote equity, diversity, and inclusion
- Ensuring that intersectional experiences and voices are included in the curriculum
Questions and Answers
Comfort Break
Keynote: Considering Intersectional Identities: Race, Gender, and Class
- Examining the complex, intersectional experiences of students with multiple disadvantages
- Understanding the compounded effects on student success, mental health, and participation
- Guidance on developing specific support programs for to help students succeed academically and personally
- Strategies for fostering inclusive higher education institutions where intersectional identities are understood and celebrated
Case Study: Strategies for Addressing the Awarding Gap between BAME and White Students
- Moving away from the attainment gap and understanding the experiences of ethnic minorities in higher education that may lead to the awarding gap
- Practical strategies for closing the awarding gap: Policy, curriculum changes, and pedagogical approaches
- Best practice examples from higher education institutions closing the awarding gap
- Creating inclusive student communities that welcome diverse cultures and ethnicities
Questions & Answers
Breakout Networking: Using Holistic Programs to Promote Inclusive Student Communities
Lunch
Keynote: Reducing the dropout rate for disadvantaged students
- Guidance on providing holistic and accessible well-being services for all students
- Ensuring that students from low socio-economic backgrounds are aware of the financial support and opportunities available to them and how to access it
- Acknowledging the link between mental health issues and financial issues
- Strategies for providing effective additional academic support for disadvantaged students
Case Study: Providing Extracurricular Activities That Support and Empower a Diverse Student Population
- Guidance on encouraging disadvantaged students to participate in and lead extracurricular initiatives
- Providing extracurricular activities that celebrate disadvantaged identities to create an inclusive culture at HE institutions
- The role of HE institutions in providing platforms for disadvantaged students to create community and develop their skills outside of academia
Questions & Answers
Comfort Break
Keynote: Providing Support with Career Planning
- Providing opportunities for disadvantaged students to explore career options
- Tips for creating career plans that promote ambition and acknowledge challenges faced by disadvantaged students
- Guidance on providing support with job applications and interviews
Case Study: The Importance of Mentoring in Facilitating Success in Academia and Employment
- Using mentoring to facilitate access to beneficial social and professional networks
- Guidance on connecting with alumni communities to develop strong mentoring programs
- Ensuring students feel empowered by providing mentors who share similar backgrounds and experiences to them
Case Study: Strategies for Partnering with Employers to Create Pathways for Disadvantaged Students
- Outlining the importance of internship programs designed to support career development
- Strategies for creating accessible networking opportunities for disadvantaged students
- Guidance on building strong relationships with employers to give disadvantaged students access to additional opportunities
- Closing the gap between privately educated and state educated graduate outcomes
Chair’s Closing Remarks
Conference Close
Previous Speakers
Dr Kenisha Linton-Williams
Associate Professor of Management
University of Greenwich
Indra Nauth
Deputy Chief Executive
Action for Race Equality
Catarina Ferreira
Evaluation, Research and Data Manager
Aimhigher West Midlands
Dr Ifedapo Francis Awolowo
Senior Lecturer in Financial & Management Accounting, ASPIRE Project Lead
Sheffield Hallam University
Dr Dawn Bolger
Lecturer in Politics and International Relations
Swansea University
Dr Hardeep Basra
Associate Professor Teaching & Learning (PFHEA)
De Montfort University
Savanna Cutts
Student Inclusion Manager
University of Southampton
Sami Safadi
Academic Student Success Lead
University of Salford
Testimonials
This was an excellent and thought provoking as well as inspiring day with excellent speakers. I would highly recommend it.
I found the conference very informative and inspiring for future action.
Great content, useful and purposeful talk from all the speakers.
The speakers were excellent and the topics were extremely informative.
Why You Should Attend
✓ Hear high-level keynotes on the latest updates and guidance on supporting disadvantaged students
✓ Gain practical insights into how to implement effective support systems to ensure that disadvantaged students achieve academic success and personal development
✓ Engage with senior colleagues from the sector to discuss strategies for creating inclusive student communities
✓ Gain 8 hours of CPD points towards your yearly quota
Who Should Attend?
| Job Title Examples | Organisation Examples |
| Lecturers | Universities |
| HR Professionals | Colleges |
| Wellbeing Officers | Higher Education Institutions |
| Career Advisors | Charities |
| Senior University Staff | Civil Service/Government |
| Student Union Staff | |
| Admissions Staff | |
| Education Policy Professionals |
Pricing Options
PRIVATE SECTOR
Your delegate place at this leading conference gives you: Full access to the conference; E-guide; Networking opportunities during the day; Access to presentations post conference; 8 CPD Points.
PUBLIC SECTOR
Your delegate place at this leading conference gives you: Full access to the conference; E-guide; Networking opportunities during the day; Access to presentations post conference; 8 CPD Points.
Voluntary Sector
Your delegate place at this leading conference gives you: Full access to the conference; E-guide; Networking opportunities during the day; Access to presentations post conference; 8 CPD Points.
Sponsorship
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Benefits of partnering with us include:
- Brand awareness: Be seen by a highly targeted and engaged audience before, during, and after the conference.
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- Thought leadership: Position your organisation and experts as thought leaders and the ‘go to’ experts.
- Networking: Make valuable connections with potential new customers and partners across government and the wider public sector
- Grow your business: Reach decision makers in a single event on just one day and in one location (with no travel/accommodation required), saving you time and money.
- Gain valuable insights: Hear the latest from key stakeholders in government, and across the public and voluntary sectors.
IMPORTANT: There are only a small number of sponsorship opportunities available to ensure maximum exposure and ROI – contact us today to secure your place.
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