Inaugural Higher Education Symposium
07/11/2012 00:00:00
A hundred teachers from seventy schools and colleges across the UK have attended the first ever Higher Education Symposium at Lancaster University.
The event was aimed at enabling teachers and careers professionals to be better informed when advising students on their choice of university. It also provided attendees with the chance to attend workshops on important developments within the HE sector affecting prospective students including; changes to the UCAS process; the imminent arrival of Key Information Sets (KIS) and an update on student finance.
Teachers came from schools and colleges including Clitheroe Royal Grammar School, Kendal College, Central Lancaster High School, Stowe School, Ormskirk School and Burnley College.
Dr Stephen Holland of Bolton School said he had found the event very useful.
“I’m very impressed by the friendliness and commitment of the staff and the student ambassadors whom I met. The event itself was very well structured and varied, and gave me not only an insight into the challenges that all of us are facing but also very useful information about Lancaster University itself.
“I learnt about its specialisms and its strengths and I can now put this forward to our whole cohort of students.”
The teachers were welcomed by the Vice-Chancellor Professor Mark E. Smith, who said: “Our graduates perform well in an increasingly competitive job market and are highly regarded by employers around the word. We help students during their time here to prepare them for their chosen career ensuring they develop skills employers want, through work experience, volunteering or social activities.
“Last year, over 94% of our graduates were in a job or further study sixth months after leaving Lancaster, with a remarkable 74% in a graduate level job. We are proud to be the top University in the Northwest for graduate employment. “
Lancaster University is committed to spending £3.6 million in 2013 for outreach, bursaries and scholarships.
The Head of the UK Student Recruitment Office Fred Binley said: “It’s been great to be able to welcome teaching and careers professionals onto campus from across the UK to our event. As a university, we recognise the important role we have to play in building strong relationships with schools and colleges as we too are educating the students of the future.”