Leeds wins funding to open up postgraduate research

Leeds is now working on two important new research initiatives aimed at improving access to postgraduate study for Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic students.

The University will expand its sector-leading work to break down obstacles to postgraduate study thanks to successful funding applications announced today by the Office for Students (OfS) and Research England.

The ‘Generation Delta’ initiative, led by Iyiola Solanke, Dean for Equality, Diversity & Inclusion and Professor of EU Law and Social Justice in the School of Law, aims to lay the groundwork for a long-term increase in the number of Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic female professors in England’s higher education institutions.

The project will bring together the universities of Plymouth, Reading, Sheffield, and Sunderland, as well as Goldsmiths (University of London).

Minorities, Blacks, and Asians Ethnic students, particularly women, continue to be underrepresented in postgraduate research.

Meanwhile, Pippa Chapman, Professor of Biogeochemistry in the School of Geography, is a co-investigator in the Yorkshire Consortium for Equity in Doctoral Education (YCEDE), which will collaborate with the universities of Bradford, Sheffield, Sheffield Hallam, and York to adapt and adopt international best practice on access and the on-course postgraduate researcher experience, including improved advice and guidance for preparing PhD applications, contextual admissions, and PhD memorandums.

“Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic students – particularly women – are underrepresented in postgraduate research across the sector,” Professor Solanke stated. Although there is limited data for this group, the overall trend shows little change: participation rates have risen by slightly over 1% in the last 10 years.

“We will address injustices at three crucial stages of the postgraduate research life cycle: admissions, retention and progression, and career training, in collaboration with a group of Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic female academics in the Black Female Professors Forum.”

“We will develop a postgraduate research network as a legacy to assist and sustain the next generation of Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic female professors, in addition to delivering a program of institutional seminars and individual training.”

We hope to build a strong network of academics who have the knowledge, confidence, and leadership abilities to influence the requirements of a more sustainable and equitable world.

“YCEDE will address inequities in postgraduate research access through evidence-based, systems-change innovations that modify institutional policies and procedures for recruitment, selection, and retention of postgraduate researchers at scale and over time,” said Professor Chapman.

“It will bring about significant structural and cultural change in HE practices across a diverse range of Yorkshire universities, resulting in the development of a beacon of best practice that can be shared more widely to improve opportunities for postgraduate researchers of color across the country.”

“We want to build a strong network of scholars who have the knowledge, confidence, and leadership abilities to influence the requirements of a more sustainable and equitable global society.”

The University of Leeds is the sector leader in terms of investment in this area, and our Access and Student Success Strategy allows us to adopt a focused, “whole institution” approach to finding solutions. The University, for example, will:

– Address unequal access to postgraduate education by expanding Access to Leeds, one of the largest contextual admissions schemes in the UK, to include contextual admissions at the postgraduate taught and research levels.

– Increase efforts to advance students from underrepresented groups to postgraduate studies, with a special focus on student-staff co-creation.

– Gather and collaborate to contribute to a national understanding of postgraduate systemic access concerns.

– Expand our personal tutoring and postgraduate research supervisor models to ensure that all students feel important, leveraging tremendous experience from across the University.

– Involve postgraduate teaching and research students as early as possible, including through online modules and training.

Director of Educational Engagement Louise Banahene said:

“We have a clear narrative for why change is needed, where we want to go, and how in our Access and Student Success Strategy.” Across all levels of study, we want students from various backgrounds to feel like they belong, can thrive, and are recognized for their unique contributions.

“This funding is fantastic news and will enable us to make a real difference. But we are more than a collection of projects or initiatives. We have always taken a cross-university approach to tackling inequality – our Strategy was co-created with colleagues from across the institution and Leeds University Union – and working together to acknowledge where there are issues, and to listen to and act on the voices of those under-represented, will help us achieve our vision.”

“If the sector wants to address global inequities, it must look to the makeup and diversity of its employees, particularly postgraduate researchers,” said Professor Luke Windsor, Dean of Leeds Doctoral College. The University Strategy, which is firmly focused on a better future for everyone, working through cooperation to create change, echoes our ambition at Leeds for postgraduate research to urgently prioritise equity.”

“Success in implementing these initiatives will be critical in focusing our efforts at Leeds, therefore we’ve allocated additional funds to support positions to help extend access and promote success.” We are continuing to build assistance packages for Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic postgraduate researchers across the Doctoral College and its graduate schools.

“Postgraduate researchers are the future of academia as well as the future drivers of change beyond it, and we need to ensure they better reflect the diversity of our many stakeholders.”