Briefing for exhibitors

Thank you for taking part in the Exhibition at the UCISA CISG2011 Annual Conference.  The support you and your fellow exhibitors give UCISA is greatly appreciated and we hope that you have a productive couple of days in Manchester.  The following briefing focuses on the current issues in the sector, the real challenges that the Conference delegates are facing, and is intended to help you get the most out of the event.  It also highlights some of the work UCISA is carrying out on your behalf as UCISA Corporate Members.

Government policies

There has been a far greater focus on the higher education sector in the past year than in previous years.   The Higher Education White Paper: Students at the heart of the system was finally published in June after much debate about what it may or may not contain.  There were a number of themes within the Paper – whilst the debate about undergraduate fees grabbed the headlines, the White Paper sought to increase competition in the sector, to improve the information available to applicants, to increase student engagement and to reduce the amount of regulation and bureaucracy for the sector.  There have been a number of consultations resulting from the White Paper and UCISA has responded to these where appropriate.

Although the White Paper only applies to England, its impact is being felt in the other UK countries.   Over a third of English universities have set the maximum fee of £9,000 and as a result many Scottish and Welsh universities have followed suit, although the fees in Scotland only apply to UK residents outside Scotland.  Different support arrangements also exist for the separate countries.  It is not clear what impact the increase in fees will have on applications in general or on cross border movement of students within the UK.  It is anticipated that there will be a decline in applications and the initial report from UCAS suggests that this will be the case, although it may not be as great as the 9 – 12% reported.  Even so, it is important to remember that the number of places available is still likely to be less than the number of applicants (in the last figures from UCAS for 2011 entry, 27% of applicants eligible for clearing had not got places). 

The Government has sought to introduce a market within the sector by introducing two different incentives.  The first allows institutions to expand to take on more students who achieve grades AAB or higher at A-level and the second proposes creating an additional 20,000 places which can only be taken up by universities charging an average fee of £7,500 or less.  Again, it is not clear what the impact of these changes will be.  A number of institutions are carrying out scenario planning exercises to study the impact of a reduced number of AAB students.  There are reports that a number of institutions are in discussion with the Office for Fair Access (OFFA) about reducing their fees and this may be to take advantage of the additional places available.  Equally, it is possible that many of the additional places could be taken up by further education colleges offering degrees.

One of the drivers within the White Paper was to improve the information available to applicants; the Key Information Set (KIS) is one outcome.  The initial technical guidance for the KIS was published on the HESA website in September; further revisions are scheduled for December and March with live operation scheduled for September 2012.  UCISA responded to the consultation on the KIS and was represented on the working group to discuss its implementation.  During those discussions we have sought to ensure that technical information is available in a timely fashion to student records systems suppliers.

One of the implications of the increase in fees will be an increase in students’ expectations.  The White Paper also notes the requirement for greater student involvement in decision making in institutions.  Some of this will be managed through the development of student charters at every institution but there has been an increased emphasis on the student experience within institutions.  The theme is picked up in the Conference with the opening sessions all focusing on aspects of the student experience.

Longer term, there are two initiatives that are of interest to CISG delegates and suppliers.  HESA, working together with UCAS and the Student Loans Company, are looking to develop a shared Higher Education Information Exchange Initiative (HEIEI).  The initiative will aim to identify common information required throughout the student lifecycle with a view to rationalising existing data exchanges and reducing duplication.  The thinking behind the HEIEI was outlined at a briefing UCISA and HESA jointly promoted ahead of the UCISA2011 Management Conference in March.  UCISA will continue to work with HESA to ensure that suppliers continue to be kept abreast of developments.  The other initiative is the recently announced review of the admissions process by UCAS.  The Universities and Science Minister, David Willetts has long been an advocate of post qualification admissions and this is the cornerstone of the proposals included in the review.  UCISA will be responding to the consultation which closes on 20 January 2012 and, as with all consultations, we will represent the interests of our Corporate members.  However, your Company may also wish to consider submitting a response.

Finally, the Government’s immigration policy was highlighted again earlier this month with the announcement that over 400 colleges would no longer be able to recruit non-EU students as they could not meet the standards of the new inspection regime.  Although these were not universities, the impact of the implementation of the policy on international student recruitment is another unknown that may affect student numbers and hence income.  There have been a number of policy and rule changes relating to the immigration system.  UCISA took part in a review carried out by the Higher Education Better Regulation Group and highlighted the issues for suppliers regarding ongoing development and change.  The UCISA input is reflected in two of the recommendations of the report – to build a timetable for changes and to reinstate the IT working group to manage future enhancement requests.

Efficiencies and modernisation

The Efficiencies and Modernisation Task Force of Universities UK reported on their work in September.  The report made a number of recommendations and it is anticipated that these will be implemented in due course.  Institutions were encouraged to consider alternative methods of delivering services including outsourcing and shared services.  Cloud is, of course, a form of outsourcing but there is perhaps a lack of understanding of what it is and what it can deliver.  UCISA has produced a briefing paper on Cloud computing to aid senior university managers understand the terms and the sort of services available.  Much of the closing day of the Conference is dedicated to the efficiencies and modernisation agenda.  We are also running an event in December looking at measuring the cost and impact of services.

Impact on CIS and IT departments

The changes taking place in the sector present many opportunities and challenges for IT departments as a whole and for CIS departments in particular.  There continues to be pressure on budgets and, as a result, IT directors will look at alternative delivery models in order to make best use of both human and fiscal resources as well as ensuring that they deliver a quality service as part of the student experience.  There will be greater engagement with the student body in policy making decisions and increased emphasis on managing the relationship with the student, from applicant through to alumnus.  The pressures on support and the need to maintain 24 hour services will dictate that institutions have effective service and incident management in place.  Although many students are bringing their own devices and institutions are developing or purchasing mobile applications, there continues to be investment in on site facilities and growth of laptop loan schemes.  Information remains a critical asset not just as the basis for mobile apps and information for applicants but as the basis of effective decision making and planning.

I hope that you find this Briefing a useful aid to your conversations with the delegates.  As part of the service we offer our Corporate members UCISA sends email bulletins to named representatives in your Company when we are alerted to changes proposed by Government agencies.  For further updates on activity within the sector please check the UCISA website.  A web version of this Briefing including links to the resources mentioned has been posted on the UCISA website in the Exhibitors area of the Conference. 

Additionally, you might be interested to know that I blog on current issues and the work that UCISA carries out – see http://petertinson.wordpress.com/.  Finally, I would like to remind you that the Conference sessions are open to exhibitors and would encourage you to drop in to the sessions as they may well give you further insight on the challenges currently facing the sector.

The UCISA team and CISG Committee look forward to meeting you in Manchester.

Regards

Peter Tinson

UCISA Executive Secretary