OfS publishes assessment reports on student outcomes

The Office for Students (OfS) has published 11 case reports on student outcomes.  

The reports look at a university or college’s compliance with condition B3 of the OfS’s regulatory framework, which sets numerical thresholds for students continuing on their course, completing their course, and achieving successful outcomes after graduation. The OfS then considers whether any contextual information explains a provider’s historical performance below threshold, and the steps it has taken to improve outcomes for students in the future.  

Of the reports published today, the OfS has decided to impose improvement notices for some provisions at:

• Arden University
• Blackburn College
• Burnley College
• Croydon College
• University of Cumbria
• Leeds Beckett University
• London Metropolitan University 
• Richmond, the American International University in London. 

Having considered the context of performance, the OfS was satisfied that there were factors that justified student outcomes at:

• London Film School
• Norland College
• University of Worcester.  

The improvement notices which have been issued, and are published today, are tailored to the individual circumstances of each university or college. Each requires the provider to take steps to improve or sustain its performance for some courses.  

Commenting, Jean Arnold, Deputy Director of Quality at the OfS, said: 

“The assessments we are publishing today demonstrate the OfS’s continuing commitment to drive improvements in student outcomes. The quality of higher education in England is generally excellent. All students, whatever their background, deserve to study on high quality courses which lead to successful outcomes after graduation. We have carefully considered student outcomes against a range of indicators for each of the 11 providers assessed. At three of these providers, we have found that students’ outcomes could be explained given the additional context we considered. At eight other providers, we have decided to issue improvement notices. These require each university or college to take action to improve or sustain its performance.

“These reports also offer an important opportunity for all universities and colleges to consider the outcomes of their own students. We know that universities and colleges undertake significant work to continuously improve the outcomes students receive from their education. Where they have some courses with performance below the thresholds we have set, they should continue to take steps to improve and ensure that all students reap the rewards that higher education can offer.”