External Report

5 / 20

2. What is Realising Opportunities?
Why Realising Opportunities exists
Participation in higher education in England has increased
significantly since 1990 when 19% of young people went
to university. This has now risen to half of those aged under
30 in 2016/171. This includes more young people from
disadvantaged backgrounds than ever before. RO works
to address gaps that still remain in the system.
Despite numbers increasing, students from disadvantaged
backgrounds are still half as likely to progress to university
as those from the most advantaged backgrounds. That
difference is even more distinct when considering
progression to highly selective universities, to which 22%
of the most advantaged students progress compared to
4% of the least advantaged2.
The RO programme is designed to give students a wide
range of information in a wide range of ways. This ensures
students have the space and support they need to make
informed choices about going to university, and ‘research
intensive universities’ (RIUs).
Research intensive universities (RIUs) produce high
quality research which makes new discoveries possible,
and contribute to increased knowledge for the good of
society; they seek to address global problems with
cutting edge research. Teaching is research-led in a
vibrant environment which makes for an exceptional
student learning experience. At RIUs:
l New discoveries are being made
l Facilities are cutting edge
l Research is being carried out to help address
problems in the wider world
l Researchers are experts in their fields and their
enthusiasm and passion is shared with students
studying at the university
l Teaching at all levels is research-led or
research-informed
l There are strong links with business.
The Partnership started as a three-year pilot scheme
funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for
England (HEFCE) with 12 participating universities. The
programme became self-financed by the Partnership after
the pilot ended, and the Partnership has increased its
members since then. The following list shows the
universities that have been involved in RO since it began:
l University of Birmingham
l University of Bristol
l University of Essex
l University of Exeter
l Goldsmiths, University of London
l King’s College London
l University of Leeds
l University of Leicester
l University of Liverpool
l University of Manchester
l Newcastle University
l Queen Mary University of London
l UCL
l University of Sheffield
l University of Sussex
l University of Warwick
l University of York
Aims of Realising Opportunities
The RO programme is a targeted, national compact scheme
for students in Year 12 and 13 across England that aims to:
l Increase the number of applicants and entrants to RIUs
from under-represented groups, in support of fair access
and social mobility.
l Prepare students for success at RIUs and progression to
graduate careers and/or postgraduate study.
l Raise awareness and understanding of RIUs.
l Broaden geographical horizons and help students make
an informed academic choice.
l Improve the evidence base among the participating
universities for the use of compact schemes and
contextual data in admissions.
l Inform and influence government policy in widening
participation and fair access.
The Realising Opportunities
programme
Participating students start the RO programme in Year
12 and it offers them support throughout Year 12 and 13.
Successful completion of the programme can result in
an alternative (reduced by up to two A level grades) offer
from any of the RO Partner universities. The elements of
the programme, and benefits for students, are shown in
Table 1.
2. Disadvantage measured using POLAR Quintile – UCAS End of Cycle Report 2017: Patterns by Applicant Characteristics
3