Level Up Programme Birmingham City University

Kerry Gough and the Level Up Venture Mentors Working In Harmony Since 2012

The story so far…

• Birmingham City University is…– Committed to enhancing the student experience

for our students– Supportive in the development of working

relationships through peer mentoring – Keen to ensure that our students feel like they

belong to a learning community

A long time ago in a Faculty not so far away… at BCU

Professor Philip Thickett had a dream

Building Upon What Works (2012)

• Recommendations for enhancing retention:– Enhancing the student experience to ‘maximise the

success of all students’– Achievement of belonging through:

• Supportive peer relations• Meaningful interaction between staff and students• Developing knowledge, confidence and identity as

successful HE learners

• The ‘academic sphere is the most important site for nurturing participation... which engenders a sense of belonging’ (Thomas, 2012: 6)

The Recurrent Issue of Transition

• Focus on first year retention as a unanimous issue• Recurring theme of pre-sessional activity to ‘bridge

the gap’ between FE and HE• Extending transitional activity across first year• Enhance student experience across duration

through to exit velocity

• Why bother?• ‘Every student lost is money lost, every student

saved is money gained.’ (Patricia Broadfoot, Chair of the What Works? Advisory Group, March ‘12)

Level Up Venture:Aims and Ambitions

Introduction to University Life• Practical • What to expect • Self-Help DIY• Social life as a student

• Stand alone website• Focus upon:

– What Birmingham City University has to offer

– Pooling available resources (Accommodation, Student Services, Students’ Union)

– Meet the Level Up team (both staff and students)

Introduction to Studying Media• Social opportunity• Academic Skills• Mentored have-a-go supported

activities

• Moodle E-Learning• Focus upon:

– Getting to know each other through online chat

– Awareness of the media products that we consume

– How to analyse a media text– How to read academic texts– Social media netiquette – Peer mentoring support

To achieve this mission…

• A Dream Team of super mentors landed…

Level Up:Stand Alone Website

• Introduction to the School• The Level Up Venture Mentors, degree specialism, personal tutoring, industry

placements, library, accommodation, students’ union, student services, virtual tours

http://bcumedia.com/welcome/

Level Up:Moodle E-Learning

• Introduction to studying Media• Media analysis activities to give a flavour of what they will do on their course• Opportunities to chat to the LUVMs (Level Up Venture Mentors)

http://tinyurl.com/luvbcu2013

Level Up:Facebook

• Social Opportunity • Meet one another, grill the living daylights out of the LUVMs, fast resolution of

problems, messages out quickly and efficiently

Level Up:…and of course Twitter

• Social Opportunity • Dynamic ability to switch activity onto platforms that the students are using.• Snap Chat that on the (grape) Vine!

What we learnt from the 2012 pilot

ProblemLog ons were a huge barrier: students lost ids & old email accounts, forced to move activity across to Facebook and Twitter

Integrated activities worked best: where activities were an embedded part of the university activity, this is where the best responses occurred i.e. Induction Week

Social activity development:we missed a trick on the social scene. Our LUVMs enjoyed engaging with the newbies

Resolution Looking to use public Moodle: able to use a version of Moodle that doesn’t need university log ons = Xoodle

Working on closer integration: developing Level Up across Year 1 as well as embedding through Year 1. Planning to attach activities to either year 1 theory and Professional Media Practice taught modules

Links with Our Students’ Union: Look to develop some social activities for the School with help of the Students’ UnionFormation of School Societies

Level Up Venture Mentors…you gotta LUVM!

“The academic and social sides of university have to be carefully balanced, however the Level

Up scheme if it truly wishes to reach as many students as possible must address both aspects

of University life.” Jon Bridgewater, 2013

Level Up 2.0:New Building, New Rules for 2013

• Exploring the possibilities, across faculty collaboration• Working alongside our Students’ Union

Next Level Integration and Investment:• Employment of Student Success Advisers• Expansion into academic calendar of academic mentors • Development of School Societies and social events within the

academic environment• Extending to embed Level Up and integrate across three

years, generating exit velocity and exiting alumni relationships

Students are for life nor just Induction Week

Personal Tutoring Upgrade• Realigned personal tutoring – staff buy in, student health check• Team of super mentors working alongside personal tutors,

integrated action• Work in tandem with Students’ Union & Student Services

Cross Faculty Collaboration: The Final Frontier

These are the voyages of the BCU School of Media Enterprise. Its mission: to explore strange new faculties

and services, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man (or woman) has gone before.

A Stanger is Amongst Us• Started student partnership working in 2008• Fears of territory invasion before we started • But in actuality rewarding and reciprocal relationships emerged

To Infinity and Beyond

Monster Family for 2013

• Partnership working for Induction as the norm

…you gotta LUVM!