Your bridge to DLHE success

Free-up resourceHiring reliable staff to conduct DLHE research is a challenge. So is finding the time and resource to do it yourself. We relieve you of the burden of having to conduct interviews, freeing up your resource so you can focus your attention elsewhere.

Maintain controlWe know that some institutions prefer to conduct DLHE research themselves as they fear they will lose control of the process or the quality of data. At IFF, we assign you with highly skilled research managers and support staff that work in harmony with your institution and become an extension of your team.

Benefit from a flexible serviceWe conduct your DLHE research as you like it, offering a flexible and transparent service throughout the data collection and reporting process. This includes regular, detailed feedback and ongoing updates, tailored to your specific requirements.

Leverage our hard-earned experienceEvery touchpoint with your graduates is critical and by commissioning destination tracking experts your HESA requirements will be met professionally, efficiently and in a manner that ensures your graduates have an entirely positive experience.

Why should I outsource my DLHE research?

Our experience

❝“Before we started using IFF, the DLHE survey was a major stress point for us. Their professional approach, responsiveness and approachability were reassuring. I really valued the regular reporting that we received on progress. Now we can focus on all of our other core initiatives, and leave the heavy lifting to IFF”. Plymouth University

The days when some institutions used to view DLHE surveys as about fulfilling an obligation are long past. Nowadays, HEPs are devoting more and more resource to understanding student destinations, and looking to find ways to influence them. That’s how institutions can stand out from the crowd and how DLHE can become a positive, value-adding exercise that benefits your institution for years to come.

Institutions across the country rely upon IFF, including Cardiff University, Northampton University, The Open University and Plymouth University. Our model of bespoke service and scalable implementation allows you to benefit from our range of research methods and reporting tools, while still maintaining budgetary prudence.

We have been conducting the Longitudinal DLHE survey for HESA since its inception in 2006 and have spoken to over 250,000 graduates in this time.

Our experts in destinations tracking have built a wide-ranging portfolio of tried and tested methodologies to assist with DLHE research. We also regularly conduct work for organisations such as BIS, HEFCE and SFC, exploring the impact and experience of learning.

Call us now on 020 7250 3035 to learn how IFF Research can add value to your institution

Trusted by:

Our DLHE service

Our London centre has 125 telephone booths and an international multilingual team

IFF Research is one of the largest independent research agencies in the UK. We have senior and specialist staff that work on our DLHE offering, all of whom work exclusively in the Learning and Skills sector. We appoint senior project directors to manage the day-to-day needs of clients to ensure you are kept up to date with any developments.

Your next steps

Step 1 > Contact usCall or email a member of our Learning and Skills team to discuss your needs. Call: 020 7250 3035 Email: dlhesurveys@iffresearch.com

Step 2 > Choose one research method or both depending on your preference

Telephone fieldwork: Telephone research is what we do. Our telephone centre is the largest CATI centre in central London with 125 booths and we consider ourselves to be ‘the’ specialists in this form of data collection.

Online fieldwork: We make the survey experience as smooth as possible by using smartphone-friendly online features, automated coding practices, inbuilt logic checks and real time data validation.

Step 3 > Design your own additional questions (or choose some from the IFF question bank)Why not find out more? Graduates can be a hard to reach audience and the DLHE survey is a golden opportunity to learn more about them. We can add bespoke questions to your survey to help you identify any areas of particular interest or concern.

Step 4 > Choose between our coding expertise or your ownOur professional onsite coding team work closely with clients to ensure all graduate outcomes are captured. We can provide respondent verbatim along with our coded responses as a quality assurance. We recommend that you take us up on this service and will always give you final sign-off. If you already have your own in-house experts, we are more than happy to work with them.

Step 5 > Decide how you want your resultsComprehensive data made simple. Our data processing team can provide findings as raw data or as a fully validated xml file ready for HESA submission. We can provide tailored reporting or you can take advantage of our findings using our interactive reporting dashboard.

Step 6 > Think about other ways we can help you beyond the basic DLHE offering...

Learn more through additional research

Find out more about IFF Research and who we’ve helped at www.iffresearch.com

IFF offer additional services for universities beyond the standard DLHE package, giving you a detailed understanding of how current, prospective and past students perceive your institution.

We can help you quantify and understand your reputation, attract students, and fine tune courses to reflect what students and employers actually want. No more guesswork – we let the data do the talking.

Branding and reputation researchThe growth in influence of university league tables over recent years makes reputation more important than ever before.

IFF has decades of experience working with universities and government agencies using a bespoke range of methodologies to obtain the information and understanding you need.

Learner journey and satisfactionUnderstanding and meeting the needs of your learners is crucial for the ongoing development of your institution. You’ll find out what drives students to choose your institution over others – and what is lacking.

We have extensive experience running focus groups, in-depth interviews and workshops to track the learner journey. This information will help drive better positioning and promotion of your courses.

PricingUnderstanding the price/value relationship for your courses is critical. We will ensure you get the balance right so you get the maximum return without putting off potential learners.

Alumni services/fundraisingMeasuring alumni satisfaction levels and improving the service provided can have a significant impact on levels of engagement among leavers.

IFF can help you develop innovative programmes to keep your alumni engaged, encouraging them to invest in the future through donations and volunteering.

Employer researchEmployer’s needs are always changing and universities can ensure they are met by making them a key part of their decision making process. IFF helps you plan for the future and make informed decisions about the direction of your curricula by measuring employer skill requirements.

AnalysisIFF provides up to date snapshots of the current labour market, the conditions that will be faced by graduates, and the requirements of employers. No matter how complex the findings we will ensure they are presented in a clear and concise way, and provide you with actionable insight into your institution’s place in the market.

❝“Carrying out the DLHE survey involves a major commitment of precious resources. Working with IFF Research means we can confidently hand-over these elements, yet still feel in control of the process and free up resources to focus on other core initiatives”. The University of Northampton

Contact us now to benefit from IFF’s proven DLHE and sector expertise:

IFF ResearchChart House16 Chart StreetLondon N1 6DD

020 7250 3035 dlhesurvey@iffresearch.com www.iffresearch.com twitter.com/IFFResearch

Jan Shury, Joint Managing Director

David Vivian, Director

Next steps

Catherine Turner, Associate Director