STUDENT SUPPORT IN EDUCATION: "YOU GET OUT WHAT YOU PUT IN!"

How do you define student support in Higher Education (HE)? Is it just about academic support or is it something deeper and more meaningful? The standard mechanisms in place at today's HE Institutions (HEIs) consist of services such as, but not limited to, Finance, Careers and Employability, Disability and Dyslexia, Counselling, Library and Study Skills, VLE (Virtual Learning Environment), Personal Tutoring. However, are these addressing the conflicting demands of work, family and study? Are these mechanisms enough to assist learners' understanding of the value added learning which goes above and beyond their degree boundaries? Are they enough to make them build the relationship between learning and employability in a way that makes sense to them? What is the role of the personal tutor? Is it or should it be a passive or active role? Do our current strategies reinforce our students' efficacy beliefs, make them self-aware of their personal qualities and develop them into critical, reflective and empowered learners? To address these questions, a study has been piloted embracing the idea that 'not one size fits all'. Its approaches go beyond the typical offerings within HEIs by ensuring an atmosphere of inclusivity and personalised support interventions. In particular, the management team behind this study is engaging in actions for pre-entry transition which help learners to make confident choices on HE courses that suit them and on-entry activities which reinforce inclusion. Also, it encourages student persistence in developing continuously throughout their course of study and in realising the significant achievement of attaining their degree. It adopts a non-academic, non-conventional student support and encourages the building of relationships between learners and staff. The findings of the pilot study reveal that Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) need to rethink their support mechanisms, strategies and procedures in the light of an increasingly demanding economic environment and the pressure put upon its learners. Our mechanisms should offer value added learning and experience, flexible learning opportunities, continuous reflection and development. The study also reveals that it is imperative for academic and student-centred staff (service) teams to work jointly in providing effective student support mechanisms.