Flexible

All disciplines will offer a diverse range of study modes, allowing students to benefit from education throughout their lives. 

Education is a lifelong process, and we want to offer opportunities to access higher education learning at all life and career stages, including for those making a career change, continuing their professional development, or studying for personal enrichment. This means diversifying our traditional offering, and we have to rethink both access to (who is it for?) and exit from (what qualification do they leave with?) higher education.

The fall-out from the COVID pandemic with the loss of many jobs is compounding the impact of technology replacing jobs in many sectors. There is therefore a great need and important role for higher education to contribute to upskilling and retraining. We will increase our engagement with local businesses and industry to understand their needs and seek to co-create programmes. We will create not only more flexible ways to engage with learning, but also flexibility in how qualifications are achieved. To provide a genuine offer to those who are returning to higher education or accessing higher education for the first time, programmes will cater for students entering with a wider range of experiences and qualifications (including via novel pathways from further education) and for those whose needs are met by taking tailored short courses, one or more modules, one or two years of a degree programme, or an apprenticeship. 

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