3. Higher Education and Social Mobility - The What, How and Why?

In late November 2021, the Institute of Fiscal Studies published a report ranking universities in terms of their contributions to social mobility. It is the first time the IFS conducts such a study and there are no plans in place to repeat it yet. The report follows in the footsteps of other similar endeavours to address how universities are assessed and the short-comings of existing university league tables, which have been found to contribute towards the inequality of access evident among highly selective and other universities. In this third episode of the Access podcast, I discuss the role of rankings in promoting social mobility; the criteria used to evaluate social mobility, and the wider social and educational context impacting or possibly informing social mobility in the UK with Professor Deborah Johnston, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Education) at London Southbank University and member of the Disabled Students’ Commission, an independent and strategic group that advises, informs and influences higher education providers to improve support for disabled students set up by the Office for Students. My colleague Simon has also conducted a number of vox pops with university students to ascertain their views on higher education's potential to drive social mobility in the UK. We hope you will find it informative and stimulating. Please leave us a comment, a like or a recommendation by using the tools available at Spotify and iTunes.