Context:

To address inequalities in accessing and succeeding in Higher Education, bursaries and financial aid have been used to mitigate financial pressures that students from lower socio-economic backgrounds may face. Bursaries have previously been associated with higher first-year retention rates, reduced first-year debts, decreased financial anxiety and better degree outcomes (Harrison & Hatt, 2012). Additionally, for some, financial support has been shown to improve on-course attainment (Bettinger, 2015; Castleman & Long, 2016) and support students to take up fewer paid work opportunities in off-campus employment (Broton, Goldrick-Rab & Benson, 2016).

At the University of Bath, the Bath Bursary supports lower income households by providing financial support for students with a household income below a specified threshold. This bursary is provided per year of study, including unpaid placement and study abroad periods.

Evaluation Questions

• How effective is the Bath Bursary in alleviating financial pressure among students?
• What is the impact of the Bath Bursary on students’ wellbeing and sense of belonging?
• Is there any correlation between receiving the Bath Bursary and student continuation rates from Year 1 to Year 2?

Methodology

• Use of the OfS’ financial support evaluation toolkit
• Retrospective survey analysis of 2022/23 and 2023/24 results for Bath Bursary and Control (those not in receipt but with household income below £42,875)
• 12-20 semi-structured 1:1 interviews with Bath Bursary recipients
• Statistical analysis of institutional/HESA datasets for students entering the university from 2019/20 to 2022/23.

Type of evaluation evidence

Using the OfS standards of evidence this project will produce Type 2 (empirical evidence)

References

• Bettinger, E. (2015). Need-based aid and college persistence: The effects of the Ohio College Opportunity Grant. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 37(1_suppl), 102S-119S. https://doi.org/10.3102/0162373715576072
• Broton, K. M., Goldrick-Rab, S., & Benson, J. (2016). Working for college: The causal impacts of financial grants on undergraduate employment. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 38(3), 477-494. https://doi.org/10.3102/01623737166384
• Castleman, B. L., & Long, B. T. (2016). Looking beyond enrolment: The causal effect of need-based grants on college access, persistence, and graduation. Journal of Labor Economics, 34(4), 1023-1073. https://doi.org/10.1086/686643
• Harrison, N., & Hatt, S. (2012). Expensive and failing? The role of student bursaries in widening participation and fair access in England. Studies in Higher Education, 37(6), 695-712. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2010.539679

Published report

At the end of the project timeline, a report will be published on this webpage.