New study to assess skills and attributes students gain during studies

University life is often described as the best time of your life – now our University is taking part in a new study to assess the skills and attributes students gain during the course of their degrees.

Leicester is one of only 10 universities in the research project which forms a key element of HEFCE’s wider programme of work on learning gain.

Approximately 27,000 students will be invited to take part in a new longitudinal study, the National Mixed Methodology Learning Gain Project (NMMGP). This project will pilot a combination of methodological approaches to measuring learning gain.

In each year of their studies, participating students will be invited to complete an assessment, which will explore their:

  • critical thinking and problem-solving skills
  • attitudes towards their study experience
  • engagement with their studies

The project will run between the 2016-17 and 2019-20 academic years.

Professor Jon Scott (pictured), Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Student Experience), said: “The measurement of learning gain in its broadest terms has, for a long time, represented a real challenge to the higher education sector. As learning gain has come to the fore through the draft Higher Education and Research Bill and associated Teaching Excellence Framework, it is important for institutions to engage actively in the debate surrounding the proposed measures.

“As a University with a strong focus on enhancing the student learning experience, the University of Leicester is pleased to be an active participant in helping evaluate these approaches. The information gained will also be of significant benefit to both our staff and students in providing an externally referenced benchmark of learning gain.”

  • Research at the University of Leicester not only informs its teaching, it is inseparably intertwined with it. This relationship sees researchers bring their innovation into the classroom and its students inspired to research and is at the heart of Leicester’s ambition to pioneer a distinctive elite of universities.
  • The University of Leicester adopts a student-centred approach in everything it does and is committed to widening participation; welcoming students from all backgrounds to fulfil their potential at Leicester.
  • Press release
  • Times Higher Education article by Professor Scott 'Measuring learning gain in HE is a complex challenge'