Investigating the transitional barriers university students face when moving from further education; what are the potential issues they may meet?

Authors

  • Angela Fellingham
  • Taslima H Shuwara
  • Taina Saint Amand
  • Felicia Gunawan
  • Simon Gould
  • Ahmed Elbediwy

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.29311/ndtns.vi19.4670

Keywords:

Online Learning, Student Engagement, Learning Resources

Abstract

The transition students face moving from Further Education (FE) to Higher Education (HE) can be a daunting experience. This transition to HE may require a substantial adjustment to a student mindset recognising that they would be responsible for their own learning and their eventual success compared to a FE environment where student learning is more structured and primarily teacher led. This project investigated transition hurdles faced by new university students (level 4 students) in the School of Life Science, Pharmacy, and Chemistry (SoLSPC). Quantitative data was obtained using a paper-based questionnaire. The findings highlighted that most students found HE assessments to be moderately or more difficult than those in FE (53%), the HE timetables less structured (63%) than that in FE, and that students had to be very much more independent in their studies (68%) in HE compared to FE, with most students finding the transition to HE difficult (51%). The findings of these transition barriers are discussed in more detail here.

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Published

29-07-2024

How to Cite

Fellingham, A., Shuwara, T. H., Saint Amand, T., Gunawan, F., Gould, S., & Elbediwy, A. (2024). Investigating the transitional barriers university students face when moving from further education; what are the potential issues they may meet?. New Directions in the Teaching of Natural Sciences, (19). https://doi.org/10.29311/ndtns.vi19.4670