Today’s students have access to opportunities, tools and technologies that no generation has had in the past. But they also face a deeply uncertain future: the Covid-19 pandemic, digital disruption, widening social inequality and a challenging labour market.

Universities aspire to prepare students with the knowledge, skills and behaviours that will enable them to thrive as professionals and as citizens in a world that’s constantly evolving. Students need, in addition to a disciplinary grounding, an understanding of how to mobilise their knowledge to make an impact and shape their future in their profession and their community.

At this Wonkhe @ Home event, in partnership with Adobe, we’ll explore which skills, competencies and mindsets best enable students to succeed and how they can be made tangible in curricula. We’ll hear insight from students and academics on the skills students need to thrive and we’ll consider whether the current political framing of the value and quality of university courses adequately captures universities’ aspirations for their graduates.

09.30 Taking back the value debate

The public framing of the value of higher education is increasingly centred on graduate level employment. It’s widely agreed that a university education is a great deal more than that one metric – but how should the sector ground its claims to value? And where are the opportunities and risks for universities in engaging with the value debate?

10.00 Students’ hopes for their future

Our student panellists share their reflections on how they see higher education experience preparing them for their imagined futures.

10.30 Break

10.45 Strategies for making student development tangible

We’ll share the findings of Wonkhe/Adobe research into academics’ perceptions of graduate skills, and with the help of an expert panel, think through how universities can mobilise the curriculum and co-curriculum to bring student development to life.

11.45 A curriculum for a complex world

What skills, capabilities and mindsets does the world demand of graduates, now and in the future? What are the implications for the higher education curriculum?

12.30 Close

Default title

Supporters

Today’s students have access to opportunities, tools and technologies that no generation has had in the past. But they also face a deeply uncertain future: the Covid-19 pandemic, digital disruption, widening social inequality and a challenging labour market.

Universities aspire to prepare students with the knowledge, skills and behaviours that will enable them to thrive as professionals and as citizens in a world that’s constantly evolving. Students need, in addition to a disciplinary grounding, an understanding of how to mobilise their knowledge to make an impact and shape their future in their profession and their community.

At this Wonkhe @ Home event, in partnership with Adobe, we’ll explore which skills, competencies and mindsets best enable students to succeed and how they can be made tangible in curricula. We’ll hear insight from students and academics on the skills students need to thrive and we’ll consider whether the current political framing of the value and quality of university courses adequately captures universities’ aspirations for their graduates.

09.30 Taking back the value debate

The public framing of the value of higher education is increasingly centred on graduate level employment. It’s widely agreed that a university education is a great deal more than that one metric – but how should the sector ground its claims to value? And where are the opportunities and risks for universities in engaging with the value debate?

10.00 Students’ hopes for their future

Our student panellists share their reflections on how they see higher education experience preparing them for their imagined futures.

10.30 Break

10.45 Strategies for making student development tangible

We’ll share the findings of Wonkhe/Adobe research into academics’ perceptions of graduate skills, and with the help of an expert panel, think through how universities can mobilise the curriculum and co-curriculum to bring student development to life.

11.45 A curriculum for a complex world

What skills, capabilities and mindsets does the world demand of graduates, now and in the future? What are the implications for the higher education curriculum?

12.30 Close

Default title

Supporters

Speakers

  • Camille Kandiko Howson

    Associate professor of education, Imperial College London

    Camille B. Kandiko Howson is Associate Professor of Education at Imperial College London.

  • Stephen Isherwood

    Chief executive, Institute of Student Employers

    Stephen Isherwood is chief executive of the Institute of Student Employers (ISE). Stephen was formerly Head of Graduate Recruitment UK & Ireland at Ernst & Young. He sits on the HEAR Advisory Committee, the GPA Advisory Group, and the board of HECSU.

  • Miranda Harmer

    Masters student, Leeds Conservatoire, Chair, Student Network, Association of European Conservatoires & OfS student panellist

    Miranda Harmer is a Masters student at Leeds Conservatoire, a member of the Office for Students student panel and chair of the student network of the Association of European Conservatoires.

  • Steph Lomas

    VP Education, UCLAN SU

    Steph Lomas is VP Education at UCLAN SU

  • Naomi Oosman-Watts

    Head of Strategic Projects - Student Services, Newcastle University & Data Insights Director, AGCAS

    Naomi Oosman-Watts is Head of Strategic Projects – Student Services at Newcastle University and Data Insights Director at AGCAS.

  • Doug Cole

    Deputy director of employability, Nottingham Trent University

    Doug Cole is deputy director of employability at Nottingham Trent University.

  • Cat Wilson

    Director, Centre for Educational Enhancement and Development, University of St Andrews

    Cat Wilson is director of the Centre for Educational Enhancement and Development at the University of St Andrews.

  • Mark Andrews

    Pedagogical Evangelist, Higher Education (EMEA), Adobe

    Mark Andrews is Pedagogical Evangelist in Higher Education (EMEA) at Adobe.

  • Helen O’Sullivan

    Pro vice chancellor (education), Keele University

    Helen O’Sullivan is pro vice chancellor (education) at Keele University.

  • Mark Simpson

    Pro vice chancellor (learning and teaching), Teesside University

    Mark Simpson is Pro Vice-Chancellor (learning and teaching) at Teesside University. He graduated from Teesside with a degree in Politics and a PhD in Criminology. He has written and researched in the fields of youth crime, criminal justice and drug use. Mark was previously Dean of the School of Social Sciences, Business & Law at … Continued

  • Liz Mossop

    Deputy vice chancellor for student development and engagement, University of Lincoln

    Liz Mossop is Deputy Vice Chancellor for Student Development and Engagement at the University of Lincoln. She is a veterinary surgeon who graduated from the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh and worked for several years in a private veterinary practice before commencing her academic career. She has a Masters degree and … Continued

  • Debbie McVitty

    Editor, Wonkhe

    Debbie McVitty, Editor, Wonkhe