UCOL gains high marks as success rates on rise

UCOL chief executive Leeza Boyce is delighted with the latest performance indicators. PHOTO/FILE

UCOL's educational performance rankings have continued to climb in figures just published by the Tertiary Education Commission.
Educational performance at UCOL is above the national polytechnic sector median in three out of four categories, and at the median for the fourth measure.
UCOL student qualification completion rates, pathways into further study, and students retained in study are strong.
Chief executive Leeza Boyce said this was a great result, and improving student success remained a strategic priority for UCOL.

"The results reflect a combination of initiatives introduced from 2013 and strengthened over the last year.

"Examples of what we are doing differently include having a korero with students when they are enrolling to prepare them for the year ahead."

Ms Boyce said this korero set expectations, ensured students were prepared for the level of study they were entering, and often involved family.

"We follow up on attendance in class, and we know exactly where each student is at academically throughout the year.

"A relationship-based approach to teaching, Te Atakura, has been expanded and is improving the educational experience and outcomes for all students, particularly our Maori students."

She said increasing the number of programmes and teaching staff participating in and adopting Te Atakura had led to positive feedback from students.

"Staff professional development has also contributed, and led to increased literacy and numeracy rates for our foundation students."

UCOL's Youth Guarantee students had received excellent results, meeting three of the four measures in the top three rankings of all polytechnics.

The Tertiary Education Commission's Educational Performance Indicators (EPIs) for 2015 examine areas such as overall course and qualification completions, retention rates and progression to higher levels of study.

This year the four indicators usually used have been supplemented by a new indicator looking specifically at first-year retention and a revised qualification completion indicator.