Awarding Gaps at the University of Reading

Degree outcomes at the University of Reading generally resemble the national picture.

The APP details a series of targets for tackling its most concerning continuation and awarding gaps. It goes on to outline the strategic measures being adopted to close these gaps across a four-year period. The student communities with APP targets for the 2024– 28 period are minority ethnic students (with individual targets for Black students), mature students, and students from socio-economically deprived backgrounds. Within schools and departments, other gaps may be prioritised for action depending on the local data context.

Each academic school has an Awarding Gap Representative with access to awarding gap data at the institution, school and department level. Institution level performance data is made available to the public through the Office for Students data dashboard.

Awarding gaps reduced significantly during the coronavirus pandemic which brought about considerable changes to student experience and more lenient assessment policies. Robust conclusions about the long-term impact of the coronavirus pandemic are yet to be drawn.

The University’s 2024–28 Access and Participation Plan (APP) includes a full data assessment covering a wide range of students, including those from low participation neighbourhoods, Black, Asian and minority ethnic students and students with disability status.