THE BIG INTERVIEW

MAUREEN MCLAUGHLIN

Northumbria University News asks Academic Registrar and Director of Student, Library and Academic Services, Maureen McLaughlin how Northumbria supports all students with university life irrespective of background or circumstances, and what the future of student support looks like.

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I’m originally from the North East, and I always thought I’d come home eventually – although it took me nearly 40 years to do so! My first HE job, in 1990, was at a further education college, and from there I went on to work in a local Polytechnic in Manchester. I’ve worked in all kinds of different universities, from traditional large ones to smaller more modern institutions. I even had a stint working overseas working for the University of the South Pacific – which you can imagine I think of each and every rainy day!

I also spent a decade working for the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education, and Northumbria was one of the institutions that I engaged with regularly in that role.

Northumbria has always been seen as a beacon for good practice and a touch point for really positive professional administration. If you were looking for good practice in terms of professional administration, student services or even what a good training exercise looks like, in my opinion this University has always been seen as the one to emulate.

So, when the opportunity came up to work here and come back home it really was an easy decision.

Building on that ‘beacon for good practice’, what can students expect from the support experience at Northumbria?

Since arriving at Northumbria my eyes have been opened to the professionalism of all colleagues here, they really do everything in their power to put an excellent student experience at the heart of everything we do.

We welcome students through a strong induction programme designed to help them settle in and get to grips with university life – this activity goes well beyond Welcome Week at the start of the academic year; including things like regular study skills, how to manage money and wellbeing sessions to name just a few. The team will also reach out regularly to students to see how they are getting on, and if they need a bit of extra help with things inside or outside the classroom.

When you layer on the help we offer through Graduate Futures (our careers team), Academic Support, Student Life and Wellbeing, Learning Skills from the University Library, we feel that we provide strong, holistic wraparound support that all our students may need at some point during their university journey.

What does the future of our students’ support experience look like?

As somebody who has worked in this field many years the main thing is not just to keep pace with current student thinking, but wherever possible to stay ahead of it too.

We’re using this information intelligently and sensitively, with their consent of course, to build the kind of support mechanisms that students need. As part of this, the information is also helping us to develop systems that will flag where our teams can step in to help at a very early stage, so that we can guide students into the right support at the right time. And while we can use technology to our advantage, there will always be a need to deliver the human touch and that’s something we really are conscious of – our people will always be there to help. Students will always be able to talk with a reliable, caring person at Northumbria, whether that’s through our academic or professional teams, or our fantastic Students’ Union.

Continuing to offer an inclusive and supportive environment is also key. Northumbria has historically been a popular choice with students from all walks of life, with 40 per cent of our UK undergraduates coming from areas that don’t typically have large numbers of people going into Higher Education – our support environment that we have created has been very important in this growth.

In addition, we’re also continuing to see growing numbers of people from around the world choosing to come and study here which is exciting, but we need to be sure we’re offering what all students need, regardless of their background or nationality. This is especially important if we want them to stay in the region, indeed, 63 per cent of our graduates stay in the region for employment, and we would love it to be even more.

How can our support help to unlock potential for all students?

We want to help students to have the ability to transform, both themselves and the world around them, regardless of their own circumstances or background when they enrol with us.

For example, we have our fantastic NU Belong scheme, with a team specifically focussed on regularly talking with students from a variety of backgrounds, to help build an inclusive learning environment. Students who qualify for this extra support are typically those who are carers, care leavers, estranged from families, or are Sanctuary (refugee) scholars. It’s up to us to make them feel supported, included, and above all part of something much bigger – part of a community. As part of this we give students the opportunity to hear from people with similar backgrounds to themselves, including Students’ Union members or even academic or support service colleagues, about how Northumbria and Higher Education made a real difference to them and their lives.

How does Northumbria support students to start thinking about their future beyond graduation?

Our graduate outcomes are stellar - we’re ranked in the Top 30 in the UK for graduates going into highly skilled employment after they leave university.

Preparing for future success really starts as soon as students arrive on campus. Our fantastic Graduate Futures team are talking to students about their options from the first day of Welcome Week, as so much good work can be done early to help activate a students’ career readiness mindset. And if students don’t know what they want to do on day one, then that’s ok too! The team are here to help with ambitions and future hopes, which for many students may not have even really started to generate. We help them with activities like placements for internships, further study or volunteering which will help with CV building and could inform and shape their future career choices too.

Finally, what would you say to someone who is thinking of studying at Northumbria?

We really do put the student at the heart of everything we do to make sure we are able to unlock their potential no matter their background or circumstances. So, if you are thinking about coming to Northumbria, please do get in touch with us and come and talk to us. Visit our website and come and talk to us at an open day.

Click the QR code to discover more about the range of support services available to Northumbria students.