QAA-led webinar confirms appetite for embedding greater levels of credit transfer

On 24 June, QAA hosted a special online event in collaboration with the Universities Association of Lifelong Learning's (UALL) SEEC network to elicit sector feedback on the possibilities and challenges detailed in QAA's recent research on credit transfer.

Helena Vine, QAA's Lead Policy Officer for England, presented the findings of QAA's latest research projects on achieving credit transfer, based on extensive desk-based analysis and stakeholder engagement, which culminate in three proposed solutions to delivering credit transfer at scale: making the process easier and more accessible for applicants, improving credit transfer policies within institutions, and delivering credit transfer at scale through sector-wide infrastructure and support.

Considering ways to make the processes easier, Helena noted that one of the biggest issues with credit transfer is the accessibility of information made available to prospective students and the complexity and inconsistency of language used.

"A lot of the process is quite inaccessible to applicants, and to navigate and find information about," she explained. "The responsibility to navigate the process and to demonstrate prior learning largely lies with the learner. It's a lot of pressure particularly on non-traditional leaners who may have been out of education for a while."

Sector participants tended to agree. Many shared the view that the complex and discretionary nature of credit transfer decisions often left applicants unclear on where to access information, and felt applications could progress before being rejected or challenged by different members of staff later in the process. Participants were keen to see more information on course pages and as part of entry requirements – not on separate sections of providers' websites or hidden within policy documents.

QAA's research found that some providers perceived relatively meagre benefit – and relatively low demand – for them to make major changes to admissions processes, but noted that, though we may not at the moment be seeing significant markets for such arrangements, that may in part result from their current complexity and inaccessibility.

However, it was noted that data from the HEPI and Advance HE Academic Experience Survey suggests there may be increasing numbers of students interested in changing their courses or institutions – and that the growth of apprenticeship provision (which requires recognition of prior learning within admissions), the development of lifelong learning initiatives, and the possibilities of course closures, may also mean that we see greater numbers of student seeking opportunities for credit transfer.

It was, in part, these drivers that attendees cited as reasons for supporting a national mechanism or good-practice framework to support providers in developing their processes in this area, and made clear what expectations were for enabling student mobility in this way. Participants were, however, more reticent about "standardised" pathways, recognising that a "one-size fits all" approach being unlikely to succeed in such a diverse sector

Summarising these discussions, Senior Manager for the Recognition of Prior Learning at the Open University Clare Dunn said: "It's very important that we understand the experiences of these learners… to make it easier for them to navigate this space."

Professor Darryll Bravenboer, Chair of UALL's SEEC Network, added that along with a great deal of impassioned debate, he had heard some expressions of frustration as to "why we aren't doing more to make this happen… because it's so obvious we should".

"There are opportunities to make this all a lot easier, and to do it at scale, that are right in front of us," he said. "It's certainly achievable if people want to do it."

QAA's full policy reports on credit transfer are available on our website: Achieving credit transfer at scale: An analysis of UK university policies and Achieving credit transfer at scale: Do we want it, and how might we achieve it?

QAA also last year published a best-practice guide to credit recognition.

More information about the SEEC Network can be found on the UALL website.