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Advance HE membership benefits

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Advance HE is a member-led, sector-owned charity that works with institutions and higher education across the world to improve higher education for staff, students and society, with a particular focus on enhancing teaching and learning, effective governance, leadership development and tackling inequalities in equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI). View Advance HE’s strategy 2021-24

Sheffield Hallam University is accredited through Advance HE to award Associate Fellowship, Fellowship and Senior Fellowship to staff and students through a number of routes comprising the TALENT Professional Recognition scheme. Support is also offered for staff applying for Principal Fellowship through direct application to Advance HE. For more information on fellowship, please see the TALENT website or email: talent@shu.ac.uk.

Sheffield Hallam University also has Advance HE institutional membership, which entitles all staff to access a number of benefits as detailed below. To subscribe to Advance HE’s monthly newsletter visit the Advance HE membership website.  You do not need to hold Advance HE Fellowship in order to access membership benefits. Feedback

This resource is maintained by the Academic Development & Diversity Team. If you have any feedback on this page click the feedback button and let us know!

 

Member Benefits

These member benefits are designed to enable institutional, staff and student success, Advance HE membership packages give you access to world-leading services, supporting you reach your institutional goals. 

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Connect Benefit Series

The Connect Benefit Series is free and exclusive to all colleagues at Advance HE member institutions and provides a collaborative space for our members from across the globe to work with us and each other in understanding and addressing their key challenges. The Connect Benefit Series for 2021-22 comprises four, three-month deep-dive projects and two, six-month longitudinal projects.

Advance HE Connect Member Benefits Group: if you are unable to attend an event or join a webinar, you can still join the discussion in the Advance HE Member Benefits group on Advance HE Connect, our online network exclusively for higher education. Share, connect and collaborate with your over 22,000 HE peers around the world. All webinars in the series are also recorded and available to view in the group.

Theme 1: August – October 2021 – Transitions, Retention and Progression

Transitions, Retention and Progression: In order to recognise and understand the impact of the past year – and a shift within the context of Covid-19 from pandemic to endemic thinking – this member benefit begins by focusing on different voices from the sector as a catalyst for discussion, forward planning and action into the new academic year.

  • Podcast series: episode one – The CEO of The Brilliant Club, Anne-Marie Canning shares her experience of supporting student transitions and progression, providing insights in The Brilliant Club’s approach to increasing the number of pupils from underrepresented backgrounds progressing to and succeeding at selective universities.
  • Podcast series: episode two – Ben Brabon, Associate at Advance HE is joined by Hannah Copeland, Vice President (Education) at Heriot-Watt University, who shares her views on transitions, retention and progression.
  • Podcast series: episode three – Ben Brabon, Associate at Advance HE is joined by Hillary Gyebi-Ababio, Vice President Higher Education at the National Union of Students, who shares her views on how institutions can best to support students as they transition through higher education in a post-covid world, why it’s important not to run away from risks, and ways of rethinking and rebuilding the education system in her role at NUS.
  • Take a look at the resources for transition, retention and progression 2020-21.
  • Take a look at the resources for exceptional student retention 2020-21. 

Theme 2: August 2021 – February 2022 – Student Success

Student Success: will explore aspects of the core thematic areas for student success with an initial emphasis on access, retention, attainment and progression, and employability. The focus will ensure that the foundations for upcoming framework updates include and recognise hybrid, flexible and inclusive modes of teaching and learning.

Theme 3: February – July 2022 – Inclusive institutions: enabling and supporting culture change.

Theme 4: November 2021 – January 2022 – Leading, change through teams and networks.

Leading change through teams and networks: while we all play a part in the success of our organisations as students, academic and support staff members and leaders, we never do it alone. That is why effective teams and networks are a crucial component of any organisation, and the make or break of any change process. The sector is constantly transforming, facing new opportunities and challenges – from Covid-19 pandemic, to race equity, fighting harassment, improving mental health of staff and students, and more.

The last 18 months in particular, highlighted the need for formal and informal collective structures and for their leaders to be flexible, resilient and responsive to continuous change. That is why this theme explores the opportunities for and challenges in developing change agency as a core skill for collaborative working within and between teams, groups and networks.

Theme 5: February 2022 – April 2022 – Flexible pedagogies.

Theme 6: May 2022 – July 2022 – Organisational wellbeing.

As part of our Connect Benefit Series for 2021-22, the Organisational wellbeing project runs from May to July and will explore the link between healthy and prosperous universities and the wellbeing of staff and students.

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Development programmes, conferences and events

Our development programmes, conferences and events portfolio for 2022-23 is now available and are carefully designed to support those working in higher education at every level of experience. Download the 2022-23 brochure. 

We have designed our portfolio around the following strands, responding to the needs of institutions in equipping their staff with learning, tools, techniques and new insights at every stage of their career:

  • Race Equality
  • Gender Equality
  • Strategic Leadership
  • Developing Leadership
  • Teaching and Learning for Success
  • Fostering Inclusion
  • Effective Governance 

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Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Advice Service

The EDI Advice Service is an Advance HE member benefit for staff working within Advance HE member institutions in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland who have equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) within their remit, and those with leadership responsibility for EDI who require advice.  Take a look at:

 

New: Advance HE launches ‘Ethnicity awarding gaps in UK higher education in 2019/20’ report

13 Oct 2021: Advance HE Ethnicity Awarding Gaps persist despite improvement in 2019-20: Panagiota (Peny) Sotiropoulou, Advance HE mixed-methods researcher, shares her thoughts on the main findings.

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Charters

Charters transforming and supporting gender and race equality in HE and research. 

Athena SWAN

  • Eighty-six Athena Swan awards have been conferred by Advance HE in the latest round of results, including six which successfully used the new renewals process.

  • We have also announced the new panel members in accordance with the independent review of the UK Charter, following close collaboration between the Advance HE Equality Charters Team and the Athena Swan Governance Committee.

Race Equality

Advance HE’s Race Equality Charter (REC) provides a framework through which institutions work to identify and self-reflect on institutional and cultural barriers standing in the way of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic staff and students.

You can also take a look at our dedicated staff resource site Degree Awarding Gap for further guidance, information and resources to support. 

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Education for Mental Health Toolkit – Introduction

The Education for Mental Health Toolkit has been created to provide evidence informed guidance on the ways in which curriculum can support both wellbeing and learning. It has been developed for academic staff, academic managers, university leaders and all of those involved in the development and delivery of curriculum, within Higher Education. It is grounded in the research literature and has been created through research and co-creation with students, academics, Quality staff, Learning and Teaching staff and Principal Fellows of the HEA. 

On 15th March 2022 launch event, they delivered their presentation: Embedding Wellbeing into the Classroom and promoted:

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Aurora

Aurora is Advance HE’s leadership development initiative for women. It is run as a unique partnership bringing together leadership experts and higher education institutions to take positive action to address the under-representation of women in leadership positions in the sector.  Led by a team of leadership experts, participants will explore four key areas associated with leadership success: Identity, Impact & Voice, Core Leadership, Politics & Influence and Adaptive Leadership Skills. 

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Global leadership survey and framework

Working with the sector, Advance HE plans to develop a global survey for leadership in higher education, research institutes and related organisations.

If have any questions about how Advance HE can support you and your staff, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with our Advance HE dedicated membership contact, Michael Parker, michael.parker@advance-he.ac.uk or membership team via memberships@advance-he.ac.uk

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Reports and Publications

With over 15 years of resources to access and as convener of current thinking, knowledge and insight into the key sector opportunities and challenges, Advance HE’s exists to help higher education shape its future.  Through our members we will be guiding the development of new resources and publications through Strategic Advisory Groups and national priorities programme. 

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Student Surveys

The student surveys from Advance HE (Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey, Postgraduate Research Experience Survey and the UK Engagement Survey) have engaged with over 170,000 students over the last two years. As an Advance HE member your institution can benefit from the discounted (reduced to just £2,500) data and insights.

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Consultancy and enhancement services

Your challenges are our priorities. Our consultancy and enhancement services allow us to be a critical friend, bringing our deep and extensive expertise to your challenges and draw on the learnings from our cross-sector reach. 

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Effective governance

In today’s turbulent environment all providers need high performing boards that are equipped to determine the strategic course of the organisation. The effectiveness of a board depends on strong foundations; exhibiting the right behaviours; high-quality information, sound processes and skilled governance professionals.

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This page is maintained by the Academic Development & Diversity Team and if you’d like to contribute to this resource please contact the team. 

Last updated: 4th May 2022 NB