Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey (PTES) 2010Interim ResultsDr Pam Wells

Adviser, Evidence-Informed Practice

Background

• Online questionnaire– Based on PRES methodology

• Voluntary and anonymous– At both institution and student level

• Second national administration– Larger sample than last year

• Benchmarking

Questionnaire

• Core survey– Nine main areas of interest– Demographic information

• Institutional questions– Participating institutions ask as many extra

questions as they choose, and design these questions themselves

• Motivations• Quality of teaching and learning• Assessment and feedback• Dissertation and supervision• Organisation and management• Learning resources• Skills and personal development• Career and professional development• Overall satisfaction

PTES 2010

• 77 participating HEIs from England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland

• Flexible survey period, 15 Feb – 28 May• More than 220,000 students surveyed• Interim results, 19 April

– 70 HEIs– 17,531 students

Participating HEIs

• 70 institutions contributing interim data– Between 7 and 1,256 responses (0 – 7%)

Proportion of data Number of HEIsLess than 1% 36

Between 1% and 2% 18

More than 2% 16

PTES cohort

PTES cohort• 43% male, 57% female• 64% home, 11% EU, 25% overseas • 59% full-time, 39% part-time• 74% face-to-face, 26% distance• 67% started their programme between

1 Sep and 31 Dec 2009– Further 18% started in the previous

academic year (1.9.08 - 31.8.09)

Age of participants

Age by mode of study

Discipline

Employment

• 51% in paid employment

MotivationMain motivations for taking this programme

To progress in my current career path (i.e. a professional qualification)

53%

To improve my employment prospects 53%

For personal interest 44%

To enable me to progress to a higher level qualification (e.g. PhD) 33%

To change my current career 18%

As a requirement to enter a particular profession 17%

To meet the requirements of my current job 8%

Other 4%

MotivationReasons for studying at this particular institution

The location of the institution 38%

The overall reputation of the institution 37%

The institution’s reputation in my chosen subject area 35%

Delivery of the programme is flexible enough to fit around my life 23%

The reputation of the department 23%

It was recommended to me 20%

Funding was available to me to study this particular programme 17%

MotivationReasons for studying at this particular institution

I have studied at this institution before 16%

Graduates from this institution have good career and employment prospects

14%

It is the only institution offering this programme 13%

The cost of the programme compared to other institutions 12%

My employer advised or encouraged me to do it 8%

Other 7%

The way the programme is assessed 6%

Quality of teaching and learning

• 37% said that the teaching quality on their programme was consistently good

• 53% said that the teaching quality was variable but generally good

• Only 2% said it was consistently poor

Teaching and learning%

agreePTES 2009

The course is intellectually stimulating 82% 84%

The teaching and learning methods are effective for this type of programme 79% 81%

I am happy with the teaching support I received from staff on my course 70% 71%

There is sufficient contact time (face to face and/or virtual/online) between staff and students to support effective learning 68% 67%

Staff%

agreePTES 2009

Staff are enthusiastic about what they are teaching 83% 83%

Staff are good at explaining things 80% 83%

Staff made the subject interesting 76% 77%

Assessment and feedback%

agreePTES 2009

The criteria used in marking have been made clear in advance 71% 74%Assessment arrangements and marking have been fair 71% 74%I have received detailed comments (written or oral) on my work 65% 68%Feedback on my work has helped me clarify things I did not understand 57% 58%

Feedback on my work has been prompt 57% 57%I received feedback in time to allow me to improve my next assignment 56% 57%

Dissertation and supervision%

agreePTES 2009

My supervisor has the skills and subject knowledge to adequately support my dissertation

76% 80%

I understand the required standards for the dissertation 73% 77%

My supervisor makes a real effort to understand any difficulties I face

67% 70%

My supervisor provides helpful feedback on my progress

63% 66%

I have been given good guidance in topic selection and refinement by my supervisor

63% 65%

I have received good guidance in my literature search from my supervisor

58% 60%

Workload

• 52% said that the workload on their programme was more or less what they expected

• 31% said it was higher than they expected

• 11% said it was much higher than they expected

Organisation and management%

agreePTES 2009

The timetable fits well with my other commitments 76% 80%Any changes in the programme or teaching have been communicated effectively 72% 74%The balance of core modules and options is appropriate 70% 70%The programme is well organised and is running smoothly 69% 70%

The balance between scheduled contact time and private study is appropriate 70% 69%

Learning resources%

agreePTES 2009

I have been able to access general IT resources when I needed to

78% 78%

The library resources and services are easily accessible

77% 77%

The library resources and services are good enough for my needs

72% 75%

Learning resources% agree

I am satisfied with the quality of learning materials available to me (Print, online material, DVDs, etc.)

75%

I have been able to access social learning spaces (e.g. for group working) on campus when I needed to

69%

I have been able to access specialised equipment, facilities, or rooms when I needed them

66%

Skills and personal development

% agree

PTES 2009

The programme has developed my research skills 77% 79%The programme has developed my transferable skills 77% 77%As a result of the programme I am more confident about independent learning 73% 75%As a result of the programme, I feel confident in tackling unfamiliar problems 66% 66%The programme has helped me to present myself with confidence 65% 65%As a results of the programme my communication skills have improved 63% 61%

Career and professional development

% agree

PTES 2009

As a result of this programme, I believe my future employment prospects are better 78% 78%I feel better prepared for my future employment 72% 72%I am encouraged to reflect on my professional development needs 68% 69%

Overall satisfaction

• The overall experience of my course met or exceeded my expectations – 84%

• Quality of teaching and learning met or exceeded my expectations – 82%

• Assessment and feedback met or exceeded my expectations – 74%

Overall satisfaction• Organisation and management met or

exceeded my expectations – 75%• Learning resources met or exceeded my

expectations – 87%• Career and professional development

met or exceeded my expectations – 88%• Skills and personal development met or

exceeded my expectations – 90%

Further analysis

• Scale analysis• Multiple regression• Experience of different demographic

groups• Benchmarking• National report

Next steps

• Working with PTES HEIs to share effective practice

• Using survey findings to inform enhancement activities

• Stop press: considering another national administration of PTES in 2011– To be confirmed