CGHE Webinar 44

Higher technical education: resisting the gravitational pull of the academic

Date: Thursday, 23 February 2017 12:30 pm - 2:00 pm
Location: Room 642, UCL Institute of Education
Speaker(s):
  • Martin Doel, UCL Institute of Education

The OECD study ‘Skills Beyond the Skills System’ (2013) remarked on the relative lack of Level 4 and 5 sub-degree provision within England and the lack of specialist applied universities or similar.

Others have opined that there is a ‘polytechnic sized hole’ in our education system. This imbalance is reflected in the government’s Skills Plan (2015) and the Industrial Strategy launched last month which also remark upon skills gaps at the higher technical level.

The Skills Plan and the Industrial Strategy draw heavily upon the recommendations of a panel led by Lord David Sainsbury. The Panel recommended a distinctive technical education route from level 2 (GCSE equivalent) through to degree level, but with a particular emphasis upon levels 3, 4 and 5 which are judged to be key in filling the perceived technician gap.

What are the prospects for developing such a distinctive route amounting to what could be termed an English ‘dual-system’? Professor Doel will argue that progress in this direction has, in the past, been hampered by what he calls the ‘gravitational pull of the academic’ which is particularly strong in England.

Resisting this gravitational force will require a more thought through definition and understanding of what makes higher technical education different from academic higher education, with possible consequences for the institutional landscape, accreditation, funding and teaching methodology.

Download the presentation

Other upcoming events

Autumn School
Wednesday, 10 September 2025 9:00 am to Friday, 12 September 2025 6:00 pm
Department of Education, University of Oxford, UK
CGHE Webinar
Tuesday, 20 May 2025 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
All times BST. Teams, registration required
Nelius Boshoff
Susanne Koch
CGHE Webinar
Tuesday, 6 May 2025 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
All times GMT. Teams and Seminar G, registration required
Dr. Casellas Connors
CGHE Webinar
Tuesday, 27 May 2025 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
All times BST. Teams and Seminar G . Registration required
Abass B. Isiaka
CGHE Webinar
Tuesday, 13 May 2025 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
All times BST. Hybrid. Seminar room G and Teams, registration required
Dr. Sonia Giebel
Privacy Overview
Centre for Global Higher Education

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

3rd Party Cookies

This website uses Google Analytics to collect anonymous information such as the number of visitors to the site, and the most popular pages.

Keeping this cookie enabled helps us to improve our website.