Abstract
Analysis of the average number of applicants received from schools that engaged in the Bristol ChemLabS Outreach program prior to a student‟s application with those that did not engage, shows a significant increase in applicants from engaged schools. The significance is weaker when just Post 16 students are considered but this is almost certainly due to a smaller sample size. When this analysis was inspected in terms of the distance of the school from the University of Bristol, there was an increase in the number of applicants from engaged schools irrespective of distance. However, a statistically significant increase was observed for schools within 50 miles of the University from an analysis of just Post 16 students. Students who applied to the department from an engaged school were more likely to accept an offer and also to make the department their firm acceptance. A slightly higher number of applications that were rejected came from engaged schools too. There are two possible reasons; first, the engagement may have encouraged more students who did not have the required entry qualifications. Second, during the period of analysis, the overall entry grades went up by one grade each year. Such a dramatic rise was probably the reason for the slightly elevated numbers.
Highlights
The numbers of applicants and acceptances from universities have been increasing overall in recent years[1]
Inspection of the proportions of applicants from each type of school by year indicates some variation over the three years for the proportions of applicants from engaged schools were more likely to accept the offer made to them and engaged Post 16 students and those not engaging Post 16 students, the findings showed that in most areas, the average number of students applying to the School of Chemistry was higher in engaged schools than from either type of school, but these differences are not were more likely to make non-engaged schools
From 2006 to 2008, schools that had engaged with Bristol ChemLabS had a significantly higher average number of applicants than schools that had not engaged
Summary
The numbers of applicants and acceptances from universities have been increasing overall in recent years[1]. Following on from the original goals of the outreach program started in 2000, the Bristol ChemLabS Outreach activities[8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15] have the objective of promoting Chemistry on a national and even an international basis, without any emphasis on recruitment to the School of Chemistry at Bristol. In this way, activities are free from advertising and staff are under no pressure to compare recruitment statistics with outreach activity. Has the Outreach program had any impact on recruitment? This study compares applications from schools that have and have not engaged with Bristol ChemLabS in the years prior to the application being made and look at trends
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
