PIs 2005/06: Guide to PIs

Background

This document offers a brief introduction to the purpose and nature of Performance Indicators (PIs) for higher education institutions in the UK.

What are Performance Indicators?

Performance Indicators are a range of statistical indicators intended to offer an objective measure of how a higher education institution (HEI) is performing. They are not 'league tables' and do not attempt to compare all HEIs against a ‘gold standard’ or against each other (but see below). There are indicators for all publicly funded HEIs in the UK.

They currently cover:

• widening participation indicators
• non-continuation rates (including projected outcomes)
• module completion rates
• research output
• employment of graduates.

The set of PIs published in July 2007 by HESA is the ninth in the series.

Why produce Performance Indicators?

The purpose of Performance Indicators is to:

• provide reliable information on the nature and performance of the UK higher education sector
• allow comparison between individual institutions of a similar nature, where appropriate
• enable institutions to benchmark their own performance
• inform policy developments
• contribute to the public accountability of higher education.

Who are they for?

PIs are of interest to a wide range of bodies, including Government, universities and colleges, and the UK higher education funding bodies. The indicators are also relevant to schools, prospective students and employers.

Why not league tables?

No meaningful league table could fairly demonstrate the performance of all higher education institutions relative to each other. The HE sector is extremely diverse. Each institution has its own distinct mission, and each emphasises different aspects of higher education. Because of this diversity, and the need to compare HEIs fairly, we have used a range of indicators and benchmarks. Even so, we do not cover all aspects of an institution’s performance. In particular, these indicators concentrate on performance relative to full-time undergraduates. However, note that there are other sources of data on institutions that can be used to make comparisons, such as the results of the Research Assessment Exercise (at www.hero.ac.uk/rae.)

What is the benchmark?

Because there are such differences between institutions, the average values for the whole of the higher education sector are not necessarily helpful when comparing HEIs. We have therefore calculated a sector average which is then adjusted for each institution to take into account some of the factors which contribute to the differences between them.

The factors allowed for are subject of study, qualifications on entry and age on entry (young or mature).

The average, adjusted for these factors, is called the adjusted sector benchmark. For some of the participation indicators, we have also allowed for which region of the country the student comes from and produced what we have called location-adjusted benchmarks.

For the employment indicator, the benchmark used takes account of a wider range of factors.

The benchmark can be used in two ways:

To see how well an HEI is performing compared to the HE sector as a whole. It is usually preferable to compare an institution’s indicator to its adjusted sector benchmark in order to establish how well an HEI is performing in the HE sector. When there is a significant difference between the HEI’s performance and the benchmark, we have marked it with a symbol. A 'plus' symbol is used for institutions performing better than the benchmark and a 'minus' symbol for those performing worse.

To decide whether to compare two institutions. It is hard to meaningfully compare two institutions that are very different. For example, an institution where most students enter with very good A-level qualifications should not usually be compared with one whose students come from a wider range of educational backgrounds. Similarly, a medical school and a college that mainly concentrates on engineering subjects are not comparable, as medical students have much lower non-continuation rates than engineering students. If two institutions have very different benchmarks, this is an indication that they are so different that comparing them would not give a helpful answer. But note that if two institutions have very different location-adjusted benchmarks, this may just show that they recruit from different regions of the UK.

Do the results affect HE policy?

Policy development, both at national and institutional level, is informed by Performance Indicators, but other factors are also taken into account. Within funding bodies and central government, the results are just one of many sources of information used to develop policies. The Performance Indicators also allow HEIs and funding councils to monitor the effects of policies over time, identify good practice and help disseminate it throughout the sector.

Widening participation indicators (table series T1, T2 and T7)

Table series T1 and T2 give information about the participation of groups that are under-represented in HE, relative to the population as a whole. Results are shown separately for young and mature students and for full-timers and part-timers, because each of these groups have different characteristics.

The indicators for young full-time students in tables T1a-T1c show, for each institution:

• the percentage who attended a school or college in the state sector;
• the percentage who come from categories 4 to 7 of the new National Statistics Socio-economic Classification (NS-SEC);
• the percentage who come from a neighbourhood (as denoted by its postcode) which is known to have a low proportion of 18 and 19-year-olds in higher education.

For mature students and for young part-time students, there is just one participation indicator, the percentage of entrants who have no previous HE qualification and come from a low-participation neighbourhood, which is given in tables T2a-T2c.

Table T7 shows, for all students, the proportion who are in receipt of the Disabled Students' Allowance (DSA) by institution, separately for full-time and part-time undergraduates.

More information on the results for students from state schools, NS-SEC and low participation neighbourhoods, please see the summary. Summary information on DSA is shown separately.

Non-continuation rates (table series T3)

Non-continuation rates for students at an institution are presented in two ways. The first considers students who start in a particular year, and looks at whether they are still in higher education one year later. The second method (considered under the next heading) looks at projected outcomes over a longer period.

Using the first method, tables T3a-T3d show what percentage of students at each institution who started in 2003/04 have continued at the same institution, transferred to another institution, or left higher education completely by 2005/06.

Figures are shown separately for young and mature entrants, for young students from low participation areas and from other areas, and for mature entrants with and without previous higher education qualifications.

For more information on the results for this section please see the summary.

Non-continuation rates – projected outcomes (table T5)

Another way to look at non-continuation rates is to use information on current movements of students to project what would happen in the long run. Thus, the indicators in table T5 project what proportion of students will eventually gain a degree, what proportion will leave their current university or college but transfer into higher education elsewhere, and what proportion will leave higher education altogether without any qualification.

For more information on the results for this section please see the summary.

Research outputs (table R1)

The main indicators of research in UK higher education are the ratings from the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE), which is held every four or five years. The results of the 2001 RAE were published in December 2001. The research indicators that are produced as part of the Performance Indicators (Table R1) provide additional information on the quantity of research outputs relative to the resources consumed.

For more information on the results for this section please see the summary.

Employment indicator (table E1)

The 2005/06 employment indicator is based on the new Destinations of Leavers in Higher Education (DLHE) survey, which replaced the First Destinations survey. The DLHE survey was carried out among graduates six months after the end of the academic year in which they graduate. There is only one indicator (Table E1) in 2005/06 showing the percentage of graduates who are employed or in further study (or both), among all those who are employed, unemployed, or studying.

For more information on the results for this section please see the summary.

Published data

The Performance Indicators for 2002/03 onwards are available from the HESA web site at http://www.hesa.ac.uk/pi . For all previous years, the indicators are available from the HEFCE web site at www.hefce.ac.uk/pi. All publicly funded HEIs in the UK are included, but not all feature in every table. For this year's indicators, the data for widening participation, employment and research indicators relate to the 2005/06 academic year. Those for retention and continuation relate to the 2004/05 academic year.

Enquiries

Press: Call 01242 211120 or email pressoffice@hesa.ac.uk.
General enquiries should be sent to piteam@hesa.ac.uk.
Enquiries regarding the Performance Indicators Steering Group (PISG) should be directed to the HEFCE Press Office on 0117 931 7307