Records broken at 25th Summer Schools

Published On Fri 2 Jun 2017 by Grant Hill

A record number of students will begin their route into higher education next week when they matriculate on the University of Dundee’s renowned Summer School programmes.

Some 200 students will arrive on campus on Monday, 5^th June for the first day of this year’s Summer Schools. Around 130 will join Dundee University Access to Learning (DUAL) Summer School and a further 70 will log on for the University’s Online Summer School, meaning a record number of learners will be taking part in the access programmes.

Access Summer Schools offer an alternative route into higher education for those who lack the preparation or formal qualifications as a result of a wide variety of adverse personal circumstances.

Over the next six weeks, the 200 students will undertake an intense programme of learning challenges in order to prove they are able to cope with the demands of a university education. All students who successfully complete both the DUAL and OSS summer schools will be offered an undergraduate place at the University when the new academic year begins in September.

“A summer of hard work lies ahead for our new students, the largest ever cohort of starters” said Course Director Dr John Blicharski. “Our city and our University are delighted to welcome so many who want to win a place at the Scottish University of the Year. Our team look forward to nurturing this wide pool of talent who want to transform their future prospects.”

The University ran its first Summer School in 1993. Since then, more than 2000 people who would otherwise have missed out on university have taken their place at Dundee as a result of the initiative. In addition to prospering as undergraduates, many have gone on to obtain postgraduate qualifications, including doctorates, and Summer School alumni can be found at the top career levels across the globe.

Dundee has been widely praised for its approach to Widening Access to ensure that students from the most disadvantaged communities do not miss out on higher education. The Summer Schools remain a key plank of this work by equipping applicants lacking preparation and entrance requirements with the skills necessary for university.

One of the elements of the Summer Schools is hiring students who previously completed the course to act as mentors to support the new intake as they transition.

Former DUAL student Neil Ure, who will be working as a mentor to the 2017 intake, said, “Summer School was an amazing opportunity for me and I am delighted to have been selected to give something back to the next generation of students. It is great to have the best access course of its kind on our doorstep.”

Anyone interested in attending future Summer Schools or accessing entry programmes to University should e-mail participation@dundee.ac.uk.

For media enquiries contact:
Grant Hill
Press Officer
University of Dundee
Nethergate, Dundee, DD1 4HN
Tel: +44 (0)1382 384768
Mobile: 07854 953277
Email: g.hill@dundee.ac.uk