On the 20th November the Widening Participation Team hosted it’s annual Graduation event for the flagship Year 12 Supported Access Programme ‘Liverpool Scholars’.
Welcoming over 300 Graduating students and supporters, the event is the culmination of an 18 month programme of activities that has seen young people from under-represented backgrounds develop their soft skills, academic ability and course knowledge through a series of events on campus, mentoring support, subject taster days and work experience opportunities.
Liverpool Scholars has been running at the University for over 15 years and the event is one of the highlights of the year for the Widening Participation Team, celebrating the achievements of local students who have shown themselves ready for study at the University of Liverpool. The evening included speeches from Francine Watkins, Associate Pro-Vice Chancellor for Education in the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, as well as Rachel Vincent and Jermaine Ricketts – two current University of Liverpool students who have been previous Scholars, and are now studying Medicine and Law respectively.
Graduating students are guaranteed a conditional offer at the University, and will continue to receive support throughout Year 13 in the form of access to one-to-one academic support and peer-led study hubs. After successfully transitioning to University of Liverpool study, they will also be eligible to access continued support through our new Liverpool Plus scheme of student support: https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/widening-participation/liverpool-plus/
Speaking at the event, Professor Francine Watkins, Associate Pro-Vice Chancellor – Education (Health & Life Sciences) said: “We are celebrating the achievements of these young people, who have dedicated their time to completing the Scholars programme. These students have demonstrated that they are able, resilient and determined young people, who are willing to work hard and put in effort to overcome barriers and make the first step in their journey to their future studies and careers.”
“Scholars add richness to our University community through their perspectives and experience of the programme; and through the Scholars programme the University is able to engage with and change the lives of people from around the city region.”
Further information
The work of the Widening Participation Team, and in particular the Liverpool Scholars Programme, plays a key role in leading the University to meet its regulatory requirements as outlined in our Access and Participation Plan 2025-29: https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/media/livacuk/access-participation-plan-2025-26-to-2028-29.pdf.
For more information or to find out how you can get involved in this vital work, contact us at: scholars@liverpool.ac.uk