I have lived experience of being a mature student, single parent and commuter in my undergraduate studies, where in my third year, I hit a wall and almost withdrew prior to completion. It was a fantastic member of staff who had words with me, and showed me how to navigate through the last bit. This experience shaped my interest in retention studies, which are currently a bit patchy in the UK, with a focus only on non-continuation for first year students who make it past the first 50-days of study. With the Office for Students (OfS) paying more attention to university governance and metrics, HE institutions may find themselves under fire for losing students due external issues outside of their control. Therefore, I feel it is pragmatic to investigate the need for a new conceptual framework that promotes continuation, provides targeted support and knowledge gathering.

My email address is g.standen@uea.ac.uk if anyone has any questions or would like to discuss my research in more detail.