Certificate of Personal
Effectiveness and Entry
to Higher Education
A Perspective from the
University of Ulster
The “Educated” Person
 In recent years, there has been increasing
concern that our “education system” may not be
producing “educated people”…..!
 Many worry that pressure to produce “industryready” students may have commercialised our
education system
 It has become more difficult to resist the
pressures to “educate strategically” to ensure
that students gain employment
The Missing Pieces of the Jigsaw
 As the post-16 curriculum came under more pressure (from
initiatives like Curriculum 2000), something had to give
 It would appear that the main casualties were enrichment
studies and extra-curricular activities – there simply was
not enough time left in the school day……..
 ………….nor any hard currency in terms of university
entrance or employment
 Few would argue that the loss of these components of the
pupils’ education benefitted anyone – including higher
education
The HE Retention Problem
 Universities have recognised that for many
students, top A level performance is not the only
factor necessary for success in HE
 Many lack the personal skills and independent
learning styles necessary for surviving the
challenges – particularly of 1st year study
 Unfortunately, many of these attributes are the
very things which, in some cases, may have
been largely displaced from their education to
date
Enter CoPE
 Many of the skills and enrichment attributes
which lave leached from the education system
appear to have been incorporated within the
CoPE qualification
 Not only does CoPE have the potential to
address these specific deficits, it now has hard
currency in terms of HE entry
 Successful completion of CoPE at level 3 earns
the applicant 70 UCAS Tariff Points (only 10
points less than a grade C in a GCE A level )
CoPE and the University of Ulster
 For a number of years, Ulster has adopted
UCAS Tariff Points in most of its offer-making
 We do not “cherry pick” the Tariff Points
framework – all qualifications in the tariff are
recognised and points awarded (subject to any
specific course entrance requirements)
 Therefore, applicants with CoPE have 70 points
to add to their profile (sometimes even in cases
where the applicant may only have two GCE A
levels in the rest of their profile)
CoPE entrants – a look at progress?
 Ulster’s newly formed Admissions Policy &
Practice Group has on its inaugural agenda to:
“consider whether a more comprehensive
evaluation of the [CoPE] qualification would be
appropriate”
 This may involve cohort-tracing CoPE entrants to
compare their performance (especially their
resit/failure/drop-out rates) as compared to other
entrants
Future policy towards CoPE ?
 If it is agreed to carry out an internal study at Ulster, and if
this shows that CoPE entrants demonstrate improved
performance/retention rates then…………….
 It would be logical to assume that future course offers may
specify CoPE as “desirable” ……or possibly even as
“essential” …….for entry to specified degree courses
 For CoPE to be specified as “essential” would require
Ulster to be satisfied that no applicants were
disadvantaged because they did not have the opportunity
to study CoPE in their school/college
CoPE and Widening Participation ?
 CoPE may have an additional benefit in that it
may help to empower those who are less suited
to a purely academic pathway
 Because CoPE enables achievement in nonacademic activities to be recognised and
rewarded (with UCAS Tariff Points), this goes
some way towards levelling the playing field for
non-traditional applicants to HE
 This potential benefit may also appeal to the HE
sector, where Widening Participation has
become an important factor