Data from the Higher Education Access Tracker (HEAT) has shown that The Scholars Programme has an impact on GCSE attainment. Students who did The Scholars Programme in Year 7, 8, 9 or 10 were more likely to achieve a 9-5 in maths and English than students who scored similarly at Key Stage 2 within their schools. Read about our findings in more detail in our research note.
The Scholars Programme improves educational and economic outcomes for students from less advantaged backgrounds by increasing access to more competitive universities. Whilst we have known for a long time that going to university increases earning potential, research published by TASO in 2024 shows that this potential is most pronounced when we factor in how competitive a university is. Graduating from a more competitive university, compared to a less competitive one, has a bigger impact on a graduate’s earning potential than the difference between going to a less competitive university versus not going to university at all.
We have conducted an economic evaluation that combines our observed progression rates to more competitive universities with TASO’s research to estimate the programme’s economic benefits. The evaluation shows:
Between 2018 and 2020, we commissioned researchers at the University of Cambridge to evaluate the impact of The Scholars Programme. The evaluation had two phases. Firstly, the University of Cambridge carried out a desk-based review of the charity’s research and impact work to date. Secondly, the University of Cambridge conducted a randomised controlled trial (RCT) to assess the impact of The Scholars Programme on pupils’ cognitive outcomes. You can find out more about the RCT, including the results, here. The results from the RCT will also be published in a peer reviewed journal in the future.
We have created Theories of Change for each of our core programmes, The Scholars Programme, Join the Dots, and Parent Power.
To form these one-page visuals, each programme has a mission, inputs, activities, outputs and outcomes. Take a look using the links below, and please do get in touch if you’d like to discuss our evaluation work further.
The Scholars Programme Theory of Change
Each year we commission UCAS to run an independent evaluation of our flagship access programme, The Scholars Programme, to understand the impact on progression to higher education. To date, we have conducted nine matched control group evaluations.
Our latest evaluation found that Year 12 students who complete The Scholars Programme are statistically significantly more likely to apply to and receive an offer from a competitive university than students from similar backgrounds. As a result, they also progress to a competitive university at a higher rate.
Our Annual Impact Reports offer an overview of the charity’s work during the academic year.
In 2023/24, we mobilised 469 researchers to support 19,968 students in 872 schools across the UK, working alongside our 64 university and higher education partners.
You can find out more about our programmes, our scale, how we evaluate our impact, and our plans for the year ahead, in our annual impact reports.
