In the UK today, graduates from the most competitive universities are more likely to access professional careers, have higher rates of life satisfaction, and earn more than non- graduates. But access to these life-changing opportunities is not equal.
And for disadvantaged students who do access the most competitive universities, their disadvantage does not disappear when they walk through the doors of their university. Students from disadvantaged backgrounds are more likely to drop out of their undergraduate course in the first year and 20% more likely to miss out on a 1st or 2:1 grade at the end of their degree than their more advantaged peers.
This stark disparity in access and success highlights the urgent need for targeted support to help disadvantaged students transition successfully into higher education, irrespective of the type of university, and thrive once they get there.
Join the Dots is a university transition programme designed to support students facing the greatest challenges in making a successful transition to university. It is targeted at students who are most likely to face barriers in making a successful transition to university, and who are at risk of missing out on the life changing opportunities that come from successfully earning a degree from a competitive university.
The first part of the programme starts at school or college, with UniPrep.
Schools and colleges can offer UniPrep to any Year 12 or 13 students, focusing on those who meet targeting criteria. Students take part in a series of live webinars which helps them build confidence in their understanding of university life.
On results day, UniPrep students that will be attending one of Join the Dots’ partner universities are matched with a PhD Coach from their university. Each PhD Coach supports up to eight students throughout their first six-months at the university. Through 1-1 and group coaching, students develop key university study strategies, academic self-efficacy and sense of belonging at university.
You can see the Impact Summary from the third year of Join the Dots here.
Completely free for schools and colleges, UniPrep supports your students to be successful during the critical transition to university.
Register your school/college and we will send you all the resources to share with your Y12/13 students or equivalent. Encourage your students to take part in our live webinars, and make the most of our expert guidance.
It’s a series of live webinars taking place all year long, which is run in collaboration with present university students and other organisations in the industry. Students have opportunities to ask questions and receive expert guidance. Last year’s webinars included:
This year, we will be exploring a range of topics like Student Finance, Budgeting, Hidden Curriculum, Wellbeing at University and much more…
Drop us an email and we will get back to you in 2 working days.
The programme has helped me understand what it means to be an independent learner and my coach has given great assistance and feedback on my coursework.
All schools need to do is complete our short registration form, and we’ll send them all the information they need about UniPrep to share with their students.
All we ask is that schools:
Schools and colleges will be asked to share information on UniPrep with their Year 12 and 13. Schools and colleges will be asked to facilitate UniPrep sessions by sharing resources with students and by facilitating their attendance at the live sessions.
For UniPrep and Join the Dots, we are particularly keen to support students who:
For 2025/26, we have confirmed partnerships with Birkbeck, University of London; the University of Bournemouth; University of Bristol; Buckinghamshire New University; Durham University; University of Essex; University of Hertfordshire; King’s College London and the University of Westminster. More partners will be announced in due course.
Our community of more than 1,000 PhD Coaches is what makes The Brilliant Club unique. Our PhD Coaches have either completed or are currently studying for a PhD at a Join the Dots partner university. Students will be matched with a PhD Coach working in their subject area who will support them with study skills and coursework.
Our PhD Coaches complete programme specific training, focused on Coaching and mentoring. Coaches are also introduced to basic tutorial pedagogy such as planning, questioning and assessment; aspects of classroom management; and codes of professional conduct. Our PhD Coaches are required to have a DBS check before they begin work on the programme.
I think Join the Dots has really helped me manage the transition from Year 13 to University by helping me become more independent through self-learning and how to take notes during lectures. The coach is also really friendly and helpful.
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