Fostering belonging: challenging imposter syndrome and celebrating the dual identities of articulation students.
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.56433/ne68ty03Keywords:
articulation, transition, belonging, dual identity, imposter syndromeAbstract
Step-Up is a 20-credit, level 1 (SCQF 7) module run by Academic Skills at University of Dundee. The module delivers academic skills to prepare articulation students studying towards HNC Social Sciences (SCQF 7) at Dundee and Angus College for greater independence in university study. Successful outcomes for both course and module lead to direct entry to level 2 of the Humanities MA at the University.
Step-Up’s theme is ‘being, belonging, and becoming’, but student feedback revealed otherwise, suggesting that they felt isolated from the University community perceiving progression via college as inferior. The concept of articulation students having dual identities evolved through closer collaboration with the college and leading the module for the first time. Articulation students need to have a working knowledge of two institutions and their respective policies, procedures and terminologies to manage their learning and progression successfully. Bearing this in mind, an enhanced introduction to the university, the degree pathway and the Step-Up module was created. Revisions to the Step-Up module acknowledged the students’ academic workload, and perpetual cross-institutional collaboration assured a legitimate sense of belonging to benefit the student.
Enhanced provision was key to establishing more meaningful student relationships, creating staggered orientation sessions to avoid overwhelm and create a safe place to introduce new staff, unfamiliar systems and build student confidence. Similarly, module content was reviewed to contextualize academic skills with Humanities topics and model university style delivery and expectations. Following completion of the Step-Up module, a dichotomy emerged between attendance and achievement on Step-Up and the HNC. Reflexively, identifying strategies and solutions to harmonise attendance, retention and achievement at both institutions is the next step.
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