Live the life you want through higher education
Description
The Make Your Mark website has been developed through a partnership of the five Bridges to Higher Education universities – the University of Western Sydney; the University of Sydney; the University of Technology, Sydney; Macquarie University and the Australian Catholic University – and the Universities Admissions Centre (NSW and ACT), supported by the 25 Bridges to Higher Education partners from government and non-government organisations across NSW.
The website provides a launch pad to further education information and knowledge for people from under-represented communities, providing an online bridge to the range of resources already available for making life and further education choices and decisions.
The primary audiences are high school and TAFE students from Year 7 upwards, and potential returners to education. The secondary audience are the ‘trusted advisers’ including career advisers and parents.
The website incorporates multimedia content to showcase students’ stories as role models and advisers through the visitor’s journey. The site emphasises alternative pathways as well as traditional routes, providing a one-stop-shop for information to support early-stage decision making about further education (aligning to the recommendations from the NSW Government’s Tertiary Pathways Review, June 2012).
Objectives
To inform and inspire people from low socio-economic and other communities under-represented in higher education to aspire to something beyond what may be reflected in their immediate communities and position study as a means of achieving these aspirations. To help translate information into knowledge to make decisions about life and further study.
HEPPP Funding
Make Your Mark has been funded through the Bridges to Higher Education initiative as part of the HEPPP Partnership component competitive grant process. The Bridges to Higher Education initiative is funded from December 2011 to December 2014. This project benefits from significant in-kind contributions from the Universities Admissions Centre (NSW & ACT), and other Bridges partners.
Measurement
The development of the website has been informed by extensive research and consultation. During the soft launch period, further consultation and user testing was conducted to ensure the site was fit for purpose across the diverse target audiences. User testing will continue post-official launch, as well as the implementation of feedback mechanisms on the site, analytics and further evaluative methodology in line with the Bridges Evaluation Framework.
The Future
The website represents a sustainable resource beyond the current funding arrangements through the partnership model established. This includes commitments from core partners such as the Universities Admissions Centre, and wider collaborative partners such as Student Edge.
