Will this new plan fix the gender gap in UK higher education?

21 Nov 2018

Gender imbalance across British universities is not a new story.

Promoted as the pinnacle gender gap example, this ten-year UCAS report shows that 62,000 fewer males attend university each year when compared to their female counterparts.

To maintain awareness of this subject and to develop lasting solutions for the issue, the Men and Boys Coalition charity in Taunton, UK, decided to host a conference.

The Creating Positive Futures for Boys and Young Men event aimed to improve boys’ education and well-being, showing participants techniques for removing barriers to boys’ access to university and academic attainment.

Hearing from the wonderful @MaryCurnockCook at our #PositiveFutures boys’ education conference “I’m not trying to pit boys against girls, just to trying to understand why boys are doing less well” pic.twitter.com/KlJNwO7isw

— MenandBoysCoalition (@MBCoalition) November 19, 2018

Here, the idea for a “take your son into university day” was introduced – a campaign that strives to increase male participation in higher education.

Based on the “take your daughters and sons to work day”, the brand new plan will see young male learners attend special university open days in the UK and witness the state-of-the-art facilities on offer, including the incredible science labs, innovation centres, dance halls and sports fields.

By breaking down the fears and expectations of what university will be like, the plan is to introduce the boys to a bright future filled with possibilities.

Once they’ve taken a behind-the-scenes tour into the world of universities, they may leave with a desire to pursue higher education pathways and professional degree frameworks.

“If we want gender equality, we need men to be well-educated as well as women.” #PositiveFutures #IMD2018

— MenandBoysCoalition (@MBCoalition) November 19, 2018

Since take your daughters and sons into work day is now a global success, there’s no reason why the launch of this new concept won’t warrant great results.

For young male learners without families, this may be a great opportunity for schools to take action, asking professors to accompany students on vital university open days.

In this day and age, there’s no reason for education to be so unbalanced when we know all children deserve a chance. This could be the first step in closing the UK gender gap, and could soon be rolled out in universities across the world.