Essex graduates part of new national campaign highlighting university success stories

The extraordinary success of graduates from the University of Essex who were the first in their families to attend university is being highlighted in a new national campaign, led by Universities UK.

Nobel Prize-winning economist Professor Sir Chris Pissarides and environmental campaigner Dr Leanne Cullen-Unsworth who is co-founder of Project Seagrass are part of the 100 Faces campaign.

The campaign is championing and celebrating the positive impact of ‘first-in-their-family’ graduates on the UK and the difference their university education made to them.

Sir Chris, who studied Economics at Essex at undergraduate and Masters level before completing a PhD at the London School of Economics, said: “We are driven by curiosity, progression, and the desire to have a good life. There is no better stepping stone to such achievements than your first university. I cannot even imagine where I would be without mine.”

Sir Chris was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2010 for his work with Dale Mortensen and Peter A. Diamond on the economics of unemployment, especially job flows and the effects of being out of work. He was appointed Regius Professor of Economics at LSE in 2013, the first in the UK. He is now leading the Nuffield Foundation-funded Pissarides Review into the Future of Work and Wellbeing on behalf of the Institute for the Future of Work which he co-founded.

He added that although neither of his parents went to university “they both attached enormous importance to learning” and he was “eternally grateful” to them for teaching him the importance and personal value of developing knowledge “in a community like a university.”

Dr Cullen-Unsworth completed her PhD at Essex after studying for a Masters at Bangor University and undertaking her undergraduate studies at Newcastle University. She is now CEO of Project Seagrass, the only charity dedicated to advancing the conservation of seagrass through education, influence, research and action. In 2023, she was included in the BBC’s 100 Women list for her vital work in protecting seagrass meadows which are a vital part of the Ocean’s eco-system but are under increasing pressure.

She said: “I was the first in my family to go to university. The first in the history of my family as far as I’m aware. Studying at University was where I discovered my interest in seagrass meadows which has led on to my research into restoring this important natural resource.”

She added that access to funding was vitally important to ensure talented students have the opportunities they deserve: “Having the chance to go to university was so important to me, but it was critical to have received proper funding from my local education authority for my undergraduate degree at Newcastle University. Then I was able to secure support for my Masters at Bangor University through NERC and then my PhD at the University of Essex was funded by OpWall. Adequate funding support is really important to promote equality of access to education.”

Others included in the 100 Faces campaign include England footballer Beth Mead, Lord David Blunkett and actor Amit Shah. The campaign aims to highlight the need for access to support, and ensure the next generation can reach their graduate potential.

New research leads to call for support for students

• As part of the campaign, new research reveals the transformative impact of going to university on ambition (74%), with almost three quarters (73%) of first in family students agreeing their degree gave them the confidence to apply for jobs without feeling like an imposter.
• The research also highlights first in family students’ reliance on depreciating financial support - without financial support, over 4 in 10 first in family graduates couldn’t have afforded to go to university at all. This is equivalent to around 1.1 million 24–40-year-olds in England and Wales.
• With financial provisions dwindling and the cost of living rising, UUK is calling for government to reinstate maintenance grants and increase support for future student

These findings come from extensive new research, commissioned by Universities UK, into the experiences of 6,004 UK graduates and 4,006 non-graduates, aged 24-40, from across the UK.

The success of students like Sir Chris and Dr Cullen-Unsworth is testament to the extraordinary role university can play – particularly for those students who are the first in their family to attend and face significant barriers before they even set foot on campus.

Despite this inequality, FiF students flourish at university – with three quarters of FiF respondents saying that their experiences at university made them more confident and ambitious, gave them broader life experiences and crucial life skills which continue to be impactful long after graduation.

However, the research also pointed to the need for uplifted financial support to ensure that FiF students are able to progress. Over 4 in 10 (41%) FitF students believe that without financial assistance they wouldn’t have been able to afford to go to university, and when non-graduates from across the UK were asked what might have persuaded them to attend university, almost half (48%) responded more financial support.

Many graduates responding to this survey were eligible for non-repayable maintenance grants as students, which were replaced by repayable loans, in England in 2016, although maintenance grants continue to operate in Wales, Scotland and for some healthcare courses in England.

In light of this, UUK is campaigning to highlight the achievements of the extraordinary first in family graduates in every community, and to ensure that future generations don’t miss out on the transformative impact of a university education.

Vivienne Stern MBE, Chief Executive of Universities UK, commented: “There are those who say that too many people go to university. I disagree. These stories tell you why. In this country you are still twice as likely to go to university if you are from the wealthiest background, compared to the least wealthy. That’s not right.”

“The experiences of students who are the first in their families to have been to university tell a powerful story. I am amazed by how many graduates talked about having imposter syndrome – and the way that earning a degree helped to banish that feeling. I believe we have a responsibility to keep working to ensure a wider range of people in this country get access to the potentially transformative experience of going to university. For that to happen, we really do need to see an improvement in maintenance support to support those from the least privileged backgrounds.”