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Page contents

The following topics are covered on this page:

• What are ChangeMakers Projects
• Inclusive Partnerships
• Who can apply?
• How does it work?
• Support for developing your application
• Further support and guidance

What are ChangeMakers Projects?

ÐÂÏã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½á¹ûChangeMakers has been running at ÐÂÏã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½á¹ûsince 2014/15. It was initiallyÌýset up toÌýsupportÌýstudent's ideas to enhance education at UCL. This has evolved to a student-staff partnership approach where students and staff collaborate as equal partnersÌýon projects that improve the learning and wider student experienceÌýat UCL. This offers anÌýexpansive approach to educational enhancement, by recognising that students and staff have something different but valuableÌýto offer.ÌýChangeMakers provides funding for student stipends andÌýproject expensesÌýto facilitate this process, as well as a wealth of experience and support to help make the projectÌýa success.ÌýThis makes ChangeMakersÌýa great initiativeÌýfor takingÌýaction on student ideas and feedback.

The staff-student partnership has been fundamental to this project and has been the foundation of all planning, design and co-ordination. Staff and students alike committed considerable time to this project, from the initial proposal through to our collective evaluation and reflections. ÐÂÏã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½á¹ûStaff Partner

Ìý

Inclusive partnerships

“The collaboration has fostered an exchange of knowledge that was fundamental to the functioning of this team and the establishment of this project. It brought diverse perspectives and expertise to the project, leading to more comprehensive and insightful outcomes. ÐÂÏã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½á¹ûStaff Partner, 2022/23““

Student-staff partnerships offer an opportunity for students to influence education, engaging them as actors rather than objects in learning or research. They enable us to acknowledge the complex identities and experiences individuals bringÌýto learning and knowledge co-construction (Mercer-MapstoneÌýand Bovill, 2020). Being intentional about how we are workingÌýand who we are working with will help to ensure we are empowering under-represented and marginalised students, rather than replicating existing inequalities and prioritising the voices of the already engaged.Ìý

• Use the 'Creating Inclusive Partnerships' toolkit to build anÌýinclusive and culturally sensitiveÌýpartnership approach toÌýyour ChangeMakers project.Ìý

Who can apply?

• Anyone can apply for project funding.Ìý
• We particularly welcome applications from staff and students who are underrepresented and/or identify as belonging to a marginalised group.
• Applications must be a joint madeÌýbetween staff and students to signal a partnership approach from the outset.
• We also prioritise projects that are looking to make change across a programme orÌýdepartment(s), rather than making a change on an individual module. However, we do recognise that some projects will want to pilot the change on a smaller-scale initially, but these will be looking at how changes or lessons learnt can be shared and implemented more widely.

I'm a student, and not sure who to work with in my department:

The ChangeMakers team are here to support you in developing an initial idea and identifying who toÌýapproach in your department to get your idea up and running. Reach out to Fiona Wilkie for an initial chat (f.wilkie@ucl.ac.uk) or consider attending one of our support sessions like: .Ìý

“What was surprising was the level of interaction with the staff – personal meetings, conversations etc. were all common and very relaxed. There was never a feeling of intimidation or authority that made the work uncomfortable. ÐÂÏã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½á¹ûStudent Project lead, 22/23

How does it work?

1. Pick a theme:

Enhancement theme: Making Connections

This is a broad theme to encourage teams to explore educational enhancement in terms of the different ways students want to make connections during their university experience. This could be:

• Connections between people: with staff, their cohorts and between year groups and levels of study;
• Making connections between what students are learning andÌýthe cutting-edge research our staff are engaged in;
• Connecting course learning with the biggerÌýsocietal challenges and students' own aspirations to make an impact on the world;
• Connections with industry and how students developÌýtheirÌýprofessional skills;
• Ensuring students feel well connected at university so that they are able to succeed and thrive whilst here.Ìý

This theme recognises that making connections at university is vital to a good student experience, helping students develop a sense of belonging and disciplinary identity.

Find out more about this theme, including examples of past projects

Innovation theme: Re-imagining Education

This themeÌýsupports projects that are keen to explore how we can do things differently at UCL. UCL's Education Priorities and Project paper sets out a vision for a futures-orientated approach to education

• These projects can be used to test out an idea before it is embedded in the curriculum.
• It might also be that you don't have the solution right now, but the project will help facilitate a process of 'unlearning' or 're-imagining' with students and staff to help consider new possibilities.
• For this theme, your application might set out the challenges and how you will plan to facilitate co-creation and collaboration between staff and students.
• We are particularly keen to hear from teams wanting to work across programmes, departments or centres to see how cross-disciplinary collaborations can fuel changes in education.

This theme also represents a really good opportunity to think through concepts like social justice and equity in education or to explore how developments in AI could assist student learning.

Find out more about this theme, including examples of past projects

Eugenics Legacy Education Project (ELEP) theme: Engaging with Difficult Knowledge

This theme offers support and funding for students and staff to come forward with ideas such as updating module content, modelling good practice, and working creatively with difficult knowledge.ÌýOne the key aims of the project is to work with students, especially people who experience structural discrimination and exclusion that stems from eugenic ideas.

• Find out about the Eugenics Legacy Education Project
• Get more information andÌýsupport for a developing a project under this theme

Student Success ChangeMakers fund

The ÐÂÏã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½á¹ûStudent Success team and ChangeMakers are excited to present a transformative initiative dedicated to empowering marginalised and underrepresented students. The ÐÂÏã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½á¹ûStudent Success team leads on the design, development, and implementation of UCL’s strategies to support academic success and close awarding and retention gaps across ÐÂÏã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½á¹ûand one factor in achieving theseÌýaims is the pressing need for inclusive educational opportunities.

This funding allocation of up to £5000 is intended for students who self-identify as members of marginalised or underrepresented groups within the ÐÂÏã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½á¹ûcommunity,Ìýto enable the academic success, retention and continuation of underrepresented, UK domiciled, undergraduate students.

The approach centres on the unique strengths, resilience, and untapped potential within marginalised communities. Through this initiative, we aim to proactively address systemic barriers, and provide these student groups with the platform to contribute to real change at UCL.

• Get more information and support for developing a project under this theme
• Find out more about the Student Success team

2. Choose your project hours:

You can bid for funding for either a 60-hour projectÌýor a 90-hour project. Project hours can be divided between multipleÌýstudents as fits your project's needs.Ìý

60-hour projects: £900 available to pay student stipends

This amount ofÌýprojectÌýhours is good for a small team of students working with a member of staff to pilot and evaluateÌýaÌýchange.

90-hour projects: £1300 availableÌýto pay student stipends

This amountÌýof hours might particularly suit cross-disciplinary or faculty-level projects where you need a bigger team of students.Ìý

3. Identify project Expenses:

In addition, the team can also bid for up to £300 in project expenses to pay for things like vouchers for incentives and catering for events/sessions/workshops. Project expenses cannot pay for capital costs e.g. equipment.Ìý

4. Make an application via our .

• Ìý

  download a word version of the application form

  download a word version of the application form
  to work on with your project team. Info can then easily be copied and pasted into our online form via the ChangeMakers Moodle.
• The application form has been designed to help you think through the various stages and considerations for yourÌýproject, so will help you plan out a successful and manageable project.Ìý
• Make sure you have looked at our.

Support forÌýdeveloping your application:

• Book onto a to get an overview of what ChangeMakers is, how it works and tips for putting in a successful application. This session is open to all staff and students at UCL.Ìý
• Come long to our workshop where we can support you in developing a partnership approach that will work for your students. This session works best when staff and students from the team join together.Ìý
• AreÌýyou a studentÌýand not 100% sure if this is for you? Our session is aÌýstudent-only session and will cover some areas like: making change, building networks and developing your idea.Ìý
• Familiarise yourself with our Ìý(via our ), which our student/staff panel will use to review applications against and award funding.Ìý

Further support & guidance: