ACCESS AND PARTICIPATION STATEMENT

1. Introduction:

RB College is a newly established college with the main office located in Oxford and have an office in Cairo, Egypt. It was founded and launched as a private entity to spread the excellence of UK educational standards. RB College offers undergraduate and postgraduate programmes that are accredited and validated by reputable UK awarding bodies.

We strongly believe that excellence can be accomplished by recognising the important of all our stakeholders, regardless of their background, gender, beliefs, etc. The college is focusing on providing exceptional levels of support to all of our students so they can achieve their goals and derive the most benefit from their interaction and involvement with us. Furthermore, we strive to attract the best teachers and instructors in order to provide our students with the best educational experience possible.

To achieve its mission, RB College has developed an education model that gives our courses more flexibility, help students to focus on certain topics in convenient duration, and allows free choice of students based on needs. We offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programmes to prepare students for societal needs and to give graduates a competitive advantage in the job market. And a postgraduate programme for students who want to advance their careers or pursue their passion.

As our students come from a variety of backgrounds and nationalities, RB College offers bespoke education programmes and training to students from all over the world. Our programmes are validated by our partners (OTHM - ATHE awarding bodies regulated by Ofqual and University of Portsmouth)

We are working hard to expand in different areas and increase the number of our partners in order to provide our students with all that is new in the field of education, as well as giving them many options and alternatives that suit all their needs. We also built a strong network and connections, and we create powerful links to the UK’s best universities for students’ progression routes.

2. Access and participation strategy:

The goal of the access and participation strategy is to increase student participation by expanding our networking and collaboration with local and international partners. We want to help our students get into, succeed in, and progress through higher education, further studies, or postgraduate studies. When revising or updating our statement, we consider all student comments and feedback.

The college’s senior management is always responsible for evaluating and monitoring the statement and making the necessary changes to improve it. As a result, our Access statement includes, but is not limited to: 

a) Progression and Access to Higher Education:

- We make our students aware that lifelong learning is an important part of their professional careers and that they must participate in ongoing professional development. As a result, we work hard to ensure that our graduates’ qualifications are internationally recognised, allowing them to begin a professional career and advance in the UK and abroad. On that basis, the college invested in the development of new courses and offers higher education courses.

- These courses have been validated by OTHM-ATHE awarding bodies, regulated by Ofqual and University of Portsmouth. All graduates are eligible to continue their education at one of the UK universities listed on the awarding body’s university list or through our partners. Furthermore, the college and its partners are committed to assisting students in effectively and smoothly progressing to these universities; however, their enrolment process is subject to the admission requirements of each university separately, as well as the financial capabilities of each student.

And, for students who wish to continue their studies at another institution, the college provides full guidance, and we are happy to assist with the application process by providing references as needed.

b) Non-Discrimination policy:

- The College welcomes applications from prospective students of all backgrounds and nationalities, and it strives to provide appropriate services to students with learning support needs or disabilities, as well as students with protected characteristics.

This is made easier by providing prospective students with general information that is both accessible and understandable.

- Equality is also promoted through the admission process, which recognises and rewards lifelong and experiential learning as well as continuous professional development in terms of entry requirements.

c) Tuition fees and scholarships:

- The college is keen to maintain the value for money approach in order not to deter potential students, as tuition fees tend to grow rapidly in some other Higher Education institutes.

- Part from our mission is to provide a quality educational program and maintain an attractive cost profile, and because we expect that large number of our students are coming from disadvantaged areas, we try to keep our tuition fees as low as possible to facilitate their access.

- While we strive to provide affordable programmes and courses to our students, we also strive to balance the college’s operating costs, so fees will not be fixed due to the annual increase in the cost of providing excellent educational services. However, all updated tuition fees will be communicated to our students in advance and published on our website each year.

On the other hand, RBC offers a number of scholarships, in the student’s home town, but we plan to grant international scholarships in the near future. Granting our student scholarship is dependent on several factors, including but not limited to academic excellence, inability to provide adequate funding for the study, for special categories of students, such as disabled students, single mothers, women from poor and deprived areas, students from third world countries, and so on.

To ensure impartiality and integrity in the decision-making process, all applications are considered individually, and the granting decision is reviewed by senior management.

d) Study options:

- By making its programmes available to all students, the College is committed to equal access and broadening participation. Our goal is to provide our students with quality educational programmes that are flexible and accessible.

We offer one of the most dynamic and diverse programmes available. Students can enrol in our programme in one of the following study modes, whether they are UK residents or abroad: - Class-based: Student can join our class-based programs provided in our partners` premises. - Online Study: The Online mirrors its Class-based counterpart but gives students the flexibility to attend lectures online at their own convenience. - Self-Study: It is used only for specific topics and it eliminates the need for regular weekly classes. Instead, students may attend one or two full-day sessions per course, either in person or online.

- As part of programme completion, assessments for all study options, such as individual assignments, group project work, or exams, are required.

e) Information availability:

- The college is conducting extensive targeted marketing to ensure that prospective students are fully aware of study programmes, fees, admission requirements, offers, and so on. We run marketing campaigns as well as online and offline events, and all information, including contact information, is available on the college website and all social media platforms.

- The college also participates in educational events to provide information to students interested in studying UK qualifications or enrolling in one of the UK universities.

3. Student Support:

The College welcomes applications from all prospective students and strives to provide appropriate services to students who have learning support needs, disabilities, or protected characteristics. The College provides free support to its students through a variety of mechanisms and is available from the following sources:

a) Confidential support:

The college provides disadvantaged students with confidential and personalised assistance. Their needs are well supported by appropriate staff once they have been identified during the application process, at enrolment, or by subsequent notification to the college`s staff.

b) Advice and guidance:

Before: Since the student submits his/her application to join the college, we keen to provide all support and advice, beginning with explaining all admission requirements and how to obtain the documents required for enrolment, and continuing through providing adequate information about the programme offered and the student’s academic route until the student obtains the academic qualification.

This includes the sources of study programme accreditation, the type of certificate obtained, fees and other costs, and nominating some universities that accept the awarded certificate offered by our partners. During: In addition to academic support, the college offers additional sessions to students as per request or for students who fail to pass exams.

Because our programmes are flexible and delivered in a variety of ways, we provide students with numerous options that allow them to complete their studies. Additionally, if they need to defer or adjust study timetable due to personal issues or unexpected circumstances, the college always providing them the best options available at the time.

After: Our relationship with the student does not end once he or she graduates; we also assist students who have successfully completed their courses and wish to continue their studies at a UK university, including but not limited to university offers, available courses, cost of living, English requirements, and so on.

We can also apply on behalf of student with extra charge. To ensure transparency in all our communication to students, the process and total cost including service fees, are explained to students prior to beginning their application. Furthermore, we offer IELTS preparation sessions with extra charges, free job searching through our network, interview preparation, Moreover, through our network the college can assist students who are seeking to have a decent job.

c) Additional support: -

The college has additional support:

- Our Board of Director and staff come from various backgrounds and have diverse experience; we offer our students a multinational approach by providing them with all necessary information

- if necessary - in several languages, including English, Arabic, Italian, Chinese, and French.

The college has a dedicated team to ensure the quality of programme delivery, as well as assistive technology to provide effective support for our students.

- For part-time students who frequently work long hours and want to maximise their time at studying, tutorials are delivered via the Virtual Learning Environment and, when necessary, face-to-face.

- We use many ways to have a contact with our students, e.g.: a mobile phone texting system, WhatsApp, and emails for notifications, to update students on any cancellations or changes in lecture/session dates or times, as well as notifying students who miss classes and advise them advice on how to make up for missed lectures.

- All our online sessions are recorded for students who have internet problems, particularly in areas where there is no internet infrastructure.

4. Evaluation of widening participation strategy:

As part of the college’s ethos at all levels, we are working to improve and broaden all our stakeholder’s participation, and we are closely monitoring its progress.

The feedback and recommendations of our students, staff, and teachers are obtained on a regular basis in order to evaluate all college activities for further improvement, and we aim to involve our students more through adapting a Learner Voice process, student representatives, feedback and surveys, regular meetings, and so on.

These participations will allow us to monitor the final outputs and the rate of success we have achieved, as well as the adjustments required to provide a positive environment for all stakeholders. Additionally. All of our regulations, procedures, and interactions with students are in accordance with UK law and to be reviewed by our legal advisors to ensure that all students’ rights are met.

We think we are unique among the global colleges and we encourage you to read through to find out why – here are a few simple reasons:

1. Non-discriminate environment: 
   a place where everyone is treated with respect and where ability – not background – is valued.
2. Recognition: 
   UK education is globally recognised, to date we have been successfully operating in 5 continents and have a presence in 50 countries
3. World class education: 
   we customise the learning experience to your needs. We take time to listen to your needs and in consultation with our expert we customise the program to accommodate your individual circumstances.
4. Choice of study mode:
   you can gain your degree from us either by studying through an Approved Tuition Centre or independently.
5. UK & EU degree presence:
   earn a degree developed and controlled in the European Union without the added cost of travelling, visas and living abroad.
6. Network: 
    join a community of thousands of students around the world, all of whom are in key positions in the business world.
7. Ambitious and far-reaching strategy:  
   that details our priorities and is central to our commitment to continue to be a high performing, rapidly growing, financially sustainable university.

We are an approved learning provider from the top British awarding body.

OTHM is a UK based awarding organisation regulated by Ofqual (Office of the Qualifications and Examinations Regulation) and recognised by Qualifications Wales. We have a wide global network of delivery centres which deliver our range of management and leadership qualifications and programmes in a wide variety of industries and sectors.

Additionally, we are registered with UKRLP, The UK Register of Learning Providers (UKRLP), an organisation operated by the Education and Skills Funding Agency,