What could be more important for a university than having a portfolio of programmes that are popular with applicants, that generate high level of satisfaction amongst students and which leads to outcomes that are valued by graduates, employers and society?
The i-MAP Project provides support to universities for the review and development of their academic portfolios. It covers the review of existing programmes, the successful launch of new programmes and the phasing out of provision.
Two phases of the i-MAP Project were funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) in 2011/12 and 2014/15. The i-MAP Project, first published in 2012, investigated whether universities might increase the number of new programmes that recruit a viable first cohort of students by adopting a more market-led approach.
The i-MAP Study, conducted in 2014/15, explored the impact of the original Project and also considered how universities mange the closure of academic provision. The reports of the i-MAP Project and the i-MAP Study can be downloaded at the end of this page. An article about the Project appeared in THE on 08/10/15.
Since 2015, a range of consultancy support has been available to universities who wish to implement the i-MAP Project and the i-MAP Study recommendations including briefings for Governing Bodies, Executive or senior teams, academic board, senate etc with opportunity for questions and answers.
More detailed support is provided by half or full day team workshops, at university or faculty level, aimed at academics and professional support staff including finance, HR, planning, QA and student recruitment. It is also possible to undertake an audit of current practice against i-MAP good practice and recommendations.
As of 2020, the leadership of the i-MAP Project has moved from i-MAP.org.uk to the Entrepreneurial Ⓜ️indset Network. This will ensure the continuation of the Project, that the Project and Study reports will remain available and that universities will have access to ongoing support.
The latest consultancy support is designed to help universities to take a more entrepreneurial approach to the strategic management of the academic portfolio, with an emphasis on meeting real needs, innovation, marketing, HR transformation and financial sustainability. Please enquire for further details.