Pathways into higher education (HE) still suffer from a lack of parity of esteem. Too often, foundation years and CertHEs are seen as fallback options – a detour for those who couldn’t make it onto a “real” degree.
That perception is wrong, and it’s time we challenged it. These programmes are not remedial; they are rigorous, high-value routes that prepare students to thrive at university and beyond.
In my role at Roehampton, and through my wider career in apprenticeships and employability, I’ve seen how central pathways are to the sector. They draw in students who might otherwise be locked out of higher education: learners from further education with vocational qualifications, mature students returning after time in work, and international students developing academic English.
Others simply don’t have the right subject combination from school to progress directly to a degree. Pathways provide them with a structured, supportive and respected entry point into higher education.
And here’s the crucial point: these students don’t just “catch up”. In many respects, they arrive at the start of their degree more ready to study at university level.
Foundation and pathway programmes do more than cover subject knowledge. They build the skills and habits of successful students: independent study, critical thinking, confidence in communication, and, for many, academic English.
By the time pathway students progress to the first year of their degree, they are well-equipped to succeed. Far from being remedial, pathways accelerate readiness.
They also foster collaboration between colleges and universities. Foundation programmes are carefully mapped so that what students learn in FE flows smoothly into the expectations of HE. That curriculum alignment doesn’t just ease the transition for learners – it creates shared ownership across the sectors. Pathways quietly model what genuine partnership can look like.
Recent policy developments underline their importance. The new skills white paper promises a single regulatory system for levels 4-6 under the Office for Students. For the first time, parity between FE and HE is being hard-wired into the system rather than left to aspiration. Pathways already embody that joined-up model, demonstrating how collaboration and progression can work in practice.
The same white paper introduces V Levels to sit alongside A levels and T Levels, with a goal of simplifying technical education at level 3. That shift will shape the next generation of pathway learners. As V Levels replace the current patchwork of vocational qualifications, we have a real opportunity to ensure smoother progression into higher education through stronger FE-HE alignment.
Pathways also sit squarely within the government’s lifelong learning entitlement agenda. If learners are to move flexibly in and out of study across their lives, we need entry points that support non-linear journeys. Foundation years and CertHEs already do that – they are the living, proven infrastructure of modular learning.
Local Skills Improvement Plans and the proposed new regional improvement teams reinforce the same principle: routes, not ranks. Pathways connect colleges, universities and employers, ensuring learners don’t fall through the cracks between local skills needs and higher-level study.
And for providers, these programmes aren’t just “nice to have”. They support widening participation, strengthen student outcomes, and align with the success measures regulators focus on. For universities and FE colleges alike, pathway provision is part of how institutions are held to account.
The challenge, then, is one of esteem. Employers should understand pathways as evidence of resilience, determination and adaptability. Policymakers should treat them as a vital part of the post-16 landscape, not as peripheral experiments. And within education itself, we should be proud of what pathways achieve for students and society.
The real test of fairness in higher education is not how we treat those who follow a straight line from A-levels to graduation. It’s how we design for those whose journeys take a different route. Pathways make those journeys possible.
For thousands of students every year, they are not a back door to university – they are the front door. And it’s time we treated them that way.
Your thoughts