POSTGRADUATE COURSES for BAME students have been made more accessible thanks to a £4.9 million bid by Bradford University.

The University of Bradford has been successful with two bids to help to increase access and participation for black, Asian and minority ethnic groups to take part in postgraduate research study.

The bids include a £1.3m project to be run solely at the University and a £3.6m Yorkshire-wide project, to which the University will contribute £118,000.

The project, called Brad-ATTAIN (Bradford Pathways to Academia for Minoritised Ethnicitiesis) will support internships for undergraduates to give them an understanding of what postgraduate research involves and as well as giving 24 interns the opportunity to take part in a 10-week placement over four years.

It will be led by Prof Udy Archibong MBE who is Pro Vice-Chancellor for Equality Diversity and Inclusion and directs the UoB’s Centre for Inclusion and Diversity.

She said: "The lack of BAME postgraduates means the research community does not benefit from diverse research perspectives. In addition, the lack of visibility of BAME academic staff is something which has been identified by students through our own consultation events. At the heart of Brad-ATTAIN is the drive to develop a sustainable, evidence based and community-embedded model of practice which addresses this gap and which is transferable across the HE sector as a whole.

“Brad-ATTAIN will increase the access and participation of black, Asian and minority ethnic students in postgraduate study to make diversity counts, and that delivers impact through increased representation in academic and research across the region."

The project will be based in the University and will bring together partners from across the region.

Kersten England CBE, Chief Executive, Bradford Council, said: “I’m delighted both as a member of the council of the University and Chief Executive of Bradford Council that we have been successful in securing funding for this important programme.

Brad-ATTAIN’s District-wide partnership shares a commitment to social justice, equality and inclusion. This programme furthers these objectives by supporting talented students from underrepresented black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds to progress their academic studies at postgraduate level.”

The University of Bradford is also a member of a consortium of universities in Yorkshire that has been successful in its bid to spearhead a £3.6m project called Yorkshire Consortium for Equity in Doctoral Education (YCEDE) which also aims to dramatically increase the number of BAME postgraduates.

The University of Bradford will commit £118,000 to the project, via a series of mentoring support sessions.