The COVID-19 pandemic shone a harsh light on the entrenched inequalities that shape the educational experiences of ethnic minority students in UK higher education. At The Open University, our eSTEeM-funded project sought to examine how the pandemic affected these students’ learning journeys – and what we could learn from this disruption to address the degree awarding gap more meaningfully.

Our study focused on Level 1 Computing modules, which play a critical role in students’ transition into higher education. Using a mixed-methods approach, we analysed quantitative institutional data and held in-depth focus groups with tutors and student support stakeholders. What we uncovered reaffirmed existing disparities – but also revealed opportunities for lasting change.

The numbers tell a clear story. Across both academic years we studied (2019/20 and 2020/21), ethnic minority students had consistently lower pass and completion rates than their white peers. For example, in the module TM111, the pass rate for ethnic minority students was over 9 percentage points lower than for non-minority students. This pattern held across other core computing modules, reflecting a systemic issue rather than isolated occurrences.

But the reasons behind these gaps cannot be reduced to academic ability. Through our focus groups, we explored the broader structural and institutional challenges that shaped students’ ability to succeed – especially during the pandemic.

Structural barriers were a major theme. Participants identified economic disadvantage, digital poverty, overcrowded housing, frontline work responsibilities and mental health challenges as key hurdles disproportionately affecting ethnic minority learners. These factors often intersected. A student juggling NHS shifts, caring responsibilities and unreliable broadband was more likely to disengage, defer or underperform – not due to lack of motivation, but due to overwhelming structural pressures.

Institutional factors also played a role. While the OU made efforts to accommodate students during the pandemic, inconsistencies in support, lack of diversity among staff, and rigid evidence requirements for extensions or support services often left students feeling unseen or unsupported. Crucially, both tutors and student support staff reported limited access to ethnicity data, which hampered proactive interventions. While some felt that anonymised processes prevented bias, others saw it as a missed opportunity to tailor support more effectively.

One particularly striking insight came from discussions about belonging. Several stakeholders described how some ethnic minority students expressed feelings of disconnection from the OU – not just because of distance learning, but due to a perceived lack of cultural relatability or visibility in staff, curriculum and student services. Building genuine belonging, it became clear, requires more than slogans – it needs structural inclusion.

From our findings, we developed a set of actionable recommendations, many of which have relevance beyond COVID-19:

• Implement targeted interventions that address awarding gaps at module and faculty levels.
• Reconsider evidence requirements for support, especially for students in vulnerable or precarious circumstances.
• Reinforce belonging by establishing peer networks and consistent points of contact throughout students’ academic journeys.
• Recruit and retain diverse staff, especially tutors and central academics, to reflect and relate to students’ lived experiences.
• Enhance unconscious bias training, and ensure it is grounded in lived realities and reflective practice.
• Empower tutors with better data and tools to support their students proactively.

We’ve already seen impact: project findings were shared with module teams, the Awarding Gap Implementation Group, and international conferences, and have influenced learning design discussions in the module TM112. But the deeper legacy of this project lies in its call to action.

The pandemic didn’t create the degree awarding gap – it exposed and exacerbated it. As the OU and the sector move forward, we must use this moment to address not only emergency responses but the underlying inequalities that persist in everyday academic life.

Our students deserve more than resilience; they deserve equity, visibility and authentic support.