Compiling your application

Quick links:
Reflective Case Studies (All categories D1-D3)
Case Studies – Senior Fellow (D3) only
Reflective Narrative – Senior Fellow (D3) only

Reflective Case Studies (All categories D1-D3)

Please refer to the Advance HE guidance on the Dimensions of the Framework and Exemplars resources alongside this guidance.

Purpose of the case study
The case study is a substantive part of your claim for fellowship and is complementary to the other elements of your submission. It is primarily intended to:

  • Elicit depth. The focus on a single project or initiative or strand of work allows you to go into more depth in terms of rationale (particularly your evidence base and relevant scholarship), and evaluation (both in terms of impact but also reflectively – what did you learn? How did your practice change/evolve?)
  • Distinguish your practice. While many activities undertaken by academics are similar at the global level (teaching, assessing, researching) the case study allows you to give a real flavour of your own individual practice. Your teaching philosophy or values, your disciplinary interests and your personal style are more in evidence.
  • Demonstrate the Dimensions of Practice (PSF 2023).  It is critical that your Reflective Case Studies demonstrate your use and understanding of the Dimensions of Practice and their interdependencies, and reflect the level of fellowship you are applying for.
    Each dimension should be signposted individually and explicitly within the text and should provide a clear example of practice.  Do not simply provide a list (A4, K2, K3, V1) – this references the dimensions but does not explicitly demonstrate them nor show their interdependence!
  • Demonstrate the descriptor (PSF 2023). The case studies should reflect the level of fellowship you are applying for. Ensure your case study reflects appropriate:
    • Scope e.g. own practice; practice of others; policy/strategy
    • Scale e.g. teaching a few students (Associate Fellow); teaching a few modules or courses (Fellow); influencing practice across department/college (Senior Fellow); policy and strategy at institution/national/international (Principal Fellow)
    • Impact e.g. improve individual student learning/experience; improve course or programme outcomes; improve subject or professional outcomes

Subject of the case study
You can interpret this quite flexibly; just make sure you are able to demonstrate the relevant Descriptor requirements and maintain the focus of the case study on teaching and learning (rather than research outputs that impact on the profession; practice that is solely managerial or organisational in nature; work with employers; generating funding income).

Ideas for suitable case studies are listed below, but these are not comprehensive nor suggested as titles you should use. They simply represent examples of successful case studies submitted in the past.

  • A response to a perceived problem (eg retention; lack of firsts; lack of real-world experience)
  • A major curriculum innovation or change (eg new professional requirements; distance mode; internationalising content; embedding placements)
  • A planned project (introducing peer assessment/online marking; redesigning a learning space; funded pedagogical research)
  • A pedagogical approach (values-based education; enquiry based learning; peer-assisted learning; flipped learning)
  • A development experience (how researching/being a student/making a mistake/change of role etc. has impacted your practice)
  • A theme (developing employability/digital literacy/inclusivity in the curriculum) this may draw together several different, smaller initiatives or interventions.

We frequently suggest mixing up the type of case studies you use to demonstrate depth and range of practice – on the other hand you may undertake a lot of work within a specialism and need to demonstrate practice from within that. The choice is yours, provided you demonstrate the PSF 2023 effectively, there shouldn’t be any penalty for doing so. You may wish to use the context statement to explain your choices. At our development workshops and writing retreats the facilitator will help you to identify suitable case studies with the right balance.

Creating your case study
The case study should focus primarily on pedagogical aspects. Resources, logistical and other pragmatic elements should only be mentioned where they contribute to the context or constraints and should be kept brief.

Avoid general statements which could apply to any course or teaching situation and be specific (eg: ‘taking into account learners’ needs I…’ versus ‘because the learners were particularly time-poor due to demands of work I….’).

Use the first person and the active voice. (not ‘it was decided that…..’ but ‘I decided that….’)

There are many ways of structuring a case study but common elements are likely to include:

  • Context: What was the situation or challenge? Relevant objectives and/or constraints.
  • Activity: What did you decide to do and why? (focus on the latter in order to avoid excessive description). What evidence and/or theory did you use? Why did you choose a particular approach or course of action? Rationale is the most important factor the panel will look for.
  • Outcome: Was this a product (such as a new course, assessment or resource); an approach (eg pedagogical, curricular, policy); or an effect (eg on engagement; participation; attainment).
  • Impact: What positive difference did it make? To whom?
  • Evidence: How do you know the impact was successful? How did you evaluate?

There is no need to use these headings but try to ensure that you have addressed these questions somehow in your narrative. These are the elements the panel will be looking for.

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Case Studies – Senior Fellow (D3) only

You should aim to use the two case studies to address the key aspects of Descriptor 3, with a focus on your leadership and/or influence on specific aspects of learning and teaching provision which:

  • demonstrates a sustained record of leading or influencing the practice of those who teach and/or support high quality learning.
  • demonstrates practice that is effective and inclusive in relation to learning and teaching.
  • through influence on the practise of others, have an impact on students who are not taught by you directly.
  • demonstrates practice that extends significantly beyond direct teaching and/or direct support for learning.

You might highlight particular aspects of your work such as (note that these aspects are for guidance only and not intended to be prescriptive):

Developing quality enhancement

  • Ways you interact with others to ensure appropriate alignment of teaching, learning and assessment practices;
  • How you ensure that student learning is enriched by disciplinary and pedagogic research, scholarship and professional practice (your own and/or that of others);
  • Ways you have pro-actively fostered approaches to learning and teaching through creativity and innovation.

Supporting other colleagues

  • How you have supported other colleagues to enhance their practice;
  • Specific examples of how you have enhanced academic practice through co-ordinating/managing others;
  • Your roles in learning and teaching projects and initiatives at departmental, institutional level or in the wider HE context;
  • Course and programme development, review and revalidation.

Sustained engagement with educational and staff development

  • Staff development activities you have facilitated (informal and formal) that enhance your colleagues’ abilities to meet the dimensions of the PSF 2023;
  • How your contributions have promoted the student learning experience through professional development of staff under your influence and guidance e.g. through informal or formal mentoring arrangements;
  • How you have disseminated your knowledge and skills in teaching and supporting learning to audiences both within and external to your institution.

Evaluation of academic practice

  • Steps you have taken to develop your own practice and how you have used your own experience to enable others to reflect on and critique their own practice;
  • How you support, encourage and implement evaluation processes designed to enhance the student learning experience.

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Reflective Narrative – Senior Fellow (D3) only

A reflective narrative about your underpinning teaching values, your practice and how it has developed (maximum of 3,000 words)

In preparing your reflective narrative, focus in particular on the education, training, employment, roles and experience which have contributed to your professional development as teacher, mentor, facilitator of learning and academic leader. You might include informal activities, whether individual, collaborative or team-based, that you believe have had a significant impact on your academic practice and/or on the practice of others.

Highlight the primary influences on your own development, focusing on the progressive attainment of your professional capabilities and how you and others have benefitted from the continuous learning and development process involved.

You might include informal activities, whether individual, collaborative or team-based, that have had a significant impact on your academic practice and/or on the practice of others. You should clearly demonstrate an integrated and reflective approach to academic practice that incorporates research, scholarship and/or professional practice.

You may wish to reflect on some (but not all!) of these elements as appropriate:

  • Career milestones
    • Roles and responsibilities related to teaching and supporting learning;
    • Relevant qualifications obtained from formal professional development .
  • Areas of research, scholarship and/or professional practice
    • Relevant publications and/or presentations;
    • Incorporation of research, scholarship and/or professional practice into teaching and supporting learning;
    • Links with professional bodies or wider communities.
  • Involvement in teaching and learning initiatives
    • Institutional/nationally funded projects;
    • Small-medium scale investigations or awards;
    • Work with professional bodies;
    • Development and/or adoption of learning and teaching themes, for example, internationalisation, employability, assessment and feedback, retention, flexible learning, education for sustainability;
    • Dissemination of teaching and learning related expertise.
  • Recognition and reward
    • Teaching prizes, fellowships, institutional awards for innovation;
    • Professional body recognition.
  • Collaborating with others
    • Advisory, support and/or co-ordination roles in teaching and supporting learning;
    • Leadership and management roles.
  • Educational and staff development activity
    • Mentor roles in professional development programmes for new and inexperienced staff;
    • Learning and teaching workshops/seminars;
    • Related publications/document
  • Leadership, management and organisational roles within an institutional or wider higher education context
    • Learning and teaching/quality enhancement committee
    • Programme design, approval and review process;
    • Quality assurance roles and responsibilities.

The reviewers will not be judging the format through which you decide to make your claim and provide evidence of meeting the PSF 2023 criteria. However, they will be looking for a clear trajectory from novice to expert and leader. They will be expecting a reflective analysis of yourself and your practice that will help demonstrate what beliefs, philosophies and values underpin your practice and why it is that your leadership role is likely to be sustained.

Many people find they start with a linear or chronological development narrative, for example:

On the other hand, an alternative model might be to structure it in other ways, for example:

The choice is yours to make according to your preferred style.

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