During Point 1 of the Catalyst Programme, we run an interactive workshop, hosted by a school in each of our hubs, for year 8 students.

This workshop encourages participants to work together to explore three key questions:

• Who goes to university?
• Why would someone want to go to university?
• What are different universities like?

Students were given an opportunity to design their dream universities to investigate which potential elements are most important to them, and which examples in real life might match up with their criteria.

After our Point 1 visits in 2024-25, 78% of students agreed or strongly agreed that they understood the key features of a university – a 129% increase from the 34% who agreed or strongly agreed with the same statement before the workshops. Students also learnt how going to university could benefit them and were more likely to consider it as an option for themselves as a result of attending these workshops.

Take a look at some of the great work produced by students during our Point 1 events in the gallery below: