MAP:HE
Your path to HEA Fellowship
“My Accredited Pathway to HE”, in short, MAP:HE, is Canterbury Christ Church University’s accredited route to gaining HEA Fellowships, for all staff at the University and in partner institutions involved in the delivery of Higher Education programmes. The scheme is open to all staff with substantial experience of working in the Higher Education sector (over three years usually), who are involved in supporting student learning, whether you are an academic, researcher or work in professional services. It is also open to some colleagues working at the University’s strategic collaborative partner institutions.
Why should you be interested in an HEA Fellowship?
Becoming an HEA Fellow means joining an internationally-recognised network of professionals working in Higher Education today.
The application process (we call it a 'claim') is a good way of developing your professional skills and reflective practice. It gives you the space to look back over your achievements and accomplishments, enabling you to build on that base and identify your next career goal, by highlighting where your strengths lie.
Gaining a HEA Fellowship also gives you national and international status and recognition, as many Higher Education Institutions require this qualification for academic posts, including at more senior levels. At Canterbury Christ Church University, you will need to have gained HEA Fellowship as part of your internal promotion application for the role of Senior Lecturer and Professor, and Senior Fellowship for the post of Principal Lecturer.
Canterbury Christ Church University is an approved accreditor of HEA Fellowships and our simple, structured application process will help you to achieve the fellowship you want with support at every step of the way.
Colleagues who have successfully completed their Fellowships have provided very positive comments, as you can read from these short blogs:
Wayne Barry - 'On the shoulders of giants - my Senior Fellow experience'
Nicole Pollock - 'Becoming a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy'
Hazel Hyder - 'My engagement with AFHEA'
What are HEA Fellowships?
Advance HE (formerly the Higher Education Academy, HEA) is the UK national body which champions teaching quality. Their mission is to improve learning outcomes by raising the quality and status of teaching in Higher Education as an essential driver for student success. The Fellowships form part a national recognition programme which enables individuals and institutions to continuously develop teaching quality. The sector-agreed core standards for teaching at different stages of an individual’s career are also held by Advance HE and are known as the United Kingdom Professional Standards Framework (UK PSF, see table on the right-hand side of this page). The UK PSF is used as the basis for preparing for and evaluating claims for the different categories of Fellowship.
The categories of Fellowship and their typical characteristics are:
Associate Fellow: for staff who take on general teaching or learning support responsibilities, with or without support, and can demonstrate understanding of the context and values of Higher Education.
Fellow: for staff who can demonstrate a broad based effectiveness in all aspects of learning and teaching within their discipline, including the use of learning technology and show understanding of the processes, context and values of Higher Education.
Senior Fellow: for staff who can demonstrate evidence of a sustained level of effectiveness in learning and teaching and have significant evidence of academic leadership, management and/or influence in HE learning and teaching.
Principal: for highly experienced academic practitioners who have sustained and effective impact at a strategic level in relation to HE learning and teaching, at an institutional level and often with a significant national or international profile.
The University is accredited to award all categories of Fellowship apart from Principal Fellow. If you are particularly interested in pursuing a Principal Fellowship, please get in touch using the email below, and you will still receive support from us to prepare your claim. However, you will submit your application directly to Advance HE.
Who to contact
In the first instance, please contact your Faculty Director of Learning and Teaching.
If you are working in a professional service role supporting learning, please contact maphe@canterbury.ac.uk
For other information, please email maphe@canterbury.ac.uk
How to prepare my claim
The handbook on the right-hand side of this page gives you plenty of information about the content of your claim for each Fellowship category.
We also have a dedicated MAP:HE Blackboard site which contains more guidance, including video recordings, to support you through your application process. Please email maphe@canterbury.ac.uk to be given access to the site.
You will also be allocated a mentor if you request one, and you will be able to take part in writing retreats during which you can spend a bit of time “away from the day job” and make progress with your claim.