Institutional data infrastructures and inequalities in UK higher education spaces

Sharkawi, Talia and Pawelski, Matthew (2025) Institutional data infrastructures and inequalities in UK higher education spaces. In: UNSPECIFIED.

Abstract

Institutional data infrastructures and inequalities in UK Higher Education SpacesUniversities collect vast amounts of data about their students, supporting operations from teaching and learning to financial accounting. However, existing systems often fall short, restricting data use to basic tracking, operational tasks, and aggregate trend analyses. These limitations hinder innovation and data-driven strategies to enhance student and staff success. Addressing these challenges, research at Lancaster University examines staff engagement with student data, focusing on widening participation (WP), equality, diversity, inclusion (EDI), and decolonization. This project investigates how institutional data infrastructures shape/challenge inequalities in higher education (HE) spaces, mapping Lancaster University’s data landscape and analyzing its intersections with WP and EDI. Using qualitative methods, including semi-structured interviews, participatory mapping exercises, and secondary data analysis, the study provides a detailed understanding of data engagement and its implications. Key findings reveal that data practices are deeply embedded in networked institutional contexts, often relying on localized team knowledge and negotiated intra-organizational practices. Data sharing across teams is often relational and irregular, with GDPR restrictions and data security concerns creating anxieties. Organizational cultures of data use are shaped by regulatory frameworks, hierarchies of data value, and evolving definitions of metrics. Affective dimensions of working with WP and EDI data further complicate data access and power dynamics within workflows. The study emphasizes the importance of embedding evaluation tools into WP and EDI initiative design to integrate data collection and impact evaluation into planning and resource allocation. Addressing loosely coupled data infrastructures is also critical for fostering more systematic, equitable, and impactful practices in HE. By engaging critically with datafication, the research explores how institutions can leverage data to advance social justice and institutional transformation, contributing actionable insights for policy, practice, and future research on data governance and organizational change in HE.