Foundation Year: Importance, Challenges, and Study Skills Report

This report delves into the significance of foundation years in higher education, emphasizing their role in bridging skill gaps and preparing students for university. It highlights the benefits of foundation courses, such as providing time for goal setting and improving preparedness. The report identifies key challenges encountered by students, including time management, language barriers, work-life balance, cultural shock, financial concerns, and a lack of study skills. It then explores how specific study skills, like time management, communication, and effective learning strategies, can help students overcome these challenges and succeed. The report concludes by underscoring the importance of foundation years for career development and academic success. The report also discusses the various challenges and how study skills can help in overcoming the challenges. The report also mentions the importance of the foundation year for students.

INDIVIDUAL REPORT

Table of Content
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
1. Importance of foundation year for students ...........................................................................3
2. Challenges faced by students of foundation year....................................................................4
3. Study skills in higher education can aid foundation year students overcome the challenges 6
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8

INTRODUCTION
Higher education is important in order to make improvement by guiding the students in
context of increasing their level of study for the higher education. In which to enhance the higher
education skill, foundation course play the vital role in the education life of the students. This
report will examine the importance of foundation year course for the students while wide
participation from different background. Key challenges which are faced by the students of
foundation year is also going to be explained with this report. Lastly different skills that can over
come those challenges of the students in their foundation year also will be identified.
1. Importance of foundation year for students
There are lots of benefits of the foundation year for the students of the UK. As this
foundation year helps the students to fill the gap with knowledge and skills which are left behind
to enhance their career. Foundation year affect the leaner by providing them to effective skills
and knowledge and give the best experience of the foundation year. So that students can focus on
the to fix that skills and what is wrong, what is missing and talent which need to have in any
students to make their career. Wider participation of the students in the foundation year help the
students to expand their areas to gain he different knowledges tat can help them to enhance their
skill, with the help of those skills, students can get or obtain their future goals (Ridker and Cook,
2016). As there are different kinds of students, who come from different background to
participate in the foundation year. There are many benefits like:
Students can be better prepared for the first year: This is the one of the most important factor of
the foundation year, as this helps the students to get prepared for the first year in the college and
universities. As he foundation year students get the idea ad knowledge about the universities,
how it works and what are the benefits to get degree from the recognized universities, how to
behave in it, so that students can prepare their mind for the universities and the way it operates
and teach to their students. As some foundation year course is affiliated with the universities, this
gives the advantage to students, that they can get direct entry in the university.
Foundation year gives more time to set their goals: Foundation year coerces are flexible and
provide flexibility to their students that they can apply to the different courses as well (Pathway
to university: why you shouldn’t feel bad about doing a foundation year, 2018). Students have
enough time think, what they actually want to do in future and in which field they want to make

career, as according to that they can set their future goals and can make planning accordingly.
Foundation course helps to fill the gap with knowledge and skills, so that students can get better
career path and can achieve their future goals in higher education. Attending the foundation year
by the students, can focus on their wrong learning, which skill they have missed and can enhance
their skill by conducting the study. This helps to develop their background as well.
More motivated to work hard: If any student not doing well in their first year of the foundation
course, then foundation year system of the UK give the facility and chance to their students, that
they can study in the second round of their foundation course and also can study in the
universities (O'Sullivan and et.al., 2019). This helps top motivate the students to work hard in
their second chance of foundation year. As for this, parents also spend money to attend the
foundation year, this also helps students to get motivated.
Helps to build relation: As in the foundation year students from the different background come
to study and to fill their gap of knowledge and skill that help them to enhance their career
development. In this, students make relation and friendship with other students and build their
strong relation with them. Different background students have different language as well this
helps the other students to learn new language. This different language helps to enhance their
career development and in the universities as well. With this they can perform with ease in the
universities and learn new things. Some friends from the foundation year also go along with each
other in universities, this make students comfortable in new environment like universities.
2. Challenges faced by students of foundation year
There are number of key challenges which are being faced by the students of foundation
year. They have to face many challenges like communication, time management, money
management and many more. In this also have the challenge in choosing the right course for
studying, that can help to fill the gap and help[ to get entry in the recognized universities of UK.
Some challenges are:
Time management — As foundation course is flexible learning which provide the students to
learn any time. This can be part-time, full time, or may be on days, weekend and evening. This
provides the flexibility to their students t also create the problem that students can not focus of
their study, they have to choose between their work priorities of course learning, this creates the
challenge in from of the students while pursuing foundation year (Marshall, 2016).

Language barriers — Another challenge which is faced by the students of foundation year in
language barrier, or communication. As the students of the foundation year come from the
different background with having different communication language (Newton, 2016). This
creates the barriers when they want to have conversation with other students and make friends.
This also make it difficult for the students to acquire the learning knowledge from the course and
students can not fill their gap of knowledge and skill.
Work life balance — As foundation has flexibility to learn. But this also creates the barriers for
the students who also so part-time job. This creates the problem for the students to manage their
time as according to the foundation years, they have to either leave their job or leave foundation
to manage time. They have to face this challenge to manage time to learn from foundation year
and to fill the gap with their skill and talents. This can help to gen entry in universities to fulfil
their future goals of career.
Culture Shock: It is the first challenge which each and every international students have faced
cultural shock that have to go through while adjust to life in new nation. This kind of challenge
faced by students while studying in foundation year (Eddama and et.al., 2016). All people have
culture which are differed from others. It is difficult to understand the different culture that can
challenge for students while studying in foundation year. This can impact on the career
development and progression in the upcoming time.
Value of money: It is the also most essential and complex challenges to arranging the money for
admissions in foundation year. It another challenge arise in selecting the courses which can incur
value of money and best providing to the students (Humm and et.al., 2018). Students can not be
aware for course or have knowledge and behind selecting particular subject that can or can not
advantage then in the future. Therefore, this makes confusion and challenges and for the students
to select various courses as per their money worth. This can impact on the career development
and progression in the upcoming time.
Lack of study skills: It is the also challenge which faced by students while admissions in
foundation year for higher education. Therefore, students make efforts to develop the study skills
like time management, communication etc. for effective studying in higher education. This can
impact on the career development and progression in the upcoming time. Study skills are very
essential for development in both personal and professional life as well as their career

development. Thus, students must try to develop their study skills for developing their
professional career.
3. Study skills in higher education can aid foundation year students overcome the challenges
In relation to follow the higher education, enhance knowledge of subject, get new
abilities or earn qualification, one of must have benefit of different study abilities which can
assists students to accomplish all these elements with effective manner. Improvement of study
abilities not only aid the students to promote their confidence and succeed in increasing
knowledge from course offering but also create students work effectively in available time to
study (Newton, 2016). All the same, improvement of these abilities is long term procedure of
single person mainly for those students who have gaps in their education, new to the higher
education or recently working in company and needs to complete the higher education. Here are
different basic abilities which are essential for students to initiate good learning from foundation
course like writing, communication, presentation abilities. This can aid to develop skills and
knowledge and completing the higher education. Also, this can assist in career growth and
development. Also, this can help to development in both personal and professional.
The main study skill is time management skills and ability to improve learning strategies
which can develop by students. Time management skill can allow students to handle the time
with work and studies. It can make schedule for the students to assign particular time to different
activities that can assist them to acquire time available for the studies (Hestbaek and et.al., 2017).
Students have to be specific with the time management and discover time for studies and
academics, so that they can reduce challenge of time flexibility of foundation year. Also, it can
aid the students further while take their courses and in higher education to handle the time
effectively for increasing their grades. This can aid to develop abilities and cognition as well as
accomplishing the higher education. Also, this can assist in career growth and development.
Also, this can help to development in both personal and professional.
The study skills consists learning of various communication specially the top global
language that can make them having no hesitation in taken their higher education through
foundation year. This study skills of learning the language can also overcome language barrier
from following higher education by relieved students from various nations (Eddama and et.al.,
2016). This ability can not only reduce the language barrier challenge but also aid to students to

effective learning of their subjects. It can assist them in future during their job placement in
corporate world.
In addition to that, the other ability can involve getting the knowledge and understanding
of the subject from online instructor and references in relation to increase deep knowledge for
the subject that can aid them to be acquired desirable for the course (Humm and et.al., 2018).
This can not only increase their knowledge relating subject but also create their qualification
criteria and better experience. This can aid to reduce challenge of eligibility criteria in relation to
foundation year for the students. This can aid to develop skills and knowledge and completing
the higher education. Also, this can assist in career growth and development. Also, this can help
to development in both personal and professional (Eddama and et.al., 2016).
CONCLUSION
From the above report it has been concluded that, foundation course for the students is
very important. this play vital role to fill the gap with skills and knowledge, that can help those
students to achieve their gaols of future career. it also been analyzed that while pursuing the
foundation year, students have to face number of challenges like language barriers, work life
balance, homesickness and many more. this create the problem to pursue foundation year course.
this course also play important role that give direct entry in the university to achieve their career
goals. it also been summarized that, with the help of time management skill, communication and
on line resource, those challenges can be overcome.

REFERENCES
Books and journals
Eddama, M. M. and et.al., 2016. A Model of Basic Surgical Skills Course to Supplement the
Training of Foundation-Year Doctors by Efficient Use of Local Resources. Journal of
surgical education. 73(4). pp.567-574.
Hestbaek, L. and et.al., 2017. Influence of motor skills training on children’s development
evaluated in the Motor skills in PreSchool (MiPS) study-DK: study protocol for a
randomized controlled trial, nested in a cohort study. Trials. 18(1). p.400.
Humm, G. and et.al., 2018. Teaching ‘Foundation Skills in Surgery’: evaluating the Association
of Surgeons in Training course. The Bulletin of the Royal College of Surgeons of
England. 100(5). pp.223-227.
Marshall, C.A., 2016. Stories with a Foundation. In Widening Participation, Higher Education
and Non-Traditional Students(pp. 179-188). Palgrave Macmillan, London.
Newton, J., 2016. Foundation skills policy contexts and measures of impact. NCVER report.
O'Sullivan and et.al., 2019. Academic identity, confidence and belonging: The role of
contextualised admissions and foundation years in higher education. British Educational
Research Journal.
Ridker, P.M. and Cook, N.R., 2016. The pooled cohort equations 3 years on: building a stronger
foundation. Circulation. 134(23). pp.1789-1791.
Online
Pathway to university: why you shouldn’t feel bad about doing a foundation year.2018.[Online].
Available through<https://www.timeshighereducation.com/student/blogs/pathway-
university-why-you-shouldnt-feel-bad-about-doing-foundation-year>