ABSTRACT
Leeds for Life was developed to help students get the most out of their time at university by supporting personal and academic development and as a vehicle for personal tutoring. The challenge for online tutors is to provide support that promotes contact between tutors and students and between groups of students to keep learners engaged and motivated. The strategy of widening participation has aimed to attract students from lower socio-economic backgrounds and from families with no prior experience of participation in Higher Education (HE). Personal tutoring, whether delivered in groups via a tutorial/study skills module or on an individual basis either informally or via timetabled or regular meetings, remains the departmental, front-line, support mechanism for students and may fulfil the functions of both academic and pastoral tutoring. The diversity of students, their different socio-economic and cultural backgrounds and the different routes through which they have entered HE, means that students come differently prepared for study at that level.
