Shifting student engagement: the impact of commuting and COVID-19 on assessment gaps at a London University

Previously, we have identified significant differences between our ethnically diverse and white students in their commuting habits (Page et al. 2021). This demonstrated significantly longer and complex journeys faced by commuting students with significant time spent on travel that created extra stress, dissatisfaction, and differential attainment. There has been little research to demonstrate the direct impact on individual attainment, BME awarding gaps throughout the COVID-19 pandemic (when essentially most students no longer commuted to study). Here, we report the impact of the significant reduction in commuting through the COVID-19 pandemic on attainment between a diverse range of students who would previously have commuted.