Professional work experience during study is strongly evidenced to enhance graduate attainment. However, students most at risk, particularly those from underrepresented groups, often face barriers to participation. To tackle these challenges in practice, a consortium of 16 UK universities and Practera* are collaborating on a shared initiative: Horizons. Horizons is the UK’s leading higher education programme providing students from widening participation backgrounds with introductory professional work experience. Horizons aims to make professional experience more accessible and available to Undergraduate students from Widening Participation (WP) groups defined as at-risk of Progression from Higher Education by the Office for Students. Horizons provides students with a structured and supported 3-week, 30-hour, CV-worthy professional project experience with an authentic industry client. All HEIs attendees of the AccessHE 2026 conference are invited to access five FREE places for an upcoming Horizons cohort. There are regular cohorts available. Click here for more information. Key benefits for your students: Work on a 3-week, 30-hour online consulting project for a real industry client with structured, regular industry engagement Collaborate in diverse, cross-institutional teams on multi-disciplinary themes such as Growth Strategy, Technology Innovation and Sustainable Impact Access support through online employability training, Practera’s professional facilitators, industry feedback, and a digital certificate via the Practera platform. 2025 cohorts have demonstrated consistently positive impact across 100 students, 3 cohorts & 14 universities 93% student completion rate 87% of students felt they gained relevant work experience 91% of students intend to cite their experience in future job applications Employers attending AccessHE are also invited to participate as an Industry Client and to submit a project brief to receive fresh business insights from diverse, aspiring students. Horizons’ goal is to build a national platform for employers to engage with and change graduate DEI outcomes for the better. Connect with partners@practera.com for more information. *Horizons is powered by Practera, providing authentic, digitally-enabled experiential learning solutions for 15 years to 130 universities and 200,000 learners and employers.