How Kortext is helping the University of East London empower every student

Overview of impact

• KeyText has enhanced the student experience and strengthened academic outcomes. 

• 15.4% lift in continuation rates for home students who used the Kortext platform.  

• High level of student engagement (75% registration, 74% active use) with eBooks. 

Opportunity for all

The University of East London (UEL), with campuses in Stratford and the Royal Albert Dock, has been preparing students for the jobs of the future for more than 125 years. 

UEL was founded in 1898 to serve both local and global communities, with the belief that education is a powerful force for reducing inequality and creating a brighter future for all. 

Now welcoming 40,000 students from over 160 nations, UEL was named University of the Year for Teaching Quality and England’s fastest-rising institution for graduate employability in 2025. 

Closing the gap 

As one of the UK’s most diverse and socially inclusive universities, UEL has a student body with higher-than-average numbers from economically deprived households and minoritised ethnic communities, and many face multiple intersecting disadvantages.  

As a result, some students are unable to afford core textbooks, devices such as laptops or tablets, and reliable internet access. This risks the creation of a two-tier environment, where those who can afford such resources gain an academic advantage over peers who cannot.  

The potential for digital inequality is further increasing as AI tools become more integrated into higher education, making equitable access to technology a critical and ongoing challenge. 

Breaking down barriers

Since 2021, UEL has directly partnered with Kortext to address barriers to learning through their free eTextbook scheme, KeyText, although the collaboration dates back to 2013. By ensuring equal access to essential reading, the scheme creates a level playing field where no student is disadvantaged by the cost of academic resources.

Funded by the university’s Access and Participation Plan, KeyText provides every undergraduate student with one core eTextbook per module. The texts are selected by academics, provisioned by the library, and made available to students directly through the Kortext platform. 

As KeyText is a university-wide scheme, it was imperative that Kortext was able to supply a broad range of titles to meet academic requirements. Since the scheme began, Kortext’s extensive catalogue has met UEL’s wide-ranging needs, ensuring seamless availability. 

‘Kortext has a huge amount of experience in working with publishers. And one thing that we found is that Kortext would go above and beyond in trying to work with publishers to ensure that the content was made available to our students.’

Professor Gaurav Malik, Director of Educational Experience in the School of Architecture, Computing and Engineering, UEL.

Students can access their core learning resources on Kortext’s platform anytime, anywhere, on any device, with content enhanced by personalisation options and accessibility features.  

They can also download content and access it offline, so an unreliable internet connection or a lack of data need not be a barrier to a student’s learning.  

‘One of the best things about the Kortext platform is its ease of use, especially compared to other eTextbook platforms. Kortext is the most intuitive which is a big factor in why the university likes using it so much.’

Jacob Williams, KeyText Scheme Coordinator, UEL.

In addition, UEL has given all their students access to Kortext study+, an enhanced study platform with AI-powered tools that enable learners to summarise, translate, and generate interactive questions and answers on content, amongst other features.  

These tools have proved popular with students. Being able to translate text into 130+ languages ensures learning is inclusive for UEL’s diverse student population. More broadly, universal access to AI tools is helping UEL to combat a two-tier learning environment. 

‘The two features that I really love [are] the study notes, but then also the Q&A … If I’m looking to make a report and I need concise notes, I’ll take the study notes as my favourite feature. But if I’m looking to revise for an exam, I’d use the generated questions.’ 

Darya Ashrafi, UEL student and Kortext student ambassador.

The collaboration between Kortext and UEL extends beyond resource delivery. Weekly meetings with a dedicated Kortext Account Manager ensure the partnership runs smoothly. Kortext has also delivered bespoke training for library staff, enhancing their knowledge of the platform. 

Improving learning outcomes

The KeyText scheme has delivered measurable improvements in student performance, engagement and progress – and the success of the scheme continues to grow. 

In 2024/25, UEL saw significant increases in student engagement with the Kortext platform, reflecting the impact of outreach by the library and Kortext student ambassadors. 

Kortext analytics allow UEL to understand student engagement in detail, including how often books are opened, which chapters are accessed, and how much time is spent reading. 

These data confirm a clear link: students who actively use learning resources on the Kortext platform achieve better results than those who do not. 

UEL’s learner analytics further evidence the scheme’s benefits. For 2023/24, data for UEL home students showed a 15.4% lift in continuation rates among Kortext users, indicating that engagement with the platform directly supports student retention and success. 

Partnering for success

By ensuring that essential resources are available in one place, without cost or access barriers, the KeyText scheme has enhanced the student experience, strengthened academic outcomes, and provided staff with the insights needed to support learning effectively. 

‘We find that Kortext is one of the pillars of the success of our students, because of the way Kortext has evolved as a technology. But more importantly, the way Kortext has partnered and not just being an external provider but being part of our academic family.’ 

Professor Gaurav Malik, Director of Educational Experience in the School of Architecture, Computing and Engineering, UEL.

The partnership between Kortext and UEL continues to evolve, aligning closely with the university’s commitment to inclusive, equitable education that prepares students for the demands of the workplace and empowers them to excel in their chosen fields. 

Get in touch with our partnerships team to explore what we can achieve together at your institution – talk to us today.