
Aurora is higher education's most renowned leadership development initiative for women. Run as a collaboration between Advance HE in conjunction with higher education institutions and advocates - known as Aurora Champions - it addresses the under-representation of women in leadership positions. Aurora is a leadership ignition journey, inspiring women to aspire and achieve leadership positions within higher education.
Launched in 2013, Aurora has grown year on year and is now a community of over 10,000 Aurorans. Led by a team of leadership experts and in conjunction with a mentoring process, participants will explore four key areas associated with leadership success: Identity, Impact & Voice; Core Leadership; Politics & Influence and Adaptive Leadership with two Action Learning Sets, a face-to-face day - Your Future in HE - and optional Networking sessions.

Programmes and events portfolio
NEW Programmes and events portfolio for 2023-24
Our new portfolio for 2023-24 blends high quality learning and insight-sharing opportunities delivered using a range of innovative techniques and platforms both in person and virtually. If your organisation is an Advance HE member you could benefit from a 25% discount on booking prices across our portfolio plus there is an additional 10% early booking discount for bookings made before 30 September 2023 on selected programmes and events.


Development Days and Action Learning Sets
Welcome and Introduction Webinar
Identity, Impact and Voice
Core Leadership
Action Learning Set 1
Politics and Influence
Adaptive Leadership
Action Learning Set 2
Mentoring

Your Future in HE Event (Face-to-Face)
Your Future in HE
The day will begin with a panel of expert speakers discussing ‘The Future of HE’ before answering your questions. Delegates will then explore the topic further in smaller groups, sharing experiences and aspirations, examining the challenges women face as leaders and identifying the practical steps that can be taken to achieve their goals.
Throughout the day, we will revisit the four key areas associated with leadership success and delivered by Aurora:
- Identity, Impact & Voice
- Core Leadership
- Politics & Influence
- Adaptive Leadership
Networking
To help Aurorans to network across all cohorts, we have curated a range of 2-hour online optional informal networking events. The sessions involve collectively watching a Ted Talk, followed by discussion in smaller rooms to share insights and themes. These sessions are designed to supplement participants' learning journey, as well as facilitating the discussion of more informal topics including:
- Reflective Practice in Your Leadership
- Giving Feedback as a Leadership Skill
- Life Transitions: Career Breaks, Maternity and Menopause
- Wellbeing and Resilience
How to book onto Aurora
Aurora Champions or those looking to become Aurora Champions should contact our support team at aurora@advance-he.ac.uk to make enquiries. Details of how to book onto Aurora will be shared directly with Aurora Champions via their email newsletter.