Thank you to those Undergraduate and Taught Postgraduate students who took part in the short survey that was open from mid-December to early January, asking about your academic experience to date.
As we did after October’s survey feedback, we are following up to acknowledge what is going well, where improvements can be made and where we are taking action, as an institution and in your School.
You shared many real positives about your course and how much you value your tutors’ work. Many of you identified things that you prefer about online learning. But it is also true that this is a hugely challenging situation for everyone: work to support you and your studies is a continuing process and we’re constantly improving things with you, based on your feedback.
Key results
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A clear majority are finding their courses well-organised, tutors are good at explaining things, and that you are being kept updated about your learning (including when ‘Neither agree nor disagree’ responses are discounted). This is positive given the challenging situation we are all in, but of course we are determined to keep improving. There were many positive comments on individual tutors and modules, which tutors really do appreciate.
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Connecting with other students remains a real concern for many respondents, but this has improved notably over the term. Your Schools are working hard to help build communities in the digital space, and student connector projects are supporting this across the University: thank you for your engagement with these, and please do speak with your Schools on opportunities to connect with other students.
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The number of respondents saying that staff are available for academic support has increased further, which is also very positive. Staff are working hard to provide support. Please do keep speaking with your Schools if you have any questions about your course.
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As we noted previously, there has been work this year to provide additional support for online assessments, and the number finding feedback clear and helpful has increased by 23%.
How we are moving forward in response to student feedback
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The main concern that people commented on was consistency of your online learning and being able to engage with this successfully. We have heard this clearly and have developed an Online Learning Baseline that sets expectations for all modules and provides guidance to support tutors.
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Concern around assessments and ensuring your grades are protected was another common issue raised. We are putting in place a range of ways to avoid detrimental impact on your assessments, and more detail will come in the regular weekly emails.
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Similarly, as a reminder, we have created a new resource to guide you through accessing your assessment feedback and submitting work: Submission and Feedback in Canvas: A Student Guide (sussex.ac.uk). You can also find crucial advice on using feedback most successfully to improve your work here: How to use feedback : Skills Hub: University of Sussex.
You will also hear from your Head of School about feedback and next steps within your School.
We will continue to share updates on how your feedback is being used, so look out for those throughout the year.