Working For You

How long have you been a Course Rep, and why were you interested in the role?

I have been a Course Rep for one semester now, having started in September 2021, my second academic year of study here at Surrey. I was interested in this role as I wanted to make a difference in the student experience for myself and the rest of my cohort. I think it’s important that students get to feedback on their course in order to get the most out of their learning experiences.

What is your usual process for receiving and dealing with feedback?

Upon receiving feedback, I will often consult more widely in my cohort. This allows me to get an accurate representation as to how everyone is feeling about this issue and prompts a conversation about where we go from this feedback, whether that is praise for a module leader or ways in which we feel improvements could be made.

What achievements are you most proud of since you began your role?

I am proud of the fact that I assisted in adapting our Hybrid Learning model for our Labs module this semester after receiving student feedback. I dealt with this promptly and efficiently to reach a conclusion with department staff in order to allow the students’ leaning experience to be improved by further support and changed timetabling. However, I am only a few months into this role and look forward to changes I will be able to enact for the better as the academic year progresses.

How has this voluntary role supported your personal development?

I feel this role has supported my personal development by giving me a further insight into the workings of the University. It has also bettered my interpersonal skills as I have had to learn and adapt to speaking to academic leaders on our course and fellow peers. Further to this, it has allowed me to problem-solve in a real-world environment and make genuine changes for the better, which I am very proud of.

Why might a student contact you, and how can they get in touch with you and your fellow Course Reps if they have feedback?

A student may contact me for a variety of reasons. This could be to relay positive feedback to the department such as the teaching for a particular module is going very well or the drop-in tutorial sessions are of great value. Otherwise, they may be contacting with an issue they are having such as multiple module deadlines in close succession, or the quality of recorded lectures not meeting expectations.

I can be contacted in person or via email if a student has any feedback. They can also raise it via Unitu and I can forward it on from there.

How long have you been a Course Rep, and why were you interested in the role?

I’ve been a Course Rep since October 2021 and have enjoyed my time so far. I became interested in the role after speaking to my now fellow Course Rep. I found out how I could use my voice to make an impact and help others on my course get their feedback effectively communicated.

What is your usual process for receiving and dealing with feedback?

When I receive feedback, I first make sure that I ask the right questions. I want to have all the information I need to formulate a reasonable and representative response. From here, I work out who I need to take this response to, whether it be an SSLC meeting, a Board of Studies meeting, an individual lecturer or the Student Voice forum. After liaising with the relevant people, I will get an immediate acknowledgement to relay to the student/s and possibly a formal response to the enquiry.

What achievements are you most proud of since you began your role?

An achievement that I am proud of is helping students who were struggling with a specific part of our course. After a particular assignment, it became apparent that a majority of students were unable to fulfil certain criteria to achieve full marks. A few students approached me to convey their concerns and notified me of the disadvantage it caused some people. I took this information to the Student Voice platform, Unitu, and anonymously posted about the situation and a suggestion of action. This feedback was acted on swiftly and effectively by staff and now students are able to access the resources they need.

How has this voluntary role supported your personal development?

This voluntary role has put me in new and challenging situations that have forced me out of my comfort zone and changed my perspective about my education. Most recently, I have been able to use these situations as examples in interviews for a placement role. It has also helped me grow in confidence in communicating with different people, especially those who hold a more responsible title than myself.

Why might a student contact you, and how can they get in touch with you and your fellow Course Reps if they have feedback?

A student may contact me with any issue they have, typically concerning our course. I will do my best to help them or signpost them to the correct service. It is relatively easy to contact me. I will be on campus around lectures and am in group chats with my peers. I have also notified students of my role as Course Rep on social media to help them find me in the future.

How long have you been a Course Rep, and why were you interested in the role?

I’ve been a course rep since the beginning of my second year, and I’m now in my third and final year. I became a course rep after the start of the pandemic when I wanted to make sure my course mates felt heard, and to make sure our feedback was being actioned. It was also a way for me to be more involved in our department.

What is your usual process for receiving and dealing with feedback?

My classmates are able to raise issues with me at any point throughout the year either by contacting me directly or by using MySurrey Voice. However, leading up to our SSLC meetings, I would send out a survey for students to anonymously respond to and share their thoughts on how the semester is going.

What achievements are you most proud of since you began your role?

The achievement I’m most proud of is knowing that my peers’ issues and needs are being listened to and resolved. I am proud to be able to relay how their feedback is being actioned and knowing that improvements and changes are being made to benefit students.

How has this voluntary role supported your personal development?

Being a student rep, and the person that my classmates come to when they have concerns, has not only pushed me to stay up to date regarding university and departmental changes, but it has also motivated me be a better public speaker and has taught me how to communicate well with staff and students.

Why might a student contact you, and how can they get in touch with you and your fellow Course Reps if they have feedback?

Students usually contact me if there are ever any issues with a module, if they have feedback, positive or negative, or if they have an idea. Students can get in touch either by email, the MySurrey Voice platform, or by our module group chats.

How long have you been a Course Rep, and why were you interested in the role?

I’ve been a course rep since my first year, making this my fourth and final year of representing my cohort. As someone who loves helping people, what attracted me to the role was learning that there was an opportunity to represent my peers and make their voices heard. It aligned perfectly to my personality and values and I decided to go for it!

What is your usual process for receiving and dealing with feedback?

At the beginning of each semester, I’ll put a message in the cohort group chat to remind people that I’m around and ways that they can contact me if they need it. Then, for rep meetings, I’ll ask for general feedback or create a survey and collate the data to present. I then collate the responses of the lecturers and relay these back to students in the group chat for 100% transparency.

What achievements are you most proud of since you began your role?

One of the changes I implemented was the increased availability of resources in the library. There was one particular set text for a compulsory module that was scarcely available in the library, and there were concerns from students that they could not access it for a number of reasons, some very personal. I took this to the meeting and made my case, resulting in the library ordering loads more copies, and one for the high demand section. This alleviated a huge stress that was burdening the cohort at the time, which was a very rewarding feeling.

How has this voluntary role supported your personal development?

Being a rep is an invaluable addition to your CV. It looks impressive that you’ve taken on a leadership role and gives you concrete experience to talk about in interviews. You acquire many invaluable, transferable skills, such as: report writing, learning the structure of formal meetings, data collection and analysis, communication and so many more! All of this helps you to become more employable.

Why might a student contact you, and how can they get in touch with you and your fellow Course Reps if they have feedback?

A student can contact me for any reason at all, whether they have positive or negative feedback. Some examples include: concerns with specific lecturers, reading lists, modules, workload, deadlines, assignments, and many more. Everything will be passed on, but this is done discreetly and anonymously. Students can contact me via my email (lr00463@surrey.ac.uk) at any time! Always happy to help!

How long have you been a Course Rep, and why were you interested in the role?

I have been a course Rep for four months now (The academic year 2021-2022 semester 1). I decided to apply for the role after my friends prompted me to volunteer. I enjoyed networking with students and found that they were very comfortable sharing their concerns and worries with me regarding their courses and the impact of COVID 19 has had on their learning. I realised that I could have a positive impact on my cohort’s learning experience by volunteering to be a Course Rep/ communication link with the School of Law.

What is your usual process for receiving and dealing with feedback?

Our cohort has a WhatsApp group to stay in touch with each other. Any complaints raised on the group are noted down and communicated to the member of staff concerned. Before general meetings with staff members, recommendations, solutions, feedback is collected via WhatsApp and Unitu to be appropriately dealt with at meetings. General oral feedback after tutorials or in between lectures are also taken into account to reflect student opinion.

What achievements are you most proud of since you began your role?

Due to COVID 19 our cohort was unable to attend most of their lectures in person. They did not have an opportunity to socialise with one another in an academic setting. After raising this issue during student-staff meetings the staff have agreed to seriously consider organising in person lectures next semester. (Subject to National Guidelines)

How has this voluntary role supported your personal development?

The role has helped me gain better insight into the inner working of the School of Law. It helped me realise and understand the importance of being sensitive and responsive to the individual needs of students. Brainstorming over solutions to problems created by COVID-19 restrictions have helped sharpen my general critical thinking skills.

Why might a student contact you, and how can they get in touch with you and your fellow Course Reps if they have feedback?

Students at the School of Law can get in touch with me through Unitu or my email, jm02044@surrey.ac.uk with any concerns or general feedback that they have regarding their courses at the school of law.

How long have you been a Course Rep, and why were you interested in the role?

I have been a Course Rep since the start of the 2021/22 academic year, around October 2021. My interest in this role stemmed from seeing the impact previous reps have made year on year to the course, the MES department and student life. As a student of the University of Surrey since 2018, I’ve heard many students’ opinions and feedback on our time here (as well as having a few ideas of my own), and now I that I am on placement I want to help improve the student experience!

What is your usual process for receiving and dealing with feedback?

Unitu – this platform has been an amazing tool for the Course Reps to collate, share and comment directly on the issues and feedback brought up by the student community. We are also able to escalate issues directly to senior members of staff and ask for direct responses, leading to quicker implemented actions. Direct messaging and speaking with Course Reps is another great way to disclose feedback and, as Course Reps, we are able to get these issues in front of those required to resolve the problem.

What achievements are you most proud of since you began your role?

I’ve only really just begun in this role, but already I’m proud to say I’m making a difference! Placement students are always underrepresented every year, often due to other work-related commitments or thinking that they are “outside” of the reach of the University, and so I have actively represented my cohort at Board of Studies meetings and SSLCs in front of both the MES Department and University. I’m trying to streamline and ease the process of using Unitu as a placement student to get accurate responses, and ensuring our course is not affected by departmental changes once we return to campus. But watch this space, there’s more to come!

How has this voluntary role supported your personal development?

This role has really helped me develop the softer skills, particularly accurate communication to both students and staff, and has really helped develop my confidence when speaking about issues which I am passionate about. Representing a group is also a new skill I am learning through this role, and understanding how to make changes on others’ behalf and reporting back to ensure they are happy with the responsive action that has been taken.

Why might a student contact you, and how can they get in touch with you and your fellow Course Reps if they have feedback?

Students should get in touch for a whole range of reasons from wanting to provide positive feedback on something they’ve experienced in their course, to issues with individual module deliveries, to access issues to buildings/online sites, or even if they think the microwave needs replacing in the common rooms! If you haven’t already, check out Unitu and see how the platform can help you in both viewing current and past issues and raising your own and, if you do have an issue/some feedback you wish to raise, let me know! I can also be reached through social media or via email at jh01585@surrey.ac.uk.

How long have you been a Course Rep, and why were you interested in the role?

I started being a course rep in September 2021. Being able to voice student opinion and improve our course is something that’s incredibly important to me, so being a course rep was the perfect opportunity.

What is your usual process for receiving and dealing with feedback?

Unitu is a great platform for receiving student feedback. Both staff and students can engage with the platform, and you can post your comments anonymously if you’d feel more comfortable. Course reps always keep in contact with staff, so feedback is constantly discussed.

What achievements are you most proud of since you began your role?

Definitely our department social at Hillside! Staff and students across all years came along to enjoy free pizza and drinks, and it was a great opportunity for all years to integrate. We held it mid-semester to promote engagement with other students as well as the department.

How has this voluntary role supported your personal development?

The role has definitely improved my confidence and has made me feel more connected to my cohort. I’d also say the role has improved my employability, which is also something that’s really important to me.

Why might a student contact you, and how can they get in touch with you and your fellow Course Reps if they have feedback?

Students can contact us if they have any concerns relating to their experience on the course. Unitu is a really great platform, but course reps can also be contacted by email, or even just having a chat after a lecture or workshop.

How long have you been a Course Rep, and why were you interested in the role?

This is my second year as a rep, I started when I was in my second year and I am now a rep for PTY students. I became a rep as I wanted to be more involved with my department and the SU, and to do my bit to ensure my coursemates get the most out of their time here at Surrey.

What is your usual process for receiving and dealing with feedback?

Most of the feedback I receive is from face-to-face conversations, emails, and online messages, along with Unitu. As our cohort is quite small we find these the most convenient ways. Simple queries can be dealt with by myself, either by pointing the student in the right direction or raising it to a relevant staff member. More complex queries can be raised at a Departmental meeting or urgently with a member of staff to guarantee a swift resolution.

What achievements are you most proud of since you began your role?

I’d say that raising positive feedback with staff is one of my proudest achievements. Often, it seems that positive feedback can be overlooked but it is important that staff know when and how often students appreciate their hard work (especially during Covid times), and it is a pleasure to be able to pass that on. Alternatively, raising issues such as clashing deadlines helps future cohorts of my course and is a real highlight as to why reps are so important in the long term.

How has this voluntary role supported your personal development?

Being a rep has certainly accelerated my personal development and I believe that the skills I have developed assisted me with multiple placement year applications. Specifically, communication, time management and conflict resolution. It also helped me to get to know the departmental staff well.

Why might a student contact you, and how can they get in touch with you and your fellow Course Reps if they have feedback?

Multiple reasons and multiple ways! Any queries about your course, deadlines, assignments, or just general student life can come my way and I’m more than happy to help where I can. My email is ep00828@surrey.ac.uk, but you can find your own rep on Surrey Learn or on the USSU website.

How long have you been a Course Rep, and why were you interested in the role?

I’ve been the course representative for the International Events Management BSc programme since 2020. I was interested in the role as I wanted to be able to voice my peers’ opinions and concerns and help to shape the programme for us all. After a great first year in the role, I applied again, which allows me to continue building my relationships with students and staff alike.

What is your usual process for receiving and dealing with feedback?

I tend to collect most feedback from students via our cohort WhatsApp group chat, which I created in my first year of university. Students can also message me or e-mail me privately if they are not comfortable sharing with the whole cohort. This feedback is then taken to the staff of the course in a monthly meeting, or I signpost students to the appropriate services if the issues are more individual and person-specific.

What achievements are you most proud of since you began your role?

The achievement I’m most proud of since becoming a course rep is this year raising concerns about a module field trip that some students could not easily afford to partake in, leading to the core financial elements of the trip being covered in full by the department. This allowed more students to comfortably engage with the field trip, and the content, as well as being an opportunity for students to become closer to each other.

How has this voluntary role supported your personal development?

This role has allowed me to further develop my communication skills, both in personal and professional environments, whilst also increasing my confidence in professional meetings and dealing with stressful or time-sensitive situations. It has also helped me to develop my organisational and time management skills, to balance other commitments with ensuring I perform to the best of my ability as both a course rep and a student.

Why might a student contact you, and how can they get in touch with you and your fellow Course Reps if they have feedback?

A student can contact me at any time, as a friend or as a course representative. I will always allow students to raise their concerns, as I believe no matter is too small for my attention. Students can get in touch with me via e-mail, the MySurrey Voice platform, in person, through the course group chat or privately through social media.

How long have you been a Course Rep, and why were you interested in the role?

To introduce myself – I’m Joao. In my final year studying BSc Economics at Surrey University, I am working as a Campus Ambassador for JP Morgan. I recently finished my one-year industrial placement as an Economist for the British Government’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). I also had the opportunity to work as a Private Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Biosecurity. Being a course rep for Economics for two years was a tremendous opportunity to make a tangible difference to the academic lives of my peers. Surrey’s lecturers are great, and instruction is world-class, but like at any institution, things don’t go perfect every single time. There are also many benefits of being a student rep. One advantage is that you represent your peers and can get essential changes made quickly, for example, getting deadlines moved if the students have something conflicting with it

What is your usual process for receiving and dealing with feedback?

Class reps represent the student body of their course and year group and voice their opinions on anything and everything to do with the course. As a student rep, you act as a spokesperson. Representatives must attend two formal Student Staff Liaison Committee (SSLC) meetings each semester, accompanied by staff representing all aspects of the department, from education to employability, and students from all year groups. It is an opportunity to give feedback on specific issues, suggestions for improvement and occasionally some praise about the course, department, or University. For example, in the economics department, we have informal weekly meetings which help address issues as soon as possible. In addition, reps collect information from fellow students to relay to the staff; this often happens via group chats, social media pages, emails, or surveys/polls. Sometimes, staff also ask reps to consult on proposed changes to different aspects of the University, such as changes to the timetabling process. The Students’ Union also provides initial training and continued support for reps on fulfilling their roles.

What achievements are you most proud of since you began your role?

In my time as a course rep, I have managed to resolve year-wide marking issues in assessments and influence the style of lectures to suit my peers. For example, this year in Economics, we managed to get the final year literature review deadline moved back since everyone struggled to adapt to the new style of communication and the late start to the semester. In addition, as a rep, you can give feedback on courses that can lead to improvements the following year. Finally, being a representative gives you a greater sense of community. It enables you to meet people from different years, hear their struggles and provide them with advice.

How has this voluntary role supported your personal development?

The age-old phrase “it looks good on the CV” definitely applies to course rep. Representing a group of students shows that you are actively engaged with your studies and that you feel confident in being an advocate for others. As being a course rep is a voluntary role, this shows that you are willing to put your own time into helping others. This part is an excellent way to show your commitment to the University and help you stand out as a candidate for other positions available to students, such as an SU Student Officer, or even paid roles such as a Student Ambassador.

Why might a student contact you, and how can they get in touch with you and your fellow Course Reps if they have feedback?

Couse Reps are the primary link between staff and students, and Surrey gives students ownership over their education. We don’t want our University to only work for a specific type of student – we want Surrey to be accessible to everyone, but we need your feedback. A Course Rep’s primary responsibility is to gather feedback from the students they represent. This doesn’t have to be in a formal written format. For example, feedback could be in the form of a discussion we’ve had with a group of students during their lunch break or in a group Facebook message.

If you’re looking to contact your Class Rep, please visit ‘MySurrey Voice’ on Unitu, where the Class Reps for your classes are listed.

How long have you been a Course Rep, and why were you interested in the role?

I have been a course representative for the past 2 months, starting from October. I wanted to be a course rep because it would allow me to build rapport with all my coursemates and the academic staff. Also, it’s a fantastic way to develop your soft skills.

What is your usual process for receiving and dealing with feedback?

I have to say that I’m pretty traditional in that sense, as I usually approach others and ask them for feedback face-to-face. Then, depending on the type and urgency of the feedback, I would either encourage them to post it on MySurrey Voice or directly deal with it.

What achievements are you most proud of since you began your role?

Many students were not able to cope with a particular module. In addition, they were pretty anxious about an upcoming coursework submission, which carried 50% of the total grades. So I convinced the department to extend the deadline by a week and helped organize weekly Q&A sessions with the lecturers. Those sessions helped the students a lot, and they were able to complete the submission with much ease.

How has this voluntary role supported your personal development?

I have become a better listener, more empathic and more approachable. I also learned the importance of positive feedback as I believe that it would let the faculty know what is working well and incorporate those in other parts of the course. This is something I encourage students to give out for their favorite lecturers/modules.

Why might a student contact you, and how can they get in touch with you and your fellow Course Reps if they have feedback?

A student would approach me if they have concerns regarding any module, be it unrealistic deadlines, support not available, or general feedback about the course. However, I’m also happy to listen to any other problems they might have, so I can signpost them to the relevant teams. I can be contacted through WhatsApp, my university email, or one could just walk up and meet me in person.

How long have you been a Course Rep, and why were you interested in the role?

I have been a course rep for around a year and four months now. The reason why I applied and became interested in the role was because it was one of the first steps of getting involved with the university in a big way, especially as a first year. The benefits to being a course rep is also endless as it can go on your final transcript, offer you loads of opportunities to make your CV stand out more as well other opportunities such as being able to network.

What is your usual process for receiving and dealing with feedback?

My usual process for receiving feedback would be either people in my cohort personally messaging me, or they would put feedback on our subject groupchat. I would then deal with these issues by talking to my other 2 course rep members and arrange a meeting with one of our lecturers, who we discuss these issues with, who would then take the next necessary steps to get this dealt with.

What achievements are you most proud of since you began your role?

The achievements I am most proud of since I have started my role is helping the students in my cohort have their content released on SurreyLearn 2 weeks in advance as well as setting up an Instagram account to help with revision and general help and support.

How has this voluntary role supported your personal development?

This voluntary role has supported my personal development as it given me more opportunities to be able to improve my public speaking skills, communication as well as building my network at the same time.

Why might a student contact you, and how can they get in touch with you and your fellow Course Reps if they have feedback?

A student might contact me because they may have an issue with content on the course, with an exam error, may need extra revision materials to help aid revision – and I would then be able to discuss this with the lecturers and get them to prepare and send out the extra revision content. Any student can get in touch with me via:
my email: kt00647@surrey.ac.uk or via social media if they have me on that as well as being able to approach me in person face to face.

How long have you been a Course Rep, and why were you interested in the role?

I’ve been a Course Rep since the start of my degree in October 2020. I enjoy organizing events and engaging with people; it seemed a great opportunity to get to know my CMT cohort, as I was putting myself in the position where I needed talk to them all.

What is your usual process for receiving and dealing with feedback?

I’ve made myself known so my coursemates feel I can be easily approached if they want to raise any concerns. We have a few group chats through which we converse often; one for CMT specifically, and others including students from other DMM years and courses. I use these to gauge students’ opinions on course aspects I suspect they may want changed. If I can resolve these myself I do so, if not I discuss the issue with whomever can help resolve it; other course reps, module leaders or department heads, for example.

What achievements are you most proud of since you began your role?

A lot of achievements in this role I’ve seen are quantifiable as one specific event, but if I’m most proud of anything it’s bringing people closer together. By simply engaging with people as much as possible, organising virtual and real parties, study sessions and being active on groupchats has led to closer relationships for myself and others on the course, in spite of the global chaos that wanted to prevent that.

How has this voluntary role supported your personal development?

As the nature of being course rep has meant I need to talk to many people to gain a consensus, I’ve become much more relaxed about approaching new people. Beyond just social occasions, this has helped relax more when meeting other new people at work and around the university.

Why might a student contact you, and how can they get in touch with you and your fellow Course Reps if they have feedback?

I’m available through our groupchat on Facebook; if you’d like to be added to this or don’t have Facebook you can email my uni address directly. Feel free to contact me about any concerns or ideas you might have, and I will do my best to help resolve them or make them a reality.

How long have you been a Course Rep, and why were you interested in the role?

I have been a course rep since semester 1 of my second year at university. I was initially interested in the role as I wanted to build my CV whilst developing my people skills. I also was interesting in the idea of giving important feedback from my student cohort to course leaders and ensuring that any issues raised were seen through, which has allowed me to gain a more personal relationship with my cohort.

What is your usual process for receiving and dealing with feedback?

We have a group chat for our course, with almost all the people within the cohort. Combining this group chat with the fast-evolving MySurrey voice website has allowed me to reach out to all my course mates. I would normally inform the students that there will be an upcoming meeting and encourage any feedback they may have for me to bring up. I have also made a google forms page which allows students to also give their feedback unanimously, should they choose to.

What achievements are you most proud of since you began your role?

The achievements I am most proud of since starting my role, would be both being able to notice the change that I am making by giving the student’s feedback, knowing that I am contributing to positive changes, and seizing extra opportunities that are available for course reps, such as the student experience committee.

How has this voluntary role supported your personal development?

This role has firstly helped me to better get to know my classmates and cohort, as being able to ask them to provide me with feedback has made me much more known within the course, and people now know that they can come to me with feedback. The role has also helped me develop my skills within meetings, both formal and more informal, and develop communication skills with different people – both peers and professors alike.

Why might a student contact you, and how can they get in touch with you and your fellow Course Reps if they have feedback?

Students can contact me or any of my fellow course reps any time via email, direct message on any social media platform, MySurrey voice or favourably in person to discuss any issues or feedback that they would like addressed. We are always happy to help.

How long have you been a Course Rep, and why were you interested in the role?
I have been a course representative since February, 2021, for the CES department. When the opportunity arose to be a course rep for CES, I was excited for the chance to connect with fellow students and work alongside the wider university community, to communicate any feedback presented by the students. I hoped that being a course rep would help enhance the university experience for my fellow course mates.

What is your usual process for receiving and dealing with feedback?

Once elected as course rep, I ensured my course mates knew how to contact me. When receiving feedback, I determine the best way to communicate this to the correct person at the university. After the person responds to the feedback, I report back to the students and encourage them to let me know if they require any further assistance or clarification on the matter.

What achievements are you most proud of since you began your role?

I thoroughly enjoy many aspects of the role, but I most enjoy helping students communicate their ideas to the CES department. For example, a student had an idea for enhancing the volunteering programme within CES. The student and I published their idea on the ‘MySurrey Voice’ forum, and the course leader promptly responded to the idea, by offering a volunteering seminar and volunteering day. It was great to see the idea in practice!

How has this voluntary role supported your personal development?

I have found that, since being a course rep, I have developed a multitude of skills that I am excited to take forward within my student and professional career. Primarily, the role has provided me with the opportunity to communicate with a range of people, effectively building on my teamwork skills and problem-solving abilities. It is great to feel even more involved within the CES department.

Why might a student contact you, and how can they get in touch with you and your fellow Course Reps if they have feedback?

I have had students contact me for a variety of reasons. Some students may have queries regarding an assignment that they would like brought to the attention of the module leader, or they might have feedback on how much they are enjoying a module! Regardless of the feedback, the students can contact myself and fellow course reps using our phone numbers, or student email addresses at any time.

How long have you been a Course Rep, and why were you interested in the role?

I have been a course rep since September 2021. I wanted to be a course rep since last year because I felt I could help give underrepresented students a voice and help the relationship between students and staff.

What is your usual process for receiving and dealing with feedback?

First, I ask students for any feedback they have both positive and constructive, then I work out who to contact if the feedback is urgent otherwise collect a list and talk through the feedback with the student staff liaison committee and try to get a solution for the students from the staff or a compromise for any problems.

What achievements are you most proud of since you began your role?

Being a part of the vet student diversity team and encouraging students to talk about their problems and being able to successively communicate with staff.

How has this voluntary role supported your personal development

Being a course rep has significantly helped my communication and listening skills as well as my patience with my colleagues. I have benefited from being a course rep and believe it will also help my professional skills.

Why might a student contact you, and how can they get in touch with you and your fellow Course Reps if they have feedback?

A student can contact me with any problem they have regarding the course, teaching or wellbeing problems associated with the university. I am then able to signpost them or give them solutions. I can be contacted via email as well as Facebook as that is how most of our year contacts each other through the group chat.

How long have you been a Course Rep, and why were you interested in the role?

I have been a course rep from the beginning of this academic year. I wanted to become course rep because I could see the challenges facing both students and staff in the coming year, particularly with all the changes brought about by covid. and wanted to help everyone through that whilst promoting mutual understanding.

What is your usual process for receiving and dealing with feedback?

If I can deal with it personally then I will, otherwise it’s about contacting the relevant member of staff about the issue. We always pay attention to Unitu posts and other feedback to make sure we convey to the staff exactly what the students want us to. All the vet school course rep team this year are great and it’s been a pleasure working with them in dealing with feedback too!

What achievements are you most proud of since you began your role?

Livestreams of our Q&A review sessions had been stopped suddenly, but when Shoni & I got in touch immediately with staff to resolve the issue, they heard our feedback and quickly advised staff to livestream these sessions for the rest of the semester for the benefit of the students. It was great to see such a direct impact we were able to make! I was also glad that Shoni & I managed to organise a drop-in zoom call to give students the opportunity to give feedback in a more personable way.

How has this voluntary role supported your personal development?

It’s been really interesting to get more experience with communications, trying to ensure that when communicating to the staff that none of the key messages we’re hearing from the students are lost. The experience really highlights the value of communicating effectively and respectfully.

Why might a student contact you, and how can they get in touch with you and your fellow Course Reps if they have feedback?

Students can contact about any positive feedback or constructive criticism on the way the course is delivered. Unitu is a great way to get in touch with all the course reps at once, as well as your fellow students, and feedback on Unitu is easily shared with staff. Alternatively, students can email or talk to me or any of the course reps about the issues if Unitu doesn’t feel like the right place for the feedback about a particular topic.