Quality Enhancement Review Student Submission

y t i l a u Q w e i v e R t n e m e c n a h n E n o i s s i m b u S t n e d u St 2019-20

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Table of Contents Glossary of Terms .................................................................................................................................................................................................... 2 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 4 Chapter 2: Preparation for the Review ................................................................................................................................................... 6 2.1 Statement of Authorship ............................................................................................................................................................... 6 2.2 How the submission has been produced ............................................................................................................................ 6 2.3 Data Sources and evidence ............................................................................................................................................................ 7 2.4 Consultation on the submission ................................................................................................................................................ 8 Chapter 3: The Cardiff Context ................................................................................................................................................................... 10 3.1 The Students’ Union ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 10 3.2 The Student Experience .................................................................................................................................................................. 11 3.3 What is partnership at Cardiff University like? ........................................................................................................... 14 Chapter 4: Recommendations from the Institutional Review 2014 ............................................................................... 18 Chapter 5: Students’ Union Engagement with Quality and Standards .......................................................................... 21 Chapter 6: Academic Standards and Learning Opportunities .............................................................................................. 24 Chapter 7: Areas of focus ............................................................................................................................................................................... 35 7.1 Student Voice .......................................................................................................................................................................................... 35 7.1.1 Background ............................................................................................................................................................................................... 35 7.1.2 Areas of Good Practice .................................................................................................................................................................. 38 7.1.3 Areas of Enhancement .................................................................................................................................................................... 42 7.2 Student Partnership .......................................................................................................................................................................... 43 7.2.1 Background ............................................................................................................................................................................................... 43 7.2.2 Areas of Good Practice ................................................................................................................................................................... 43 7.2.3 Areas of Enhancement .................................................................................................................................................................... 48 7.3 Placements & Employability ......................................................................................................................................................... 49 7.3.1 Background ............................................................................................................................................................................................... 49 7.3.2 Areas of Good Practice .................................................................................................................................................................. 50 7.3.3 Areas of Enhancement ..................................................................................................................................................................... 51 7.4 International Experience and Student Mobility ........................................................................................................... 53 7.4.1 Background ............................................................................................................................................................................................... 53 7.4.2 Areas of Good Practice ................................................................................................................................................................... 53 7.4.3 Areas of Enhancement .................................................................................................................................................................... 54 Chapter 8: Welsh Language ............................................................................................................................................................................ 56 8.1 Background ......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 56 8.2 Areas of Good Practice ............................................................................................................................................................................ 56 8.3 Areas of enhancement .............................................................................................................................................................................. 59 Chapter 9: Concluding Comments ............................................................................................................................................................. 60 Chapter 10: Summary of Recommendations ..................................................................................................................................... 61 Chapter 11: Appendices ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 63

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GLOSSARY OF TERMS Acronyms AHSS: College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences BLS: College of Biomedical and Life Sciences CESI: Centre for Education Support and Innovation ESLA: Enriching Student Life Awards PSE: College of Physical Science and Engineering

Cardiff University School Acronyms ARCHI: School of Architecture BIOSI: School of Bioscience CARBS: Cardiff Business School CHEMY: School of Chemistry COMSC: School of Computer Science and Informatics DENTL: School of Dentistry EARTH: School of Earth and Ocean Sciences ENCAP: School of English, Communication and Philosophy ENGIN: Schools of Engineering GEOPL: School of Geography and Planning HCARE: School of Healthcare JOMEC: School of Journalism, Media and Culture LAWPL: School of Law and Politics MATHS: School of Mathematics MEDIC: School of Medicine MLANG: School of Modern Languages MUSIC: School of Music OPTOM: School of Optometry PHRMY: School of Pharmacy PHYSX: School of Physics PSYCH: School of Psychology SHARE: School of History, Archaeology and Religion SOCSI: School of Social Sciences WELSH: School of Welsh

recognise, with sabbatical officers shortlisting award winners before the University chooses the winners of each categories.

Awards covered the following areas last year: Personal Tutor of the Year Hyrwyddwr Addysg Gymraeg (Welsh Education Champion) Student Rep Coordinator of the Year Student Academic Rep of the Year (Biomedical and Life Sciences) Student Academic Rep of the Year (Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences) Student Academic Rep of the Year (Physical Science and Engineering) Student Academic Rep of the Year (Overall) Most Innovative Member of Staff Graduate Tutor or Demonstrator Award Outstanding Doctoral Supervisor Most Uplifting Staff Member Leader in Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Vice Chancellor’s Award for Commitment to Student Experience Enriching Student Life Award Lifetime Achievement Award

Executive Committees In order to support the work of the sabbatical officers and other full time staff at the Students’ Union, students volunteer as part of Executive Committees. These provide valuable support and help; from running trips, to running stands in open days, to representing students on University committees.

Programme and Partner Standing Panel The Programme and Partner Standing Panel (PPSP) is a University panel consisting of staff and student representatives that ensures there is due diligence in the creation or modifications to degree programmes.

To ensure that proposed degrees or changes are fit for purpose and beneficial to students, student representatives sit on the panels and the proposers of the new or modified programmes, have to show evidence of consultation with students.

Definitions

Speak Week

Centre for Education Support and Innovation

Speak Week is the Students’ Union’s annual campaign to find out what students would do if they ‘ran the University’. It provides students with the opportunity to raise queries, concerns and areas of best practice. The feedback from the campaign is then used by the Students’ Union and the University to enact change and look into ways to improve the student experience, based on solid evidence. Every year, the campaign goes from strengthto-strength, engaging with thousands of students and is a fantastic source of feedback, providing students with the opportunity to voice their opinions.

The Centre for Education Support and Innovation is the department of the University responsible for providing University staff with the opportunities and support for ‘reviewing, confirming and challenging the learning and teaching’ (CESI Web Page), at Cardiff University.

Enriching Student Life Awards The Enriching Student Life Awards (ESLAs) are an annual event run by the Students’ Union to celebrate staff and students who go above and beyond in their roles.

Students and staff nominate those who they wish to

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Student Senate Student Senate is the policy making body of the Students’ Union. It consists of 25 students who are elected by fellow students in the Autumn elections. The Autumn elections see candidates run to be delegates for NUS Wales and NUS UK, any campaign officer positions not filled and also Scrutiny Committee and Student Senate. The Students’ Union website provides further information on the role and responsibilities of student senate.

Student Staff Panels and College Forums Student-Staff Panels are the forums in which Student Academic Reps meet with staff from their schools to discuss their experience of studying within that school.

It’s a way for students to raise areas of good practice and areas where they wish to see change. College Forums are, in essence, Student Staff Panels but at a higher level.

They bring together the Chairs of the all the Student Staff Panel to discuss college wide issues, so for example if a school-level problem isn’t being solved it can be brought to a College Forum.

Student Written Submission The Student Written Submission is an annual document completed by the Sabbatical Officers of the Students’ Union that gives recommendations to the University that would improve the student experience. These recommendations are based off of feedback and evidence from students. It is a key way of ensuring that the student voice is heard at all level of the University as the submission is presented to University Executive Board and University Council, which respond to the submission.

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Introduction This Student Submission stands as a testament to many years’ work of students, the University, and the Students’ Union, all working in partnership to enhance the experience of those studying at Cardiff University.

2014 saw the institutional review but it also saw the beginning of a shift in partnership working. This relationship began to mature and develop. It was a seminal moment whereby the Students’ Union began focusing more on Student Voice activity. This submission is a tribute to the development of the relationship between the Students’ Union and the University and the positive changes this has led to for students.

Our annual Student Written Submissions, from 2014 onwards, which is submitted in June sets out the direction for the next academic year in terms of areas where the Sabbatical Officers can work with the University. Cardiff University welcomes these annual reports on the wider and academic experience, writing responses directly to points raised and there are tangible and active partnership projects that deliver on the feedback given by students.

From 2014 our Student Voice team was created and set to work straight away further developing the Academic Representation system from training, to issue tracking, and reward and recognition to what it is now, an integral part of the student experience. In 2018/2019 there were just under 1,000 reps across the University actively involved as partners in their education, through Student Staff Panels and projects led by students with aim of enhancing a particular area of the student experience. The University supports the Students’ Union annual Speak Week campaign which has continued to have thousands of students’ feedback on what matters to them, with both areas of improvement and the things they love about Cardiff University. The Students’ Union strategy launched in 2018 and featured the Strategic Theme of ‘The Home of the Student Voice’ which has engendered a further feeling of partnership with students across both organisations in a more formalised way.

Cardiff University has over 30,000 students and consists of two key campuses, with teaching also taking place at Central Square, the National

Software Academy and more recently in Bangor.

The University is an impressive University, but due to its size there is inconsistency in the delivery of services. When this submission discusses inconsistency, it is referring to areas where there is a lack of equity between the experience of students in schools and across the University. Something also worth noting is that whilst big changes made by the University (such as the Centre for Student Life) are appreciated, little changes can also make a big difference to the student experience.

Another consideration around the size of Cardiff University is that there is impressive work happening in partnership with students on a local and sometimes informal level, which is difficult to capture. This submission aims to highlight the best practice that we know is happening whilst also highlight the areas where partnership needs to be strengthened. Partnership happens at all levels, involving students and elected representatives. Sabbatical officers are full members of University Council and as such, are part of the Governing Body’s assurance of quality and standards, further cementing the levels of student partnership. Both the Students’ Union and the University believe that partnership is not just sitting on a committee but is an active and continual process.

I am proud to submit this report which celebrates the dedication of the last 6 years of Sabbatical Officer Teams, Academic Reps, Student Rep Co-ordinators, and staff, to work together to listen to the student voice.

Jackie Yip, Students’ Union President 2019 – 2020 & Lead Student Representative (LSR)

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Chapter 2 : Preparation for the Review 2.1 Statement of Authorship This Student Submission has been authored by the LSR and Students’ Union (SU) President, Jackie Yip. The production of this document has been supported by Steve Ralph, Head of Student Voice, Kathryn Cribbin the Student Voice Project Officer, and the Student Voice Team as a whole.

2.2 How the submission has been produced As part of the production of this submission, it was necessary to define what we meant by student voice, engagement and partnership.

It is also important to clarify what is meant by meaningful, in terms of engagement or partnership. By defining these key terms it enabled us to properly assess and analyse key areas of focus and pinpoint best practice and areas of enhancement.

Student Voice – When this submission refers to student voice it refers to the views, opinions and thoughts of students over areas that are relevant to their university experience. This can be academic, pastoral, or extra-curricular.

It can refer to when students are consulted by the University or Students’ Union or they can debate issues that affect them. It also refers to student representation. It is important to note that within the Students’ Union there is the Student Voice department which is responsible for representation and democracy within the Students’ Union. When referencing the Student Voice department, it is important to make a clear distinction.

Engagement – Engagement in the context of this submission means that students are actively engaged and consulted by the University on an individual and collective level. The engagement needs to be meaningful and it is this engagement that enables the student voice to be heard. The engagement can be carried out by courses,

departments, schools, colleges or University wide.

Partnership – The term partnership refers to the outcome and impact of engaging with the student voice as well as the co-delivery and co-design of services by students, the University and other relevant actors.

Meaningful – When this submission discusses meaningful engagement or partnership, it refers to actions and relationships between the Students’ Union and the University that have a genuine impact on the experience of students and leads to productive outcomes.

The submission has been produced through evidence-based analysis of what students are thinking and feeling. Support has been given directly from Student Engagement, the Centre for Education Support and Innovation (CESI) and Business Intelligence Teams within Cardiff University. Through the dashboards created

by Business Intelligence, the National Student Survey (NSS) scores have been seen clearly and this information has been used to help build a picture of what it is like to be a student at Cardiff University. We have also reported on our own data gathering exercises like the annual Speak Week campaign as well as the annually submitted Student Written Submissions.

Of note: In July 2019 HEFCW released revisions to the external quality assurance requirements: “12. The institution must support the participation of the Students’ Union and representatives in the review, and provide training, advice, guidance and access to information/ resources as appropriate.”

HEFCW: Annex A External Quality Assurance Review July 2019 [066] To confirm, Cardiff University through multiple University staff members have provided direct

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support to the LSR. The LSR and Students’ Union staff support have been a part of numerous aspects of the preparation for the QER, from being members of the internal QER Steering Group, through to the QAA briefing, and preparatory meeting.

Furthermore, the creation of the QER Project Officer at Cardiff University saw the Students’ Union a part of the recruitment process. The University also provided funding for a fixed-term post of Student Voice Project Officer within the Students’ Union to support the LSR and in a reciprocal approach; the University were a part of the recruitment process for this post.

The QER Project Officer and the Student Voice Project Officer worked closely together to write the required documents and supported each other through the sharing of data and approaches.

We believe this helps to exemplify how the Students’ Union and student representatives have been supported through a partnership approach with the University. This submission will discuss and engage with the following themes: • What partnership looks like at Cardiff University • The implementation of recommendations from the 2014 Institutional Review • Students’ Union Engagement with Quality and Standards • Academic Standards and Learning Opportunities • Student Voice • Student Partnership • Placements and Employability • International Experience and Student Mobility • Welsh Language

2.3 Data Sources and evidence A variety of data sources were used to create this submission from national data sets to local survey results and other student engagement activity.

Annual Report on Academic Representation – Annual review of the effectiveness of the Academic Representation system at Cardiff University received by the Student Experience Strategy Group College Forum minutes – Notes from meetings between college staff, professional services, and Chairs of Student Staff Panels ESLA nominations – nominations from students and staff highlighting areas of good practice across a number of areas Global Opportunities Feedback Module Evaluation Data – Data made available via Cardiff University Business Intelligence on the module review data submitted by students National Student Survey Results - Survey undertaken by undergraduate finalists across the UK Postgraduate Research Experience Survey Results - Survey undertaken by Postgraduate Researchers from subscribing institutions Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey Results – Survey undertaken by Postgraduate Taught students from subscribing institutions Research Excellence Framework (REF) Narrative Speak Week Reports – Analysis of comments made by students during the Students’ Union campaign Student Staff Panel (SSP) Minute analysis – Data collected from across the University Student

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Staff Panels (Academic Representative Meetings) Student Written Submissions (SWS) – (in other institutions referred to as ‘Annual Quality Reports’) Annual reports from the Students’ Union submitted University Council Study Away Survey – Annual Survey for students who study abroad ran by CESI Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) Narrative Welcome to Cardiff Survey Results – Survey undertaken by new students at Cardiff University YouTube Videos – Produced videos from Cardiff University and Cardiff University Students’ Union The sharing of data by Business Intelligence highlights the partnership and strong working relationship between the Students’ Union and the University in order to best understand the student experience.

2.4 Consultation on the submission The Lead Student Representative took the Student Submission to Student Senate on the 19th November as well as the sabbatical officer executive committees. Following the PGRR Forum that took place on the 14th November, PGR students were asked about their experiences.

In order to start the conversation around the Review, the Student Voice Project Officer met with the following committees: • Education Executive Committee – 22nd November 2019 • Give It A Go Executive Committee – 13th November 2019 • Heath Park Executive Committee – 20th November 2019 • Societies Executive Committee – 2nd December 2019 • Volunteering Executive Committee – 13th November 2019

• Welfare and Advice Executive Committee – 19th November 2019 These meetings and groups allowed for a broad range of students to be consulted and by holding focus groups with students based at the Heath and PGR students, it engaged with cohorts of students that are more likely to be disengaged.

Meeting with these committees allowed for parts of the submission to be ‘sense checked’ in order to ensure that the submission reflected student experience. Unfortunately, due to the size of the University, we were unable to fully engage with all students but we made opportunities possible. Campaign officers were emailed in order to ask for their input but due to it being a part-time and voluntary role that takes place around full-time study, it was not possible to consult with them.

There has also been a broader process of communicating the QER with students from the start of the 2019/20 academic year. The review was initially addressed in the Academic Reps handbook, in order to start the process of recruiting students who were prepared to be heavily involved in the review process. It was recognised that it was important to engage with as many students as possible, not just those who were likely to already be actively engaged in the process and as such a comprehensive communication strategy was put in place. The week commencing the 25th November saw the release of a video featuring SU President and LSR, Jackie Yip. This video communicated to students the process that was ongoing and offered students the opportunity to be involved in the review taking place.

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Chapter 3: The Cardiff Context Before exploring the key areas of focus, the Students’ Union believes that it is important to highlight the broad experience of students at Cardiff University. By highlighting the opportunities taken by students’, and also given to students’, this Chapter aims to highlight the student experience.

3.1 The Students’ Union Recent statistics shows that there are almost 32,000 students enrolled at Cardiff University.

Over 23,000 students were undergraduate students with postgraduates totalling over 8,000 students. There were just under 8,000 international students, representing 130 countries (including EU citizens but not the UK).

Under the Education Act (1994), the Students’ Union is the sole representative of all Cardiff University students.

Students are represented at the Students’ Union by seven full-time Sabbatical Officers and ten part-time Campaign Officers, all of whom have been elected by students. The roles are: Sabbatical Officers: • Students’ Union President • Vice President Education • Vice President Heath Park • Vice President Postgraduate • Vice President Societies and Volunteering • Vice President Sports (Athletic Union President) • Vice President Welfare and Campaigns Campaign Officers: • Black and Ethnic Minorities Officer • Ethical and Environmental Officer • International Students’ Officer • LGBT+ (Open) Officer • LGBT+ (Women’s) Officer – NOTE following Student Senate 19th November 2019 this

position will become LGBT+ (Trans) Officer for the 2020/21 Academic Year • Mature Students’ Officer • Mental Health Officer • Students’ with Disabilities Officer • Welsh Language Officer • Women’s Officer Cardiff University Students’ Union is a successful Students’ Union and brings immense benefit to both students and the wider community. Since the 2014 Institutional Review, the Students’ Union has gone from strength- to-strength, winning a number of awards in Wales and across the UK. These accolades make the Students’ Union one of the best Student Unions’ across the whole of the UK. So much so; that in 2019 Cardiff University Students’ Union was named best Higher Education Students’ Union in Wales

by NUS Wales and was also named third best Students’ Union in the UK at the Whatuni Student Choice Awards. The organisation has also been accredited as ‘Excellent’ under the National Union of Students Quality Students’ Unions quality mark, as well as attaining Investors in Diversity Stage 2. The Students’ Union has also achieved the following: • 2015: NUS Wales Campaigns Winner, Gold in NUS Green Impact Report • 2016: NUS Wales Education Award • 2017: NUS Wales Diversity Award • 2018: NUS Wales Education Award As an organisation, 2019 saw the Students’ Union receive a number of awards that recognise that the Union is an excellent place to work. It entered into the Sunday Times 100 Best – Not – For – Profit Organisations to work for in 2019 and was also named a ‘One to Watch’ in 2019 for Best Company.

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3.2 The Student Experience The Students’ Union is, for many, a fundamental part of their student experience and the Union acknowledges this role in its aim to be ‘The Heart of the Student Experience’ as part of its 2018-21 organisational strategy [019].

As noted previously, the Students’ Union has been awarded a number of accolades but it is important to understand why the Students’ Union has been so successful and how students experience it. The Union has a positive impact on the academic experience of students, with there currently being 40 course-based societies and 35 Heath-based societies, the majority of which have an academic focus. These societies are beneficial because they provide opportunities to students as it allows them to engage with research and also invite guest speakers to lectures, enhancing their learning opportunities. For example, the History Society invited a survivor of the Holocaust to give a talk about their experience, providing students with a fantastic opportunity to learn more about an important area of history from someone who lived through it.

From a broader perspective, the Students’ Union provides impartial and independent advice to students on issues from Academic Matters to Housing through the Student Advice department. There are over 200 societies (including the academic ones) and 67 sports clubs, providing students with a range of benefits. The Students’ Union also runs ‘Give It A Go’, working with clubs and societies to provide taster sessions to students and also carrying out a number of national and international trips for students. The Students’ Union also provides the opportunity for part-time work via Jobshop and the opportunity for students to develop vital personal and employability skills via the Skills Development Service (SDS). There are also volunteering opportunities available to students through ‘Cardiff Volunteering’. The Students’ Union provides a multitude of services and benefits to all students.

There were 1,600 students involved in volunteering projects during the 2017/18 academic year, with Cardiff Volunteering running 33 projects as of this year. Feedback from students highlight the value that volunteering has added to their University experience: “I enjoyed the opportunity to work closely with children in a classroom environment. This helped me to gain invaluable experience to pursue my teaching career” Cardiff Volunteering Feedback [017] Comments like this highlight the employability skills gained by pursuing volunteering.

It is important as well to focus on the various number of ways that students not only engage with the University and the Union as a whole, but how they engage with student voice. At the start of the 2019/20 Academic Year, there were 958 reps, with 537 reps currently trained.

During the 2018/19 academic year there were 942 academic reps across all three colleges, with 489 of them having received formal training from the Students’ Union. In the 2017/18 academic year there were 993 student representatives, with 479 having received training [013, 014].

There are also other ways in which students engage with representation that have the support of the University. Student representatives are included on the recruitment panel for University staff. Sabbatical officers sit on recruitment panels for new Deans in order to allow for a student perspective and it highlights the strong level of partnerships.

Every semester, elections take place for a number of positions within the Students’ Union.

The 2019 spring elections saw 86 candidates take part, which is significantly above the sector average and there was also a record breaking turnout for the Students’ Union, with 6,960 students voting in the elections [013]. This shows that students at Cardiff University are increasingly interested in having their voice

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heard. It is important to note that this also shows that students are participating and engaging in the process in increasing numbers.

In the 2018/19 Spring elections for full-time Sabbatical Officers, 12 students put themselves forward to be Vice-President Education, demonstrating how students are passionate about having their voices heard, especially on academic matters. Students can also engage with Student Voice by participating in Student Senate or Scrutiny. Every November, the Students’ Union hosts its Annual General Meeting (AGM), the highest policy making body of the Union. On the 21st November 2019, 792 students attended AGM, showing that students are passionate about engaging with the Students’ Union and its democratic processes. This is the most well attended AGM in recent years for the Students’ Union, something that the Union is extremely proud of.

The Union tracks the number of students it engages with across all departments, in order to understand the demand for different services and to also go some way towards tracking the

Table 1 - Students’ Union engagement data [020]

impact of the Union on the student experience.

The Union recognises that tracking the number of students doesn’t show the full impact of our engagement with students but tracking the numbers goes some way to seeing the impact and it is a good indicator of the excellent work carried out by each department within the Students’ Union.

With the University having 24 Schools, each in one of the three colleges, there are different challenges that arise when dealing with each college and school. This means a tailored and unique approach is needed for interacting and engaging with students of each college, something which has been enhanced by there being Student Voice Co-ordinators for each college. The College of Biomedical and Life Sciences (BLS) is made up of seven schools, three of which are based at the Heath Park Campus. This presents a unique challenge in how the University and the Students’ Union work together to engage with students who are often away on placement as well. Following consultation with students based at the Heath,

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Table 2 - Overall Engagement Numbers [020]

Figure 1 - Student Wins from the Heath on the SU Website

the following changes have been implemented; • Renovated IV Lounge • More bike racks • 24hr library at the Heath • More microwaves in social spaces The College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences (AHSS) covers ten schools, all are based at Cathays apart from Journalism, Media and Culture (JOMEC) which is based at Central Square. The AHSS is the largest of the colleges.

There are a number of success across the

college and in individual schools in the college.

• The Law department now has a reading week following Law Student Staff Panels The College of Physical Sciences and Engineering (PSE) covers the remaining seven schools, with the National Software Academy in Newport being the only part of the College based away from Cardiff.

• The School of Physics within the Queens Building, has listened to student feedback

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and created a gender neutral toilet with accessibility for all Both the AHSS and PSE colleges have also benefited from a number of renovations and improved learning spaces as part of a broader project of change by the University.

3.3 What is partnership at Cardiff University like?

The partnership between the University and Students’ Union is apparent throughout the whole academic year, starting with induction talks. Induction talks allow sabbatical officers and campaign officers to introduce themselves and the Students’ Union to new and returning students. The start of the 2019/20 academic year saw 81 induction talks and 28 student rep shout outs taking place across the University, highlighting the partnership between not just the University and the Students’ Union but also schools and the Students’ Union.

Figure 3 - Cardiff University Strategic Plan ‘The Way Forward 2018 2023’ [042a]

Figure 2 - Student Wins showing the new Law Reading Week

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Partnership between the University and Students’ Union is driven by the desire to improve the student experience both academically and pastorally.

The University engages and interacts with the student voice through regular and ongoing events such as Programme and Partner Standing Panel’s (PPSP) and the Academic Rep system.

The annual Student Written Submission (SWS)

Figure 4 - SWS Mapping [001-007]

which is spearheaded by the sabbatical officers, is a productive way for the student voice to be raised to the University.

The SWS has led to some substantive changes and has allowed for further open and honest communication between the University and the Students’ Union. Reading through the previous Student Written Submission’s and the Institutional responses from previous years,

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it becomes apparent that whilst many of the themes are on similar areas, it is because the University is carrying out consistent work to address areas raised in regards to Learning and Teaching for example, something which allows the SWS to continually feed into decisions made.

Figure 4 shows the different themes that have made up the SWS. It is clear that there are often reoccurring themes which suggests that in some areas, there are longer term solutions being carried out. It is important to note that the structure and data sets used over time has changed but this still provides a useful comparison. It also allows for a longer narrative of themes and areas to be seen.

The 2019/20 Student Written Submission [007] is also a useful tool but the dataset is collated and presented in a different way and as such can’t provide a direct comparison. However, the Student Written Submission still provides useful information as it is from this submission that the partnership projects for the 2019/20 academic year were decided.

manifestos and how the Students’ Union and the University can work together to achieve real change for students’.

As of summer 2019, academic schools within the University have also started holding NSS meetings to put together action plans for improving results within their schools. This is a welcome partnership that should improve student satisfaction and we look forward to seeing the difference this makes to the student experience.

The University is also listening with its responses to feedback. Following the University receiving the SWS, it produces comprehensive responses to areas raised by the Students’ Union, providing action plans and giving more information as to where the University currently stands on those areas. This feedback is greatly appreciated as it demonstrates the University actively listening.

The University also recognises that there are times when it is important to hold one-off events to engage with students when new areas for discussion have emerged. These ad hoc events have included a Q&A session at the Students’ Union for students to raise concerns and clarify with the Vice-Chancellor over ‘Transforming Cardiff’.

By enabling open and honest dialogue between students and University staff, the process of collecting student feedback and then acting on it to get appropriate and welcomed outcomes is enhanced.

Figure 3 - Tweet from @PresidentCSU about Sabbatical Officers meeting with PVC Amanda Coffey

Sabbatical officers also regularly meet with senior members of the University to discuss their

Figure 4 - YouTube Video, Cardiff University YouTube Channel, ‘How we listen to students’ [077]

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to benefit.”

Alex Klukenko, Vice-President Postgraduate 2016-17

Figure 5 - YouTube Video, Cardiff University Students’ Union YouTube Channel, ‘Speak Week’ [078]

These two videos highlight how the University and the Students’ Union work in partnership to engage with students, communicating ways in which the University listens to student feedback but also how the University gets involved in promoting campaigns such as Speak Week, to get students involved in having their voices heard. Following Speak Week, the Students’ Union compiles a report that highlights the main areas covered by student comments, is shared with students and the University, allowing staff at the University to better understand the student voice.

The Sabbatical Officer and University Relationship The relationship between the Students’ Union and the University has always been strong.

Speaking to Sabbatical Officers from previous years, it is clear to see that this relationship was appreciated and beneficial each academic year.

“The Students’ Union and the University work incredibly hard together and rely on one another every day. As an elected officer I was lucky enough to meet weekly with senior University members of staff whose academic reputations were often internationally renowned; and they wanted to hear what the Students’ Union felt could be done to improve the student experience. The relationship, and the support that each institution offers to one another, is irreplaceable, and so long as it remains strong the students of Cardiff University will only stand

“During my time as an officer the opportunities for Partnership with the University were plentiful, with the Deans of Education of each College of the University providing the richest of opportunities to share feedback from students, lecturers and schools alike and improve the academic provision accordingly.

The yearly Partnership Projects are also a key method of implementing improvements aligned with student and staff feedback. Continuing to work on how the recommendations produced from these projects are followed up is the way forward in ensuring this partnership continues to be meaningful. I look forward to seeing this Partnership continue to flourish!”

Jen Kent, Vice-President Heath Park 2018-19

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Chapter 4: Recommendations from the Institutional Review 2014 The previous review of Cardiff University indicated three main recommendations; two did not have a direct link towards working with students and as such will not be commented upon. One linked to the ‘Assessment Matters Framework’ [051] and Assessment and Feedback continues to be an area of development for the University. The project aimed to provide a standardised and generic assessment criteria, in order to prevent assessment criteria from being set at a more local school level. Assessment and Feedback is an area often raised in Speak Week and NSS scores and the University and Students’ Union continue to work in partnership to enhance the current system.

The annual Student Written Submissions provide the Students’ Union with an opportunity to raise issues directly with the University. It provides data and themes that can be mapped to understand recurring issues. One recurring theme from all Student Written Submissions since 2014 has been Assessment and Feedback.

This demonstrates that while the ‘Assessment Matters Framework’ has standardised module credits and weighting, increasing equity between the degrees coming from different schools, Assessment and Feedback is still an area of concern for Cardiff University students.

Students have raised concerns about Assessment and Feedback in a number of different surveys and settings. NSS data has demonstrated that student satisfaction with Assessment and Feedback has remained relatively steady with the following results:

2016/17: 68.79% 2017/18: 71.10% 2018/19: 69.74% [059-061]

It is important to note that the latest result is significantly below the benchmark but the University is aware of this and is actively working to improve this.

Within schools and colleges though there is a wide range of satisfaction with Assessment and Feedback. It’s important that these inconsistencies are looked at by schools and the University in order to share best practice. The following NSS results show the inconsistency across the University and within Colleges.

AHSS: CARBS: 64.55% satisfaction WELSH: 91.67% satisfaction BLS: BIOSI: 56.78% satisfaction PSYCH: 82.01% satisfaction PSE: CHEMY: 58.46% satisfaction MATHS: 76.31% satisfaction [058] This inconsistency in Assessment and Feedback is also highlighted by the following comments: “Consistent feedback needed, lecturers don’t give useful feedback and you can’t improve” Speak Week 2019, Engineering Student [012] “The feedback from assessments was shockingly poor. Both have been incredibly late, the essay was not given as constructive advice but more so a telling off with little to improve and the

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exam feedback has not been given despite it being almost 5 weeks from the exam. I am so disappointed.”

PTES 2018, MScEcon Welsh Government and Politics [057] “a lot of variation in marks compared to standard of work handed in, as marked by many members of staff who had different expectations and no second marker.”

EARTH UG SSP Minutes 2017-18 [023] Moreover, one Postgraduate Taught (PGT) student commented that “consistency of markers”[057] was an area that needed improving. These show that students are consistently unhappy with Assessment and Feedback.

It is important though to recognise areas where the University aims to tackle concerns over Assessment and Feedback. In response to concerns over this area in the 2016 Student Written Submission, the institutional response drew attention to a campaign carried out by their central communication team. In order for the campaign to have the widest possible reach, the communication team engaged with the Academic Lead for the Assessment and Feedback Project, Assessment and Feedback Leads, and the Students’ Union. The two-week University campaign was the first of its campaign and it highlighted the University’s 20 working day feedback policy and the various ways in which students can receive feedback [030].

This campaign highlights that the University is aiming to address points raised by students over assessment and feedback but that more work is needed to address these points.

The University also utilises the online Learning Hub to disseminate advice for lecturers on providing feedback, the document called ‘Marking, Grading and Giving Feedback’ provides useful advice with the aim of providing a standardised process for new lecturers to approach marking with. The document also refers back to the Assessment Matters Project and the three key principles of providing

feedback [050]:: • I. Feedback supports and promotes effective learning • II. Feedback is a continuous process • III. Feedback needs to be suited to individual students’ needs

Case Study: CAFÉ Tool The CAFÉ tool aims to allow students to take ownership of their feedback and use the tool to enhance their skills. It provides students with the ability to process feedback, calculate grades, suggest skills and find resources to enhance skills. The tool can be personalised to ensure that students get the maximum benefit from it.

The creation of the tool was driven by the Supporting Student Assessment and Feedback Literacy Partnership Group. The tool was developed following research which identified a similar took called FEATS, at the University of Surrey. The partnership group identified that it was important to ensure that student and staff were consulted in order to ensure that it was suitable for use. This case study highlights an excellent example of co-design and co-delivery of projects to improve the student experience.

In December 2018, the group wrote a project proposal in December 2018 and submitted it to the National Software Academy as a final year project for year 3 students. The students who took part in the project met with the group every two weeks and also hosted focus groups with students throughout the project, ensuring that students had a high level of input. This student input is demonstrated by the inclusion of a grades calculator, a gadget suggested by students themselves.

Members of University staff were also involved as it was recognised that it was important to consult with Assessment and Feedback leads and the Student Written Submission Steering Group.

Quality Enhancement Review Student Submission 2019-20 19

Chapter 5: Students’ Union Engagement with Quality and Standards Partnership between the Students’ Union and the University is genuine and authentic.

It is an active partnership. As such, the University actively engages the Students’ Union in its Quality and Standards procedures.

The University includes representatives of the student body in University Committees including in PPSP, Estates Board, Student Written Submission, Policy and Resources Committee and University Senate.

Inclusion on University Committees The University on a broader scale works in partnership with students by having students attend the majority of University committees.

This is recognised in the Relationship Agreement between the University and Students’ Union: ‘The Student Members of the Council shall comprise the Union President and one other Union elected officer, as defined within the University’s Ordinances. Student membership is also included on all major decision-making bodies as well as advisory groups of the University, including but not limited to: Court, Senate, Policy & Resources Committee, Governance Committee, Equality and Diversity and Inclusion Committee, Academic Standards & Quality Committee, Student Experience Strategy Group and a range of other Student Experience related groups.’

Cardiff University and Cardiff University Students’ Union Relationship Agreement 2018/19, p. 4 [034] It is also recognised within the Terms of Reference for specific panel, committees and groups, as demonstrated by the following: “Six student representatives who will attend the Panel on a rolling basis, nominated by the Students’ Union President, at least 3 of whom should be sabbatical officers:”

Programme and Partner Standing Panel Terms of Reference [045] By including student representatives in the process of approving new degree courses and changes to the running of courses, the University ensures that the courses are likely to work for both academics and students. This partnership demonstrates the inclusion of students across the spectrum of University activities.

There are also examples of schools working with students in partnership outside of SSPs. The School of Social Sciences and Pharmacy, with support from CESI, undertook a project on how case-making can facilitate the student voice.

Fee and Access Plan As noted within the Fee and Access Plan, the Students’ Union produces semester reports on what is being raised within SSPs: “Data gathered through student voice activities underpin our established approach to strong partnership working with our students. Data are gathered from a range of sources including: • Speak Week (see below for details and examples of actions taken as a result) which feeds directly into the Student Written Submission and the University’s response; • Module evaluation and cohort surveys (see below for details and actions taken as a result); • College Forums; and • Student-staff panels, which convene to discuss specific subject areas, providing an opportunity for a larger number of students to participate in review and discussion with staff. Outcomes from meetings are taken up by Partnership meetings/

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college Forums, actioned at the appropriate level or escalated to more senior staff or strategic groups as required. Analysis of the types of issues raised at SSPs are reported annually by the Students’ Union (see Autumn 2017 report: https://www.cardiffstudents.com/pageassets/ your-voice/academicreps/resources/StudentVoice-Autumn-2017-Report.pdf). Most are course-specific, but some cross-institutional themes emerge. For instance, the decision to move to an opt-out model for lecture capture (Panopto) from 2018/19 is a response to student feedback via SSPs and other forums” Cardiff University Fee and Access Plan 2019/20, Page 21 [040] The Fee and Access Plan outlines how the University plans to support students from different demographics by aiming to ensure “Equality of opportunity for groups of students who are traditionally less likely to access higher education (HE) and work to ensure that those students progress and succeed at Cardiff University” (Fee and Access Plan 2018/19). [041] It is therefore disappointing and frustrating that the most recent approval route meant the Union was only given an extremely quick turnaround time of about a day, before the draft needed to be handed back to the University. This submission therefore recommends that the University engages in meaningful consultation with the Students’ Union on the Fee and Access Plan.

Students and Sabbatical Officers are also involved in other forms of engagement with Quality and Standards. “.ii Students have direct and regular access to senior decision-makers. Elected SU officers meet regularly with the Vice Chancellor and other members of the University Executive Board. They participate as full members of major

committees, including Senate and Council, and also serve on the steering boards for studentfacing capital and revenue projects, including the Centre for Student Life (CSL), a new £50M landmark building marking a major investment in the student experience. The CSL is a partnership project with our Students’ Union and is a direct response to the results of a 2012 Students’ Union commissioned survey of student capital investment prioritie…”

Cardiff University TEF Narrative, Page 3 [047] “iv. Council considers the Student Written Submission (SWS) on an annual basis, together with response and actions agreed by University Executive Board. This distinctive approach provides our students with access to our Governing Body, and in turn helps to shape our investment priorities. In the last three years, the SWS has directly influenced a number of changes across the University including the expansion of 24/7 library opening hours, changes to the delivery of wellbeing and careers support services for our University Hospital based students, the roll out of lecture capture capability across the institution and the introduction of contactless payment facilities across campus.”

Cardiff University TEF Narrative, Page 3 [047] There are also other important quality systems that have an impact on the student experience.

Annual Review and Enhancement (ARE) aims to inform school level planning processes and also provide Colleges and the University with assurance and oversight of the quality and enhancement of both teaching and research.

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Figure 6 - Education and Students Sub-strategy from The Way Forward 2018-2023 [042a]

The Education and Students Sub-strategy highlights how the University aims to engage with students and work in partnership with them. It recognises that there are opportunities currently available to students for engaging with the University but also recognises that more needs to be done to engage all. There are already opportunities available to students to contribute to University life such as, the Student Mentor programme, although it is positive that the University acknowledges that more can be done to increase these opportunities.

One of the key ways in which the University already works within its Education and Students Sub-strategy, is through Student Staff Panels. Student Staff Panels give Academic Representatives the opportunity to voice the opinions, concerns and ideas that their peers have raised to them in a formal manner with members of staff. They provide opportunities for open and honest dialogue about areas that concern both staff and students.

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Chapter 6: Academic Standards and Learning Opportunities The areas of focus covered in this submission allow for a greater in depth view of the student experience at Cardiff University. This submission would also like to explore how students experience academic standards at the University and how the learning resources available support students during their degrees. The following questions are based off the QAA Optional Template given to the LSR and the Student Voice Project Officer and were chosen as they cover a broad range of areas that the Students’ Union believes to be important and to also provide more information on the background for the experience of students at Cardiff University.

Do students feel that their assessments are appropriate?

Unfortunately, there isn’t any data explicitly asking this question but by looking at NSS Questions on Learning Opportunities or Assessment and Feedback, it is possible to understand the perspective of students on this matter.

NSS Question 7: My course has provided me with opportunities to apply what I have learnt.

2016/17: 78.96% 2017/18: 79.05% 2018/19: 78.70% [058, 059, 060] Arguably, if a course if providing students with opportunities to apply the knowledge learnt whilst studying then this is an indication that students do feel that their assessments are appropriate.

Do students understand the grading criteria?

The grading criteria at University is a different

structure compared to the criteria from earlier levels of study. It is important that students are supported to ensure that they are aware of what is required from them.

Question 8 of the NSS allows whether marking criteria has been made clear to students in advance of results.

2016/17: 70.64% 2017/18: 70.74% 2018/19: 70.95% The most recent result was not significantly different to benchmark which reflects that students do feel that they are given enough information to understand how their work will be marked.

[058, 059, 060]

Are students aware of the higher education provider’s rules on plagiarism?

In order to ensure the quality of degrees and to protect integrity, the University has academic regulations outlining what plagiarism is and how the University deals with it. It is important to understand how students are supported to ensure they do not fall foul to these rules.

It is not possible to understand accurately how students understand the provider’s rules on plagiarism but Student Advice has data showing the number of students accessing their services for this area. Whilst Student Advice see a number of students across the year for this area, not all students going through Academic Misconduct proceedings will seek advice. The 2018/19 academic year saw 266 students seek advice for the department, with 21 having done so in 2019/20 academic year, as of November 2019. Responsibility for making students aware of the University’s rules on plagiarism and

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Academic Misconduct is often given to schools.

Schools are meant to provide students with the relevant information during introductory or skills based lectures during the first few weeks of term. These lectures aim to inform students about the reference system and how the University deals with Academic Misconduct.

If there are students who are unaware of the University’s rules on plagiarism, it may be that those students need informing more frequently as to what the rules are or signposted to the University policy on it.

The University’s Academic Integrity policy highlights what it aims to do as a document: “From 1 August 2019, the academic integrity policy provides a framework for the management of academic misconduct. The purpose of the policy and associated procedures is to ensure that Cardiff University can discharge effectively its responsibilities to all students and address any concerns raised, fairly and effectively.” [044]

Student Advice, the Students’ Union independent, impartial and confidential advice department offers support to students in a number of areas from Academic to Housing to Wellbeing.

As such, the Student Advice department provides support and information for students on plagiarism. The below page on Academic Misconduct provides an overview of the University’s policy which has recently been updated and which the Students’ Union was consulted on.

The Student Advice department works with students who are going through the Academic Misconduct [044] process (which is for Taught students) and also the Academic Integrity process [043] (for students who are doing a Research programme). Responsibility for handling Academic Mishandling cases is now dealt with by each academic school, keeping the process ‘inhouse’. Whilst the system being localised allows for greater awareness of more local, schoolbased issues, at times it leads to inconsistencies in the application of the rules and can, at times, lead to discrepancies in the awareness of plagiarism by students and the application of the rules. The Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA) recognises that ‘effective complaints system have a local, informal element which is capable of resolving student concerns before they escalate into formal complaints’ [065] and therefore, dealing with cases locally is beneficial.

However, it might not be appropriate at all times.

Are students involved in the design of new programmes? Have students had the opportunity to feedback on lectures?

Figure 7 - Academic Misconduct Page on the Students’ Union website [073]

The Programme and Partner Standing Panel (PPSP) is the University’s panel that looks into new proposed degree programmes or major amendments to a proposal. A panel of staff members and students look through

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the proposed programmes and go through it ensuring that it is viable and also is beneficial to students. By having student representatives, such as Sabbatical Officers, on the panel, it ensures that any proposed programmes or changes, have students in mind. As part of this panel, student representatives can raise query’s or get clarification as to how decisions would impact students. Moreover, as part of the process for degree programmes, the staff members proposing it have to show that students have been consulted.

Upon the conclusion of modules, students are asked to fill out module evaluations to better understand the experience of students who undertook that module. This feedback is designed to be shown to SSPs in order for schools to convey any actions to be taken as a result on feedback but this process may be in inconsistent practice. Module evaluation feedback has, however, been used by schools during their Student Experience Enhancement Meetings to help shape the considerations and action plans formulated here.

Do students believe that the learning resources are adequate?

Learning resources are a key tool for supporting students and ensuring that they are supported academically. The University is constantly working to look at how it can improve the learning resources available to students and the Students’ Union values the work that has been undertaken and continues to be undertaken.

Over the past few years there have been both small and large changes to the provision of learning resources.

To better support students learning experiences, following discussions with the Students’ Union, the University now opens the Arts and Social Studies Library (ASSL) 24/7, as well as the Cochrane Building at the Heath, benefitting students who study at both campuses. Before the 2018/19 academic year, students were only able to take out 15 books at any one time but, following lobbying from the Students’ Union, this has now increased to 35 books at once.

NSS Results also show how students found the various learning resources useful and beneficial throughout their time at University. All of these responses aren’t significantly different to the benchmark, showing that the University is providing students with the necessary resources.

Question 18: The IT resources and facilities provided have supported my learning well.

2016/17: 84.58% 2017/18: 84.48% 2018/19: 83.38% Question 19: The library resources (e.g. books, online services and learning spaces) have supported my learning well.

2016/147: 90.90% 2017/18: 91.64% 2018/19: 90.60%

Figure 8 - Screengrab from the Students’ Union website celebrating the student win of increasing the number of books abled to be borrowed

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Question 20: I have been able to access coursespecific resources (e.g. equipment, facilities, software, collections) when I needed to.

2016/17: 89.10% 2017/18: 89.37% 2018/19: 89.12%

Students have fed back about the careers service available to them via NSS raw text comments, Speak Week and other surveys.

“The workshops put on are really useful, skills development service, in the SU, the careers and employability service”

[058, 059, 060]

Speak Week 2018 [011]

How satisfied are students with any careers service provided?

“Career coaching sessions have been extremely useful”

Cardiff University provides students with careers advice throughout their time at the University and also after students have graduated. Each academic school has specialist careers advisers who are available throughout the week to help and advise students.

Students who have graduated within the previous 2 years are still able to access the following from the Careers Service: • Online employability information and support via ‘Your Career Journey’ • Drop-in appointments: available in person, over the phone or via Skype • One 30-minute 1:1 careers appointment or mock interview • Online CV and application advice • Careers fair and events

PTES 2018 [056] “On my course particularly the Careers Department are amazing, anything you want you just email them, straightaway they’re very proactive, any career you want they tell you how to make yourself more employable. The pro bono department in particular extracurricular activities are brilliant with allowing you to balance your CV with anything extra you want to do.”

NSS 2017 [060] There are more positive comments about the University’s Career Service, highlighting the benefits that it provides to students but, unfortunately there isn’t a consistent experience for all.

“More guidance on employability postgraduation. The careers man/lady is lovely and I understand there is only so much he/she can guide us with; however, I have never felt visits with his/her that helpful…”

NSS 2019 [058] “More awareness of the services available — I was unaware of careers workshops about CVs, applications, LinkedIn, until my final term because their availability is not made clear.”

NSS 2018 [059]

Figure 9 - Screengrab from the Cardiff University Student Intranet about the different services provided by the Careers Service

Broadly speaking, most comments from students who want an improved careers service highlight the need more advisers or more help being available.

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The University’s career service is available for all 30,000 Cardiff University students however, there are concerns about the equality of access.

PGRs often feel caught between being staff and students and as such may struggle to know which support or services they can access. The 2019 PRES report looks at the broader picture of how PGR students, across the UK, feel about their programme. Whilst this focuses on the broader UK wide picture, it raises areas that will likely apply to PGR students at Cardiff and as such, needs to be researched further. The PRES report [057] highlights that from the 50,000 PGRs from 107 institutions, the following was reported:

More information and analysis can be found later on in the discussion on Placements and Employability.

• Training to develop research skills being the most frequent opportunity provided (76%) • In contrast, there appear to be fewer opportunities provided and/or engagement with advice on career options (31%).

The University has a dedicated Disability and Dyslexia Service for students to ensure that they are supported. While comments suggest that there are areas that may still need to be enhanced, there are also a number of positive comments;

In order to find out more information on the experience of PGRs with the careers service, the Student Voice Project Officer attended the Postgraduate Research Representative Forum (PGRR) that took place on the 14th November 2019 to inform the attendees about the review process and ask them about their experience of the careers service for PGRs at Cardiff University. Students from across different colleges and schools reported similar experiences. From the feedback given by PGRR attendees, it appears that career support tends to be provided at a more local level, often by supervisors or staff within academic school, this leads to a lack of opportunities to learn about careers outside of academia. Students from both CARBS and CHEMY commented that they wish to see more support for knowing about careers in industry and that they also wanted more information on the general job market. A student from SOCSI also commented that they would like to see career support more embedded throughout their programme, rather than in the last year or so, in order to better prepare them for life post PhD.

How satisfied (for example, with the support provided) are students with disabilities?

NSS data [059, 060, 061] provides a useful way of working to understand the experience of students with disabilities and the support provided to them by the University to ensure that they have access to all opportunities. It is important to look at both free text comments and the raw data.

“The extenuating circumstances and disability staff do an amazing job in terms of keeping in contact and providing help and advice as and when needed.”

NSS 2017 [061] “University wide support such as the money and advice team, and disability and dyslexia team are excellent — friendly, helpful and I have felt fully listened to and understood.”

NSS 2017 [061] “I got the chance to study abroad as part of my degree, which was an amazing experience even though I was limited to where I could go because of my disability. The exchange coordinators were amazing in helping me to achieve this goal.”

NSS 2018 [060]

How satisfied are international students?

Following feedback from students and the 2017/18 Student Written Submission, the

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Questions on Academic Support

Students’ Union and the University undertook the International Student Partnership Project.

Both institutions recognise that International students have different experiences to other students due to financial constraints etc. and it is important to ensure that they are supported during their time at Cardiff University and satisfied with their experience.

Does your higher education provider have a document (for example, a student charter) that sets out mutual

expectations? Are students aware of this?

Cardiff University and Cardiff University Students’ Union work together to develop the Student Charter [039], a document that sets out what students can expect from the University and the Students’ Union. It also highlights how students can make the most of their time studying at Cardiff University. There are seven key themes to the Student Charter: • Creating an inspiring learning environment

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• Working in partnership • Supporting our students • Celebrating Welsh Language and Culture • Valuing equality, diversity and inclusivity • Focusing on employability and global citizenship • Being open and honest in our communications

partner.

‘The University and the Union jointly support the Student Academic Rep system and work together to ensure the representation of students at School, College and Universitywide level. The Union takes responsibility for recruiting, training and supporting the Academic Reps through the Student Voice Team within the Union. The University, through the Centre for Education Support and Innovation supports the embedding of the Academic Rep system within University Committees and the appointment of Student Rep Coordinators within Schools.’

Cardiff University and Cardiff University Students’ Union Relationship Agreement 2018/19 p. 5 [034]

Figure 10 - Our Student Charter Video [079]

How effective is student representation?

How are representatives supported?

The Students’ Union is the sole legal representative of all students at Cardiff University. The Student Voice department runs the Academic Representative system, students who are either elected or nominated to represent their fellow students at Student-Staff Panels (SSP’s). SSPs allow for students and staff to meet and discuss concerns or issues to try and resolve them.

The University has trusted the co-ordination and organisation of the Academic Reps system to the Students’ Union, demonstrating that the University has confidence in the Union to deliver effective representation within an academic setting. The Student Voice team within the Students’ Union has managed the academic reps structure since 2014 and it continues to go from strength-to-strength. The organisation and management of the Academic Representatives system is laid out in the Relationship Agreement which clarifies the responsibilities for each

This trust is significant as at the time of the last institutional review in 2014, the University was running the Academic Reps system. The Students’ Union welcomes the University’s decision to listen to the recommendation made in 2014 that: ‘The Students’ Union should be responsible for the coordination of the Student Academic Rep system’ 2014 Institutional Review Student Submission [018] The Student Rep Co-ordinator role is a member of staff within each school who supports the student representation system and ensures that the system is ingrained throughout the schools.

The role of Student Rep Co-ordinator is highly valued for the difference it makes to improving and ingraining the student voice.

The Student Voice Team supports academic reps by providing them with training at the start of the academic year. This training covers Student Wins, the roles, engaging with cohorts, data and how best to get feedback [021]. There is also training provided for Academic Reps who are the Chairs or Secretaries of their SSPs in order to

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ensure they are able to make the most of their roles. Every year the Student Voice Team also holds an Academic Rep Conference, providing more training and information to Academic Reps whilst also allowing for the sharing of best practice.

Figure 11 - Tweets from @CU_StudentVoice on the Academic Rep Conference

In order to ensure that the training provided to academic reps is fit for purpose and is valued by academic reps, the Student Voice Department asks student reps to fill out a survey at the end of the academic year. The 2018/19 Annual Report on Academic Representation [013] highlights the results of this survey. 489 out of 942 student reps were trained during the 2018/19 academic year and 60% of those trained (295) responded to the survey. Students were asked the following questions: • Did the session meet its objective? (Yes, No, Unsure) – 99% of students felt that the

training provided met its objectives.

• What was the most useful part of the session? – Feedback to this question ranged from students feeling they gained a broader knowledge of the role of an academic rep and the feedback system to useful group activities and the Kahoot quiz.

• What do you think could be improved? – Comments ranged from providing online access to resources, food and drink at training and timing of training (some felt it should shorter, some indicated a longer session would be more helpful).

• To what extent do you agree with this statement: ‘the training helped me to understand my role and responsibilities of a student academic rep?’ (1-10) – this question produced a net promoter score of 64. This was broken down into, 66% of students rating between 9 -10, 32% rating 7-8 and 2% rating 0-6.

• To what extent do you agree with this statement: ‘the training helped me to understand my role in raising issues to your student staff panel’ (1-10) – this question produced a net promoter score of 63. This was broken down into, 67% of students rating between 9 -10, 28% rating 7-8 and 4% rating 0-6.

Annual Report on Academic Representation (2018/19) [013] Other students have fed back the following about the Student Rep system; “SSPs are very effective...”

Student Senate Meeting 19th November 2019 “Most things are good to be honest - the SSPs work” Speak Week 2018 [011] “Student-staff panels are great. As you go further up the year groups, you tend to have closer relationships with lecturers.”

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NSS 2017 [061] There are comments that also praise the work of SSPs but wish for there to be some more tangible outcomes from feedback, suggesting that students find the SSP a good forum to raise feedback but just need to see more done to close the feedback loop (?).

Academic reps are also provided with handbooks, based on whether they are taught students or research students, helping to give them more information and support throughout their time as an academic rep. Academic reps are also supported throughout the year by the Student Voice team as they are able to speak to the department throughout the year if they have any questions.

In order to better support student reps, following feedback from previous years, a Code of Practice was developed. In the introduction to the Code of Practice, it is stated that: “The Code of Practice is a working document that acts as guidance for students and staff on how academic representation functions at Cardiff University.” [035] The Code of Practice provides a definition as to what being a Student Academic Rep entails in order to better support academic reps who want clarity over the remit of their role. The Code of Practice description of the role refers to the QAA Quality Code in order to provide further information and more detail on the role and the importance of representation [035]: “A SAR is a student who has been elected by peers or has volunteered to represent the students in their School and work with staff to improve their academic (learning and teaching) experience. A student academic representative is a voluntary role which is supported by the Students’ Union. The Students’ Union provides training and gathers feedback from academic reps on students’ Academic Interests. A system for student academic representation is one

of the ways in which the University meets its responsibility to provide opportunities for students to engage in learning and teaching, and being a critical mechanism for enabling continual development of University learning and teaching practices. This is done for the primary benefit of supporting and developing a rich community of learners. For more information on academic representation guidance, see the Quality Assurance Agency’s UK Quality Code Advice and Guidance on Student Engagement.

SARs are not the only way in which the University can engage with students, this document does not provide an exhaustive list of student engagement activity. If you would like to engage with students in a different way please contact the Student Engagement Team or the Student Voice Team.”

The ESLAs work to recognise staff and students who go out of their way to contribute to University life. A number of roles recognise the impact and hard work of both Student reps and Student Rep Co-ordinators.

Are there any examples where the higher education provider has instigated a change in response to students’ views?

One of the most significant areas where there has been good practice in the area of student partnership, is the University’s Lecture Capture Policy. For a number of years, students fed back to both the University and the Students’ Union that they wished to see an increase in the usage of Panopto (a lecture capture tool), if not compulsory usage, during their degrees.

“Use lecture recordings to enhance learning experience as some lecturers already do. It is helpful to listen back to the lectures when they have spoken too quickly for notes to be made during the lectures.”

NSS 2017 [060] In 2017, 200 Speak Week [010] comments were

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coded as ‘lecture capture’, with comments such as: “Compulsory recording of all lectures” “If the school could provide recording of lecture and the lecture notes that would be better.

Sometimes students may miss the lecture for various reasons, so the recording available online is very important.”

In the 2016 Student Written Submission [004],, the Students’ Union recommended the following: “Ensure that there is compulsory training on the use of Panopto for all academic staff by the end of the academic year 2016-17, and a commitment thereafter to have all lectures recorded” The University responded to this recommendation with the following [030]: “Colleges to work actively with Schools to develop appropriate plans to implement LearnPlus, taking into account the full range of capabilities the system offers, the nature of individual programmes, student feedback and evidence of what bests support student learning, and to ensure that plans are communicated to students.”

In 2017, Cardiff University Senate approved a new policy on Lecture Capture, ‘Cardiff University Policy for Recording Educational Activities’ [048], which meant that from the start of the 2018/19 academic year, lecture recording was compulsory unless an individual member of staff opted out. This change signifies an exceptional demonstration of partnership between the Students’ Union and the University, especially as elected Sabbatical Officers who were the members of the University’s senate had an important influence on this policy being secured.

The 2019 Speak Week Report [012] was the first Report to take place since the implementation of this new policy. The Report highlights that

there 230 comments coded as ‘Lecture Capture’, 38 comments requested faster upload times for recordings and 33 comments requested improvements to the current system used for Lecture Capture. The remaining 159 comments were from students who wanted more lecture capture which suggests that the implementation hasn’t been fully rolled out yet. However, this doesn’t detract from the excellent partnership between the University and the Students’ Union in order to secure this change in policy for the benefit of students whilst also ensuring that academics have some flexibility with the new change.

The 2019 SWS Institutional Response [033], as part of its reflection on the previous academic year’s work, highlighted the increasing availability of Lecture Capture, which demonstrates the commitment to increasing access to this valuable resource: “This year we have seen a significant increase (33%) in the recording of teaching sessions.

Cardiff University is now the fourth largest producer of Panopto education video content in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.”

How does the provider use evidence such as the National Student Survey scores to improve its provision?

Following the release of NSS results, schools within the University, in conjunction with the Students’ Union and CESI met to discuss the results. As part of those meetings NSS results and other forms of student feedback were used to construct NSS Action Plans. These meetings, Student Experience Enhancement Meetings, helped to produce actions that would address areas of enhancement raised by NSS results, with additional data helping to support actions and supplement the decision making process, thus providing a holistic and nuanced approach for schools to enact upon NSS scores.

This chapter will explore the experience of

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Chapter 7: Areas of focus students in relation to the areas of; Student Voice, Student Partnership, Placements and Employability and, Global Opportunities. The mirroring of the University’s areas of focus allows this submission to represent the student experience and compliment the University submission. Any recommendations made in this chapter are to enhance and strengthen the already strong partnership between the Students’ Union and the University.

7.1 Student Voice The Student Voice department of the Students’ Union aims to ensure that students are actively involved in the decision making process of the University. The student voice can help to shape decisions taken by leaders within schools, colleges and the wider University.

The following section will explore how the University engages with the student voice and how that engagement can be enhanced. The Students’ Union recognises that the University works with the Students’ Union to listen to the student voice in a number of ways. Chapter 6 on Academic Standards and Learning Opportunities has looked at the role of Academic Reps and how they are supported by the Students’ Union and listened to by the University. Therefore, the following section will look at other ways the student voice is listened to and enacted upon by the University and the Students’ Union.

7.1.1 Background The following are indicative of the numerous ways that the student voice is listened to by Cardiff based initiatives; • Module Evaluations • NSS Action Plan Meetings • Programme and Partner Standing Panel • Speak Week • Student-Staff Panels • Welcome to Cardiff Surveys As noted in the introduction, there may be more

local initiatives that should be used as best practice.

The Framework for managing and representing the Student Voice Question 23 from the 2019 NSS [059] highlights the opportunity given to students for feedback on a more local level. The majority of students feel that they were given the right opportunities to feedback on their course, whether that was formal opportunities via module evaluations or informal ways such as in-class anonymous feedback on post-it notes. 85% of students who responded to the survey say that during their time at Cardiff University they had the right opportunities to provide feedback on their course, which is great as it is at the benchmark for this question. The individual results of 8 schools though were below benchmark, suggesting that there is yet to be equity in the opportunities available for the student voice to be engaged with.

Engaging with HEFCW HEFCW guidelines also highlight the importance of the University listening to the student voice.

In HEFCW’s Quality Assessment Framework it is stated that it should be clear that the University “has students integrated as partners in the design, implementation, monitoring and reviewing of processes to improve the quality of their education” (Page 2, QAF HEFCW) [066]. The University adheres to this with Module Evaluations and the Programme and Partner Standing Panel. Module evaluations allow for schools and courses to monitor the implementation of modules and ensure that students are happy with the quality of the module. Questions on the evaluations as of 2018/19 are consistent with themes of NSS questions, thus improving consistency and increasing the options for comparing data; • Teaching and Learning • Assessment and Feedback • Organisation and Management

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Table 3 - 2019 NSS Results Q23: ‘I have had the right opportunities to provide feedback on my course.’

• Learning Resources • Learning Community • Student Voice • Overall Satisfaction

Social Media The prevalance of social media has led to more opportunities for engaging with students and raising awareness of the different ways that they can have their voice heard. The following images demonstrate how social media is used to engage students and how it is used to

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communicate with students about the impact their feedback has had. The Library services tweet highlights how University departments engage with students in order to get valuable feedback. The survey advertised by the library…

The tweet from the ‘I am Cardiff Uni’ account highlights the amount of engagement that the Students’ Union had with its ‘Speak Week’ campaign which was led by the Student Voice department within the Union. The campaign has grown every year, with more and more students having their say on what they would do if they ‘ran the University’. In 2019 [012] over 3,800 cards were collected, with over 7,500 individual comments received. The Students’ Union then analyses these comments to create the annual ‘Speak Week Report’. This highlights key areas where students want to see enhancement and also areas of good practice.

The Impact of Speak Week

Figure 12 - Tweet from @CardiffUniLib promoting their Library Services Survey

Following the collection of Speak Week data, the University and the Students’ Union work in partnership to respond to feedback. As a result, the Arts and Social Studies Library (ASSL) is now open 24/7, Wi-Fi has been improved across campus, exam timetables are now published 2 weeks earlier than they previously were and there are also now more opportunities for card payments across University Catering facilities.

Survey Management Framework The University has been open about its desire to consistently (across schools) respond to student feedback. One of the new mechanisms to be implemented to support a culture of engagement with students is the Survey Management Framework [052].. The framework is under the responsibility of the Education Service and is Sponsored by the Pro-Vice Chancellor for Student Experience and Academic Standards, as well as the Academic Registrar. The framework aims to ‘enable a more strategic, prioritised and consistent approach to responding to student feedback’ (Transforming Services page). The implementation of this framework can help to improve the student voice.

The Student Voice Campaign Figure 13 - Tweet from @iamcardiffuni about Speak Week engagement

As a recognition of the need to continually engage with the student voice, the University

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runs its own Student Voice campaign. The campaign aims to highlight how different schools within the University have listened to the student voice and it also addresses how the university and schools have implemented requested changes. The event being raised on the staff intranet helps to engage academics and professional services staff in engaging with the process. Whilst there are many positive comments praising the Student Voice team and the Academic Rep system, there are also comments such as, ‘listen to the student voice’ (NSS 2018) [060] and ‘pay more attention to what the SSP have to say’ (NSS 2018) [060]. This suggests that students feel they have opportunities to give feedback but that that feedback isn’t being listened to.

Unfortunately, we felt that the University’s Student Voice Campaign did not effectively engage with students. This was disappointing and the Students’ Union believes that there is an opportunity here for best practice to be shared with the University as to how to engage with students. The University has listened to this feedback and has recently recruited a full time staff member as Student Engagement Campaign Officer, to improve communication with students.

7.1.2 Areas of Good Practice Partnership Project Groups From 2017 the Partnership Groups were created as a place for the University and the Students’ Union, along with students, to come together to produce positive change and action. Each year, the University and the Students’ Union work together on student-led projects that aim to improve the student experience. The Partnership Projects selected and developed each year are based off concerns and issues raised in the Student Written Submission. We believe that this highlights the strong collaboration and co-operation between the University and the Students’ Union. Not only does the Student Written Submission prompt projects it also leads to a University institutional response, providing direct responses to recommendations raised by the Students’ Union.

The four partnership projects for the 2019/20 academic year are as follows [033]: • Assessment Taskforce/ Assessment and Feedback Steering Group • Travel and Transport Partnership Project • Catering Partnership Project • Pastoral Support for PGR Students Partnership Project At this time it is not possible to go into detail about these partnership projects but it is possible to explore previous ones.

Figure 14 – Staff Intranet News page announcing its 2018 Student Voice Campaign

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The above two screenshots highlight events where staff worked with students or student representatives as part of partnership projects.

The Partnership Project on ‘Enhancing the Personal Tutor System’ (Figure 11) aimed to do the following [037]: • Clearly define the main attributes that an Undergraduate Personal Tutor should have • Create a list of the minimum expectations for the role and responsibilities of Undergraduate Personal Tutors • Use the data collected via Speak Week, focus groups and surveys to create a list of recommendations to the relevant groups • Create a working definition of a Personal Tutor at Cardiff University

Figure 15 - Tweet from @CU_StudentVoice, picture from a Partnership Project workshop (Personal Tutor System)

The Partnership Project succeeded in achieving its aims and as such led to the overall recommendation that the University should review the Personal Tutor system ‘afresh’ and also incorporate Undergraduates, Postgraduate Taught, Postgraduate Research, full-time and part-time students, as well as distance and on-line learners. If these recommendations are implemented then it could make a real difference to students’ experiences of the Personal Tutor system.

The decision for one of the partnership groups to focus on ‘Enhancing the Personal Tutor System’, bore out of feedback from students, comments include: “Not enough support from personal tutors Train personal tutors and lecturers more for giving helpful advice and guidance” (NSS 2019) [059] “More access/interaction with personal tutors” (Speak Week 2017) [010]

Figure 16 - Tweet from @CESICardiffUni, picture from a Partnership Project workshop (International Student Journey)

“My personal tutor did not respond to emails to which I needed a response. The lack of response caused issues for me.” (Welcome to Cardiff 2018) [063]

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It is important to note though that there have been lots of positive comments about personal tutors and this Partnership Project highlights the University listening to the student voice and wanting to improve the consistency of experience.

Figure 12 shows the focus group that took place for the Partnership Project on the ‘International Student Journey’ [038]. The aim of the partnership group was to better understand the transition process for International students (including EU students) when they arrive in Cardiff. By doing so, the group could understand how the University can build on its existing provision by learning from the good practice that the University is currently doing. After consulting with International students from both Undergraduate and Postgraduate cohorts on their transition to the University there were two outputs: • The creation of illustrations based on student discussions which were then shared as posters with staff across the University in order to celebrate successes and give guidance on making future improvements.

• The creation of videos consisting of International students sharing their own experience and also offering advice to incoming International students. The final report from the Partnership Project also states that, “the videos also visualise that student voice is at the heart of Cardiff University and Cardiff University Students’ Union.”

These are two valuable outputs that hopefully should improve International students’ transitions to University. The Partnership Project also produced two recommendations for the University to carry forward: • In order to ensure that the first output of the Partnership Project has been effective, evaluate the usefulness of the videos and posters that have been created.

• If the first recommendation process finds that

the resources created have been useful and positive, consider other aspects of student life for International students such as social life, engagement with studies, academic support, undertaking assessments, language barrier and post-graduation support, alongside other cohort variables.

Other examples of good practice Feedback from students and data collected over the past 5 years suggests that students’ want to see improvements in University facilities in order to improve their learning environment. The ‘Physical Learning Spaces Programme’ also aimed to improve the number of fixtures available across campus, for example plug sockets. The University’s commitment to improving the learning spaces for students is an ongoing project that is continuing to benefit students across the University.

“Need better facilities and more study space” Speak Week 2016 [009] “To put more plug sockets in the library.”

NSS 2018 [060] “Increase the availability of plug sockets in the libraries especially during exam periods when it is considerably busy” Speak Week 2019 [012] The below minutes from the BLS College Forum (01/02/16) [024] highlight how students were consulted on the Physical and Learning Spaces project and given the opportunity to feed into the changes it brought.

• “AJ – Explains that the Physical and Learning Spaces project is a 5 year Programme to update and refurbish learning spaces across the University. 16 spaces are due to be updated in the summer for the College of BLS. AJ came to the College Forum to discuss the teaching spaces specifically for BLS.

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Figure 17 - Student Intranet News story re: Physical Learning Spaces

• HU – Who do we contact about rooms we would like to see • AJ – priorities areas are set a college level • PD – Currently working through a number of spaces • HD – Wondered because would like to consult with other reps on the course • AS – More information can be spread to the chairs.”

Students calling for more plug sockets or extension cords for charging devices such as laptops and the University responding, demonstrates how the University can improve the student experience with small changes.

The University’s ongoing commitment to improving lecture facilities has also been supported by sabbatical officers over the years, as demonstrated by a number of manifesto promises by both candidates and elected officers.

In the 2019 Spring Elections, a total of six candidates promised more facilities such as plug sockets or microwaves, three of whom were subsequently elected.

Increasing the number of water fountains

available for students had been a request made by a number of students. Figure 13 shows how the University has listened to this request by starting to install more. This shows how the University is listening to students, even on the smaller issues.

Speak Week 2019 [012] saw 103 comments coded as ‘water fountains’, with most comments asking for ‘more’ water fountains across the Students’ Union and the University. Comments from consecutive NSS results also raised the wish that students wanted more water fountains, especially in libraries: “The libraries need to be updated, in particular the ASSL. It should be standard to have water fountains on every single floor and students should be able to charge laptops at every desk.”

(NSS 2017) [061] “Place a water fountain on each floor of ASSL and John Percival Building.”

(NSS 2018) [060]

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The University’s commitment to the Physical and Learning Spaces project demonstrates its commitment to enhancing the learning environment of students, thus better supporting them throughout their time at Cardiff University.

7.1.3 Areas of Enhancement There are a number of areas of good practice within the theme of Student Voice.

This submission recognises that the Partnership Project Groups is a commitment between the Students’ Union and the University to work together to improve the student experience. The partnerships are still a relatively new project and as such lessons are being learnt each year.

The key area of enhancement that should be made to the program is the move away from recommendations to outcomes, thus showing clear results which can be communicated to students.

Figure 18 - Tweet from @DrJaneLProcure promoting the installation of new water fountains

During the AHSS College Forum on the 30th November 2016 [025], then Vice President Education, Mo Hanafy, updated the attendees at the forum about ongoing discussions between himself and Vice President Welfare over increasing water provision across campus.

This shows the work and partnership that went on to improve provision in this area. In the 2018 Spring Elections, five candidates in their manifestos pledged to increase the number of water fountains available across campus, including Jackie Yip who was elected as VP Education and then SU President.

Cardiff University has also signed up to the national ‘Refill’ scheme [074], which aims to reduce plastic pollution by providing free water for all. Whilst this benefits the wider population, it arguably demonstrates the University listening to feedback whilst also improving sustainability.

Recommendations: This submission has recognised that the University and the Students’ Union both have their own relative strengths and as such it is important that good practice is shared between the respective institutions.

The Students’ Union recommends that the University does more to act on the data that we give them because we are the home of the Student Voice. A simple way for this to happen is by moving away from Partnership Project final reports just making recommendation’s, instead having tangible outcomes that can be communicated to students.

The Students’ Union recommends that there is a more joined up approach between the Students’ Union and the University for communicating actions taken to improve the student experience. This submission has recognised that the University has listened and responded to student feedback but often haven’t

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communicated these successful changes to students.

7.2 Student Partnership 7.2.1 Background Student Partnership at Cardiff University is well established, developed, and nuanced.

Student partnership is directly linked to the student voice as it is through this partnership, co-design and co-delivery that feedback from the student voice can be responded to. The partnership groups that were created in 2017 enable the student voice but they provide useful opportunities for delving into how the University and Students’ Union has responded to the outcomes of the partnership groups. The University and the Students’ Union co-deliver a number of services such as the Student Mentor Programme and Residence Life. There is also a strong working relationship between the Student Voice Team and CESI.

Code of Practice on Academic Representation [034] An outcome from the Partnership Groups 2018 was to create a Code of Practice that provided clear, shared direction of the Academic Representation system. Said code has been produced in partnership and will be monitored in partnership by the newly formed Academic Representation Steering Group [036]. The code of practice outlines that it is a working documents that provides guidance for both students and staff on how academic representation functions at the University. It provides clarity of what the role requires from students and emphasises that the purpose of the role is to focus on academic issues in regards to learning and teaching.

The Code of Practice demonstrates the University’s commitment to working with the Student Voice department to engage with students via the academic rep system.

The Terms of Reference for the Academic Representation Steering Group advises that the creation of the group and the new Code of Practice is as a result of potential inconsistencies in how schools conduct Student Academic Representation.

In order to provide sufficient support to students who are Academic Reps, the Students’ Union runs training for them in order to provide them with the skills and knowledge that will allow reps to get the most out of the role. The Student Voice team within the Students’ Union also holds an annual Student Rep Conference

7.2.2 Areas of Good Practice There are a number of areas of good practice that highlight how the Students’ Union and the University co-deliver projects. This co-delivery is important because it enables the sharing of best and practice and resources. It also provides students with experience to take away with them and also provides them with ownership of projects that benefit fellow students.

There are a number of areas that demonstrate the positive student partnership that exists.

Student Mentoring [071] Student Mentoring is an area of co-delivery with students that has developed significantly over the last few years. Starting in a few schools across the University to now being a university-wide programme, there are currently almost 800 student mentors. This growth in the programme is recognised in the 2018 job description for becoming a mentor, with it stating that University Executive Board and Students’ Union have endorsed the Scheme and we are hoping to increase the Scheme across the University over the next two years.’ This also highlights how the University and Students’ Union have worked in partnership to develop the programme and to expand it across the University. The development of the programme is a result of student feedback, which helped to

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drive the expansion of the programme from a small number of schools to across the whole University.

“great things = student mentor” Speak Week 2017 [010] “Being a mentor helped me in many ways, confidence, communication skills’ Student Senate 19th November 2019 “I am currently a student mentor and I believe it bears positive impact on both the student and the mentor as well.”

Education Exec Feedback 22nd November 2019 It is also clear that students are benefitting from the programme as they themselves are becoming inspired to participate in the programme in later years.

Figure 19 - Student Intranet page: Student Mentors

The Student Mentor programme has had positive impacts on both mentors and mentees.

Comments from the Welcome to Cardiff survey have highlighted the positive impact that the programme has had on new students: “I think the Student Mentor scheme is a really good idea. My student mentor has been really helpful and given me lots of information I wouldn’t have known otherwise.”

Welcome to Cardiff 2018 [063] “Student mentor scheme has been helpful so far” Welcome to Cardiff 2017 [064] “I have gained a lot of help from… my student mentor, which has allowed me to get more information and confirm any questions I had about University life and what to expect.”

Welcome to Cardiff 2018 [063] Other comments on the benefits of the Student Mentoring Scheme include:

“Student mentor scheme, I felt some support from my mentor in first year, and then I really enjoyed partaking in the scheme as a mentor in my final year.”

NSS 2019 [059] It is noted though that not every mentee has found the programme useful, suggesting that it may need tailoring for specific demographics: “Student mentor hasn’t been particularly helpful” Welcome to Cardiff 2018 [063] “Not so much a negative, however as much as I feel the student mentor scheme is extremely helpful to young undergrads leaving home for the first time, as a mature student I don’t feel it benefits me, however it’s almost made compulsory for me to attend meetings. I get the importance for those that need the support however I don’t think people should be made to feel like they have to attend. As a 28 year old with my own flat I don’t really need advice on student accommodation or where to go on a night out. This definitely isn’t a bad thing, as I see how beneficial it can be, however I just think it shouldn’t be made awkward for those who it doesn’t apply to.”

Welcome to Cardiff 2018 [063]

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The expansion of the programme to all academic school is a well-received development and despite the comments above, the Student Mentor scheme is an excellent example of partnership and is continuing to improve as the scheme embeds across the University. The expansion and the development of the programme was discussed and pushed for at College Forums, following feedback from Student Staff Panels.

Minutes from the AHSS College Forum (27/04/2016) [026] highlight the discussions that took place about the scheme and whether it would be expanded out.

“HE – The School of Music are looking into introducing a peer mentor scheme for mental wellbeing. HE is aware of the MEDIC parenting system. Not sure if any other Schools have this.

MJ – Student Support is developing a peer mentoring scheme, specifically for mental health.

Currently run a system for general support, not sure if Music use or not. What HE asking for is currently in development.

ST – The peer mentoring scheme is being led by Ben Lewis and Simon Wright, with the intention for use in every school. It has been announced online and via social media, that students can be trained as student mentors.

MJ – The call went out for students to opt-in to be a peer mentor.

BF – States that the peer mentors had their training on 23.04.2016 HE – Tried to get involved but it is not being run in MUSIC. BTA – School of Journalism tried to run their own mentoring scheme but it proved too complicated to setup.

MJ – It is about a student demand led power relationship for student reps who aren’t part of the student mentoring scheme to petition for it.

ST – Ensuring requests such as signing up to the

student mentoring scheme minuted in Student Staff Panels is really important. There is then a record of that request being made and the Students’ Union will receive the minutes of that meeting. The Elected Officers can use that information to lobby the University, comments can be put forward to the likes of Ben Lewis and Simon Wright.

IM – Up until now it has been a School level decision whether to run a mentor scheme or not. ENCAP have signed up to the scheme and around 50% (rough estimate) of schools in the College offer some form of mentoring scheme. Suggests raising these ideas through the Student Staff Panels.

ST – Asks ‘Can it be encouraged from the top down to expand the scheme?’

IM – There is currently an evaluation of the mentoring scheme, investigating whether the scheme can expand.”

It is also clear from talking to students at Student Senate and other Executive Committees that the Student Mentor Programme is something that is appreciated by students and that students themselves recognise the continued development and expansion of the programme means that the programme will continue to go from strength to strength. Comments include; “Mentors for each year (inc. y2 and y3)” Student Senate 19th November 2019 “It would be valuable if everybody can be mentees (not just restricted to Year One Students).”

Education Executive Feedback 22nd November 2019

Residence Life Team [054] The Residence Life Team is another example of co-design, co-delivery and partnership between students and the University. The team is based in the University’s Student Support department and is run by staff in conjunction with students.

Students are the face of the team, fulfilling the role of Resident Life Assistants (RLAs) and based

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in halls with students. There are two strands to the Resident Life approach: engagement with students in order to build a better sense of community at the residences and also signposting and providing support for students. With both staff and students working together, the team is continuing to enhance the work that they do, with University staff supporting the RLAs to run events to help improve the sense of community at halls.

Empowering students to support each other is an excellent example of student partnership. In terms of measuring the impact of the Residence Life Team, there are a couple of case studies that highlight the impact they’ve had on individuals, but also statistics that highlight the broader impact. Throughout the 2018/19 academic year, the Resident Life Team had a total of 23,804 individual contacts with students.

“Once again, thank you so much for all the amazing work you’ve done for me, I’m forever grateful.”

Total Student Contacts 23,804 In terms of the individual impact that the Residence Life Team had on the student experience, the team have helped at least two students with financial issues, both of whom were then supported to ensure that they could afford to stay in accommodation and remain in University. The two students who were assisted by the department made these remarks: “I just wanted to send a personal message to say a big thank you for helping me out and giving me the chance to work for residence life! I’m not sure what situation I would be in right now if I hadn’t of been given the opportunity and I’ll forever be very grateful. Thank you so much! I have enjoyed every moment!!”

Figure 20 - Image showing the different areas which the Residence Life Team have helped with

Table 4 - Table from the Resident Life Team showing the number of times they had contact with students

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The above examples have highlighted co-delivery of projects between the University and students.

The outcomes of this co-delivery benefit the wider student body. There are also examples of co-delivery of student voice activities that lead to strong outcomes for both students and staff.

Case Study: School of Welsh Working in partnership and actively listening to the student voice ‘in order to inform future planning and create a learning environment that meets our students’ expectations’ is exemplified by the School of Welsh’s Student-Staff Panel (SSP). For the University to follow this strategy, it is important that areas of best practice are assessed in order to take any lessons that can be learnt to other schools.

Following the School’s 2011-12 NSS results, a decision was made by staff within the school to work closer with their students to improve the student experience. In order to do so, the Student-Staff Panel undertakes a project each academic year which responds to key focus areas in the NSS results. These projects have ranged from assessment and feedback, to employability and to improving the sense of community within the School.

The first project which ran through the 20132016 academic years focused on revising and adapting assessment and feedback. The SSP continues to target assessment and feedback each year and will focus on key areas such as electronic feedback, feedback meetings, formative and summative assessments in order to continue to enhance the student experience.

As a result of these projects and continued work, students within the school now receive all assessment deadlines for the coming academic year at the start of Semester One. Students are also offered feedback opportunities beyond the modules at certain points during the academic calendar in order to provide continued academic support around their studies. There has also been an improvement in the School’s NSS

results for assessment and feedback. In 2014, the school scored 74% overall for Assessment and Feedback, which increased to 91.67% in 2019. This shows how the changes made to Assessment and Feedback within the school, which were driven by students in partnership with staff, have improved satisfaction in the same area.

This example also highlights best practice for working within the University guidelines for feedback, University guidelines state that ‘staff should be encouraged to work with students to be flexible and adopt different strategies and ways of providing feedback, depending on the assessment context, and by taking due regard of the motivations and expectations of students’ (Academic Feedback to Taught Students – Policy and Guidance). [053] The work is continuous in order to allow for enhancement and development of the student experience and to adapt to each new cohort.

The School of Welsh’s SSP is an area of best practice that should be recognised and celebrated as embracing the Student Voice. It is important though to recognise that there are areas of improvement still to be made in order to ensure that all SSP’s have maximum impact.

There are also other examples of good practice from SSPs. It is expected that SSPs meet three times a year but following interaction with students based at the Heath, it became clear that Nursing SSPs were meeting more regularly in order to facilitate the student voice and that Physiotherapy modules in the school of HCARE have module reps, helping to improve the feedback loop on module evaluations.

The Students’ Union President and Vice President Education are full members of Cardiff University Council and engage fully in the discussions and processes. An area for development for both the University and Students’ Union is to showcase what this partnership looks like, helping both students and staff to see that from the governing body down to the programme level SSPs there is student feedback.

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7.2.3 Areas of Enhancement An issue that is currently being addressed is how the University communicates with its students about feedback and ‘student wins.’ The Students’ Union welcomes the recent appointment of a full-time Student Campaign Officer based at CESI and hopes that this will start to address how the University communicates with students.

We believe that this post is long overdue and therefore we look forward to seeing this role develop and inform students as to how their voice is being listened to. It is important that there is partnership at all levels of delivering the Student Voice and the recent appointment of this role continues to exemplify the partnership.

Recommendations: There are a number of excellent examples of Student Partnership which benefit students at Cardiff University. This student submission recommends therefore that an area for development for both the University and Students’ Union is to showcase what this partnership looks like, helping both students and staff to see that from the governing body down to the programme level SSPs there is student feedback and outcomes from said feedback.

The Students’ Union recommends that Student Partnership needs to be equal and meaningful across all projects and areas of co-delivery.

The University needs to conduct meaningful conversations with students in order to truly listen to them. If the University does not listen to students or enact change based on student feedback then it is important that the University communicates as to why it made that decision.

The Students’ Union recommends that Student Partnership needs to be equal and meaningful across all projects and areas of co-delivery.

The University needs to conduct meaningful conversations with students in order to truly listen to them. If the University does not listen to students or enact change based on student feedback, then it is important that the

University communicates as to why it made that decision.

7.3 Placements & Employability 7.3.1 Background The University’s current strategy aims to ‘offer all students the opportunity to undertake a work placement during the course of their studies’ (The Way Forward 2018-2023) [042].

Whilst it isn’t envisaged that all students will take up this offer, the aim is for at least 50% of students to do so (The Way Forward, p. 6). The topic of employability makes up part of the Student Charter, thus showing a recognition from both the University and the Union that employability is an important part of the student experience. It is clear from feedback that this is a welcome development for students as the data suggests that as more students recognise the benefit of placements they want more opportunities: “By promoting more work/study placements abroad since they are extremely beneficial for students’ academic progress and for gaining valuable life skills.” NSS 2019 [059] “I was able to undertake a placement as part of my second year, which was excellent for my learning and employability. This was different to most other industrial placements and suited me perfectly, as I did not have to take year out and was able to undertake a summer internship the same year.” NSS 2017 [061] “More opportunities to develop employability skills.” Speak Week 2018 [011] When discussing the availability of placements and the opportunities they provide to students, it is important to note the differences between placements as required by Professional, Statutory and Regulatory Bodies (PSRB) and those that are not. PSRB placements cover

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those studying in the school of HCARE but also courses such as Physics (which has a professional placement year accredited by the Institute of Physics), Chemistry, Earth Science, Mathematics and Psychology (?). Courses which don’t have PRSB placements but give their students the option to go on placement include the School of Law and Politics, for example: the module, ‘Politics in Practice: Work Placement Module’. Other opportunities for non–PSRB placements are provided by the University: Cardiff Undergraduate Research Opportunities Programme (CUROP) and Cardiff University Student Education Innovation Programme (CUSEIP).

feel very well supported and the placements are well suited and appropriate.” Speak Week 2016 – BSc Midwifery [009]

Whilst placements are a key way to prepare for post-graduation, it is also important to look at employability on a broader scale, looking at the Career services and support that is available to students. In the 2018 Global Graduate Employability Rank, Cardiff University came in the top 200-250, placing it as 15th in the UK. [075].

• “CUROP placements give you an opportunity to work on live research projects • CUSEIP placements enable you to have input into innovative learning and teaching developments within the University and to help shape the overall student experience.”

Another fantastic opportunity provided by the University that supports students employability and skills development are the CUROP and CUSEIP schemes. The two schemes provide Cardiff University students with the opportunity to undertake paid research with staff at the university, providing them with fantastic experience which arguably improves their employability.

The University’s Intranet highlights the differences between the two projects:

7.3.2 Areas of Good Practice The Students’ Union recognises that the University’s commitment to increasing access to placements is a significant step to ensuring that students leave University with not only education but also experience. This reflects the demands of life after University and the increasingly competitive job market that students enter. It is clear from feedback that students recognise the value of placements with comments such as: “Some lecturers were fantastic and the opportunities provided by the uni, such as CUROP placements have been very beneficial.”

NSS 2019 [059] “Placement is great for applying theory to practice.” NSS 2018 [060] “I have loved being a part of this programme. I

Figure 21 - Screengrab summing up the CUROP and CUSEIP schemes

This is also something that was further communicated at the PSE College Forum [027] on the 22nd March 2017 where attendees discussed the two placements available to students.

Quality Enhancement Review Student Submission 2019-20 47

“BF replied CUSIEP is less about research and more about teaching and learning and there are no academic requirements.”

The Cardiff Award The Cardiff Award is a structured programme run by the University. It aims to improve the career options of Cardiff University students and allow students to participate in activities such as work experience or mock interviews in order for students to improve their employability skills and also give students practical experience of recruitment processes.

Once completed, students receive a digital certificate that they will be included on their Higher Education Achievement Record (HEAR).

Figure 22 - Screengrab from the Intranet summing up how students achieve a Cardiff Award

Student feedback about the Cardiff Award has said the following: “Student mentoring, the Cardiff award, and the skills development service run by the Students’ Union have all benefited me on a very large scale.”

NSS 2017 [061] “Constantly amazing free events, courses and workshops on offer to improve employability and for personal development. Cardiff Award in particular.”

NSS 2019 [059]

Figure 23 – YouTube Video, Cardiff University YouTube Channel, ‘Why do the Cardiff Award?’ [080]

7.3.3 Areas of Enhancement A key area of enhancement that is required within the area of placement and employability is the need to enhance consistency across placements and improve the support available for students who go on placement. This is a matter that particularly affects Healthcare students who often find themselves away from Cardiff for PSRB placements. As the University strives to increase the placement offers that it provides, it is important that it does more to address consistency in placements but, also the support given to students on placement. The following section will address consistency and support as two separate points, though in some cases they are closely linked. These issues of a lack of consistency and support cover both placements and employability.

The previous section has highlighted the fantastic experiences of a number of students but from other students it is clear that this experience is unfortunately not universal.

“The placement allocation I feel are very unfair and some students are given amazing placements throughout and some students are given awful placements where they are not exposed to a range of situations and areas. I think this is something that really needs to be looked into.”

NSS 2019 [059]

48 Quality Enhancement Review Student Submission 2019-20

“Niko – students on placements abroad are not feeling supported by their school, can sometimes be several months before contact to know what is going on. This was in bioscience.

after graduating. However, not every student has access to the same level of support. Tailored support for each academic school would create an equitable experience.

Fadhila – continuity of staff managing placement.

The person who is in charge of this keeps changing.

A perceived lack of support is apparent in a number of ways through comments, from wellbeing, applying for placements, and finding them. It is clear (?)

Paul – There is a major project in the university around placements, software solution to manage placements to be piloted in the University. All Schools to log the one system. This will allow them to know where students are, how long they have gone for etc. The funding is yet to be approved. Likely to run into over £1 million for this. The case to the university is very strong in terms of health and safety, support and educational issues. Short term there is a challenges as schools do rely on individuals placement leads for information. Bioscience focusing on the year away.

Was not aware that staff keep changing, but they can have a look into the stability of this.

They can emphasise again to schools the importance of this. Fairly confident of fixing this with software solution in a year or so.”

BLS College Forum 30.11.2016 [028] It is important to note that this may just an individual perception over the allocation of placements but there are a number of shorter comments that raise similar issues.

It is important to ensure that every student has equal access to careers support across the University. Each academic school has a professional careers adviser linked to it in order to support students for life after University.

Cardiff Business School (CARBS) has a dedicated Careers Centre on top of the support already provided by the University, this is a fantastic service for Business students with 97% (DLHE 2016/17) [076] of undergraduates of the school in further study or employment six months

“More mental health services availability at the heath campus due to long placement hours meaning it’s hard to access” Speak Week 2019 [012] “Better support and help while on placement in North and West Wales” Speak Week 2018 [011] The comments raising concerns about placements across Wales are likely to be from HCARE students. Another Speak Week comment also mentioned placements in more rural areas of Wales stating, “In year 3, don’t send students up to North Wales” (Speak Week 2016) [009].

Whilst these comments are all from Speak Week, the number of them being submitted consistently over a number of years suggests that it is an area that needs to be addressed.

Recommendation: The Students’ Union recommends that the University acts promptly to remedy the issues in consistency and support that this submission has highlighted. It is vital that the University fixes the positive foundations of placements before further expanding provision.

7.4 International Experience and Student Mobility 7.4.1 Background The Way Forward 2018-2023 [042] sets the targets of 50% of students undertaking a placement as well as 30% of home undergraduate students spending

Quality Enhancement Review Student Submission 2019-20 49

at least 3 weeks of time abroad during their time at Cardiff University. In order for the University to meet this target, the Global Opportunities department has established links with over 300 institutions throughout Europe and the rest of the world (see Global Opportunities webpage) [070]. These links provide students from all degree programmes to study abroad as well as work or volunteer abroad. All three options provide immense benefits to students, providing them with skills and opportunities that will benefit them long after graduation.

Global opportunities are involved in international exchanges, short-term summer study, and work or volunteer placements as well as ERASMUS+.

The Centre for Education Support and Innovation (CESI) carries out an annual Study Away Survey for students who have gone on International Exchanges as part of their degree. The survey helps to highlight how students were supported and any areas for enhancement.

The survey does go into more detail about individual matters such as communication with personal tutors and more specific areas of support, but the above information highlights that the vast majority of students clearly found going abroad beneficial.

7.4.2 Areas of Good Practice

Figure 24 - Facebook review on the Global Opportunities page

Global opportunities provides students with fantastic opportunities to study, work or volunteer abroad. The variety and flexibility of the opportunities provided is an area of strength and will help support the University’s aim in The Way Forward 2018-23 [042] for 30% of students to have spent at least three weeks abroad during their time at Cardiff University.

Feedback from students after travelling abroad for volunteering, work or studying with Global Opportunities has been very positive, highlighting the number of benefits students get from doing so. In 2018, 335 [056] students completed a survey on their return for Global Opportunities, with the following results; 94.3% were very satisfied or rather satisfied with their placement abroad 97.6% felt their intercultural awareness improved as a result of their experience 92% agreed or strongly agreed that their employability skills had improved after their placement 94.3% felt sufficiently supported by the Global Opportunities team during their placement 96.4% would recommend other students take part in a Global Opportunities placement It is also clear to see that the Global Opportunities department values feedback from students and acts upon it to improve the experiences of students. This is the case for both International Summer Programmes and Studying Abroad as part of a degree or module.

Table 5 - CESI Study Away Survey Overall Results [055]

50 Quality Enhancement Review Student Submission 2019-20

Feedback from specific programmes and broader issues are listened to and when possible, acted upon. This ensures that the experience provided by these fantastic programmes are as beneficial as possible.

University students who are studying abroad.

In order to protect and support students who may be affected, the University has agreed to underwrite the ERASMUS+ scheme for the year ahead.

Two key examples of specific changes made are on the Marigold Change programme in Nepal and Think Pacific in Fiji. In regards to the programme in Nepal, participants fed back that the logistics of the trip could be better organised and as such, for the 2019 programme, it was ensured that students would arrive at the project location sooner to arrival than previously and that an extra suitcase would also be taken to provide extra supplies for the local community.

In Fiji, students who attended felt like the construction could have been completed in four weeks instead of five, something which would also make it more affordable. Following this, the 2019 project was shortened to 4 weeks.

This further shows how the University successfully deals with unpredictable and oneoff events to continue to support students.

Despite the uncertainty throughout the past few years following the EU Referendum result, the University has strived to provide guidance and support to Cardiff University Students and those looking to come here as part of ERASMUS+.

The University’s commitment to supporting students in the case of unforeseen complications due to Brexit is something that students want to see, as supported by the following comment: “Work on a plan to overcome to difficulties with international collaborations and alternative sources of funding” Speak Week 2019 - [012]

7.4.3 Areas of Enhancement An area of enhancement for Global Opportunities and Study Abroad students is looking at what is offered to incoming students through schemes such as ERASMUS+.

It is also important to look at how Global Opportunities is communicated students to ensure they know the financial aspects and also so that they are reassured over any concerns then may face about studying, volunteering or working abroad. Comments from students highlight concerns over the affordability of studying, working or volunteering abroad: Figure 25 - Screengrab from the University Website about the impact of Brexit on ERASMUS+

The University has also reacted to ensure that any fallout of Britain leaving the European Union is mitigated as much as possible for Cardiff

“The Erasmus exchange was an amazing experience, however, there was so little funding that the exchange put me in debt and was very stressful to fund.”

(NSS 2019) [059]

Quality Enhancement Review Student Submission 2019-20 51

“Funding for year abroad: better information about where you apply to for Erasmus and grants = people can’t tell me whether it goes through the GO office not” (Speak Week 2019) [012] Students who were consulted by the Student Voice Project Officer also raised their view that there was a lack of communication about what funding they could access and what was available.

However, it is important to note that there are comments praising the current financial provision available for going abroad: “Very good opportunities to go abroad for a year and financial incentives to go.”

NSS 2018 [060] This further suggests that it might be the case that the financial opportunities available are better financed.

Recommendations: The Students’ Union recommends that in line with student comments about the affordability of going abroad, that the University makes Global Opportunities more financially accessible. The Union recognises that the Global Opportunities department provides bursaries for students so it may be a case of better communicating with students about the financial support available to them.

The Students’ Union also recommends that more support is provided to students when they are away, equalling the provision that students can expect to receive when based in Cardiff. More support is vital for ensuring that students gain the most from going abroad and ensuring that students feel supported and reassured.

52 Quality Enhancement Review Student Submission 2019-20

Chapter 8: Welsh Language 8.1 Background The 2011 Welsh Language (Wales) Measure was passed by the National Assembly for Wales (commonly known as the Senedd), placing the Welsh language on the same footing as the English language in Wales. In essence, formalising it as an official language. In order to meet the legal requirements and to support Welsh students who may or may not be fluent Welsh speakers, the Students’ Union and the University both have policies and guidelines for Welsh language usage. Recently published guidelines by the QAA on ‘Effective Practice in Examining and Assessing in Welsh within Wales’ lay out that students have the legal right to be assessed in Welsh, no matter the language of delivery (unless on a language programme).

The Student Charter [039] lays out how the University and Students’ Union will celebrate Welsh language and culture and ensure that all students recognise the value of Welsh language and culture. It highlights how both institutions work to include and improve Welsh medium provision, with the University working with Coleg Cymraeg Cenadlaethol and the Students’ Union working with Undeb Myfyrwyr Cymraeg Caerdydd (UMCC).

The University and the Students’ Union both have policies setting out how the Welsh Language should be used and supported throughout the University. The Students’ Union employs a fulltime Welsh Language Translator to ensure that everything produced by the Students’ Union is bi-lingual, allowing all students to engage with Union activity.

Figure 26 - The Student Charter’s recognition of the Welsh Language

8.2 Areas of Good Practice A key area that highlights the commitment to recognising the Welsh language within the University is the Hyrwyddwr Addysg Gymraeg (Welsh Education Champion) award at the annual Enriching Student Life Awards (ESLA). Whilst this is an event organised by the Students’ Union, the University supports it and it also helps to highlight the good practice that exists within the University in regards to the Welsh language.

In 2019, 7 nominations were received for this award, with Dr Sion Jones from SOCSI winning the overall award [022].

Figure 5- Criteria used for awarding Welsh Education Champion

Another two nominations that stand out for this year was for Dr Awen Iorwerth:

Quality Enhancement Review Student Submission 2019-20 53

“Awen goes out of her way to help Students who speak Welsh to get the best welsh medium education possible, by ensuring at the same time that they are completely comfortable within the course and supported. Awen is very enthusiastic about the language and she always shows this to all the students on the course and educates everyone, especially those who do not speak Welsh, on the importance of the language, especially within the field of health. One of the ways she has done this is by giving a lecture through the medium of Welsh in the first year.”

(ESLA Nomination 2019). [022] “Awen is very supportive of the language in everything that she does - by ensuring that students across the School of Medicine are aware of the importance of the language within health care. She’s supportive of many Welsh language events that promote the use of the Welsh language, and Students who speak Welsh - the Y Coleg Cymraeg Day for year 12 pupils for example. Awen also ensures that Students receive medical Education of the highest standard through the medium of Welsh, and she is obviously passionate about this provision.”

(ESLA Nomination 2019) [022] This demonstrates not only how Welsh Language Provision is recognised and Welsh language and culture celebrated within the University but also that there are a number of strong areas of good practice. The ESLAs allow students and staff to recognise good practice, highlighting the work that is done to support and encourage students to engage in Welsh. Nominations for the aforementioned award have also included students, highlighting how students are encouraged to complete their studies in Welsh if they wish to do so.

The introduction of Welsh for All highlights the commitment of the University to increasing the visibility and accessibility of the Welsh language.

The Students’ Union welcomes this commitment as it was something that had been raised in the

2015 SWS. “There should be the option to learn Welsh via a similar method to the Languages for All programme to allow students from both Welsh domicile backgrounds and otherwise to learn Welsh while at Cardiff University. This should be achieved by September 2015 allowing students to see that this is something the University is committed to promoting…”

Student Written Submission 2015 [003] It demonstrates not only that the University values the Welsh Language but also values student feedback and implements it when possible.

The University’s commitment to supporting the Welsh language is also demonstrated by it having a Dean for Welsh Language. Dr Huw Williams is a senior lecturer in ENCAP and in his biography he also refers to involvement in the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol, where it is his [072] “responsibility to expand the teaching of philosophy through the medium of Welsh across the higher education institutions in Wales.” On the 28th October 2019, Dr Huw Williams held a consultation with students in the Students’ Union over the development of the University’s Welsh Language Strategy.

Figure 6 - Dr Huw Williams, Dean for Welsh Language

54 Quality Enhancement Review Student Submission 2019-20

The below tweet from ‘@samcookeHE’, highlights how the University and the Students’ Union both embrace inclusion of the Welsh Language and incorporate it into conference sessions, even those that take place outside of Wales. This use of Welsh by both institutions at conferences arguably helps to raise the profile of the Welsh Language, demonstrates their commitment to it and also normalises the use of it.

Language provision by undertaking a Welsh Medium Strategy Review.

The University and the Students’ Union recognise that more needs to be done to ensure support of the Welsh Language, something highlighted by the recent appointment of the first Dean for Welsh Language by the University.

Therefore, it is welcoming to receive the following feedback from students, acknowledging the changes whilst asking for more to be done:

Fee and Access Plan 2019/20 [040]

“Projects have included exploring ways to attract more students with Welsh language to select Welsh medium modules where these were available within their programmes. This supported our Welsh medium strategy review, including approaches to recruitment.”

The Students’ Union recognises and welcomes the University’s continuing commitment to provide appropriate recognition and support of the Welsh Language, ensuring that Welsh medium provision is always fit for purpose.

“Attention to the Welsh language has improved over the past year - would be great to continue developing that” Speak Week 2019 [012] “Although the Welsh language has gained ground and respect within the University in recent years, more work needs to be done” NSS 2018 [060] The University is continuing to recognise that more can be done to enhance its current Welsh

Figure 29 - Tweet from @samcookeHE from the joint presentation by CUSU and CESI at the Enhancing Student Experience Conference 2019

Quality Enhancement Review Student Submission 2019-20 55

Figure 30 - Screengrab Welsh Operational Policy [049]

The above fits within QAA guidelines, which recognises that moving forward more staff need to be able to assess in both Welsh and English. This is important as it recognises that University’s may be limited in their availability to asses in Welsh and English. The University though is endeavouring to ensure that Welsh medium is the mainstream within the University, something that the QAA stresses needs to happen across the sector.

The University is also showing a broader commitment to the Welsh Language through research it is collaborating in. CorCenCC (Corpws Cenedlaethol Cymraeg Cyfoes – The National Corpus of Contemporary Welsh), is a collaborative project led by the University’s School of English, Communication and Philosophy.

8.3 Areas of enhancement An area of enhancement for the provision of Welsh within schools and across the University is to better communicate options to increase the uptake of provisions for Welsh speakers or engage with Welsh speakers to see what

provisions they would like.

Recommendation: This submission recommends that there is better communication with Welsh-speaking students in order to better understand their needs. It’s important to note that the data highlights that out of the 2,000 Welsh-speaking students that the University and the Students’ Union is aware of, only 400 say they want to receive communication in Welsh. It is therefore important that the University does more to understand and recognise their needs.

56 Quality Enhancement Review Student Submission 2019-20

Chapter 9: Concluding Comments We hope that you have enjoyed reading our student submission for the QER review. We recognise that there are some significant areas of best practise across the institution where the student experience is at the heart of everything. We hope that the evidence presented and the testimonials in the document are testament to the hard work that is a result of partnership between the Union and the University.

The document will have also outlined areas of improvement and practices that we feel could be changed in order to better accommodate the needs of our students. We hope this is presented in a constructive and meaningful manner to help facilitate change. However, our commitment to working with the University on these issues will remain in the forefront of our priorities and we look forward to seeing some more positive changes in the future.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all the staff and student who have contributed to the writing and submission of this. This includes the Student Voice Department and its Head of Department, Steve Ralph, for his supportive contributions when writing this document. We would also like to thank Kathryn Cribbin for her hard work and diligence in the drafting this submission. We would like to thank the staff at the University, this includes Claire Morgan, Rhodri Evans, Martine Woodward, Simon Wright, Hannah Darnley and Lloyd Hole for all their help and insight that helped us draft our submission. Lastly, a huge thank you to Amanda Coffey for being such a supporter of the Students’ Union.

Quality Enhancement Review Student Submission 2019-20 57

Chapter 10: Summary of Recommendations Based on the areas of improvement that this submission has noted, the following steps are recommended:

Broader Recommendations Following the lack of meaningful engagement with the Students’ Union by the University over the Fee and Access Plan, this submission recommends that the University engages in meaningful consultation with the Students’ Union on the Fee and Access Plan.

Student Voice This submission has recognised that the University and the Students’ Union both have their own relative strengths and as such it is important that good practice is shared between the respective institutions.

The Students’ Union recommends that the University does more to act on the data that we give them because we are the home of the Student Voice. A simple way for this to happen is by moving away from Partnership Project final reports just making recommendation’s, instead having tangible outcomes that can be communicated to students.

The Students’ Union recommends that there is a more joined up approach between the Students’ Union and the University for communicating actions taken to improve the student experience. This submission has recognised that the University has listened and responded to student feedback but often have not communicated these successful changes to students.

Student Partnership This submission has recognised that partnership has delivered meaningful outcomes that have an impact. However, there are still areas for development.

The Students’ Union recommends that student

partnership needs to be equal and substantial across all projects and areas of co-delivery.

The University needs to conduct meaningful conversations with students in order to truly listen to them. If the University does not listen to students or enact change based on student feedback then it is important that the University communicates as to why it made that decision.

This student submission recommends that an area for development for both the University and Students’ Union is to showcase what this partnership looks like, helping both students and staff to see that from the governing body down to the programme level SSPs there is student feedback and outcomes from said feedback.

Placements and Employability This submission has highlighted the Students’ Union’s support for the University’s commitment to providing students with placements, recognising the importance of them for improving the employability of Cardiff University students. However, as the University aims to meet its KPI, it is important for students to receive equal support to students based in Cardiff.

Therefore, the Students’ Union recommends that the University acts promptly to remedy the issues in consistency and support that this submission has highlighted. It is vital that the University fixes the positive foundations of placements before further expanding provision.

International Experience and Student Mobility The University has prioritised International Mobility in its new strategy, recognising the benefits of students studying, working or volunteering abroad in an increasingly globalised world. In order to improve the excellent provision that is already provided by the University and the Global Opportunities department, the following recommendations are

58 Quality Enhancement Review Student Submission 2019-20

made.

The Students’ Union recommends that in line with student comments about the affordability of going abroad, that the University makes Global Opportunities more financially accessible. The Union recognises that the Global Opportunities department provides bursaries for students so it may be a case of better communicating with students about the financial support available to them.

The Students’ Union also recommends that more support is provided to students when they are away, equalling the provision that students can expect to receive when based in Cardiff. More support is vital for ensuring that students gain the most from going abroad and ensuring that students feel supported and reassured.

Welsh Language The University and the Students’ Union have made clear commitments to supporting the Welsh Language across campuses, ensuring that it meets the legal requirements and working together to deal with any issues that arise.

Despite these legal commitments and the good practice highlighted earlier in the submission, there are still areas for enhancement.

This submission recommends that there is better communication with Welsh-speaking students in order to better understand their needs. The data highlights that out of the 2,000 Welsh-speaking students that the University and the Students’ Union is aware of, only 400 say they want to receive communication in Welsh. It is therefore important that the University does

more to understand and recognise their needs.

The Students’ Union also recognises that more needs to be done to engage with these students through the medium of Welsh.

Quality Enhancement Review Student Submission 2019-20 59

Chapter 11: Appendices Indicative Evidence List

031.

Student Written Submission Institutional Response 2017

Students’ Union Reports/ Documents

032.

Student Written Submission Institutional Response 2018

033.

Student Written Submission Institutional Response 2019

001.

2013 Student Written Submission

002.

2014 Student Written Submission

003.

2015 Student Written Submission

034.

Relationship Agreement 2018/19

004.

2016 Student Written Submission

035.

Academic Rep Code of Practice

005.

2017 Student Written Submission

036.

006.

2018 Student Written Submission

Academic Representation Steering Group Terms of Reference

007.

2019 Student Written Submission

037.

008.

Speak Week Report 2015

‘Enhancing the Personal Tutor System’ Partnership Project

009.

Speak Week Report 2016

038.

‘International Student Journey’ Partnership Project

010.

Speak Week Report 2017

039.

The Student Charter

011.

Speak Week Report 2018

012.

Speak Week Report 2019

University Policy

013.

Annual Report on Academic Representation 2018/19

014.

040.

Fee and Access Plan 2019/20

041.

Fee and Access Plan 2018/19

Annual Report on Academic Representation 2017/18

042.

The Way Forward 2018-2023

015.

Annual Report on Academic Representation 2016/17

a.

Education and Students Sub-strategy

b. Research

016.

Annual Report on Academic Representation 2015/16

017.

Annual Impact Report for Volunteering 2018/19

e. International

018.

2014 Institutional Review Student Submission

043.

Academic Integrity Policy

019.

Cardiff University Students’ Union Strategy 2018-21

044.

Academic Misconduct Policy

020.

Cardiff University Students’ Union Engagement Data

045.

Programme and Partner Standing Panel Terms of Reference

021.

2019/20 Academic Rep Training

046.

REF Narrative

022.

ESLA Nominations 2019

047.

TEF Narrative

048.

Cardiff University Policy for Recording Educational Activities

049.

Welsh Operational Policy

050.

Marking, Grading and Giving Feedback

051.

Assessment Matters Framework

052.

Survey Management Framework

Academic Rep Minutes

c. Innovation d.

Civic Mission

023.

EARTH UG Student-Staff Panel Minutes 2017-18

024.

BLS College Forum Minutes 01/02/2016

025.

AHSS College Forum Minutes 30/11/2016

026.

AHSS College Forum Minutes 27/04/2016

027.

PSE College Forum Minutes 22/03/2017

University Data

028.

BLS College Forum Minutes 30/11/2016

053.

Residence Life Data

054.

CESI Study Away Survey

055.

Global Opportunities Feedback

University and Students’ Union Partnership 029.

Student Written Submission Institutional Response 2015

030.

Student Written Submission Institutional Response 2016

Survey Data 056.

Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey 2018

057.

Postgraduate Research Experience Survey 2019

60 Quality Enhancement Review Student Submission 2019-20

058.

National Student Survey 2019

059.

National Student Survey 2018

060.

National Student Survey 2017

061.

National Student Survey 2016

062.

Cardiff University Welcome to Cardiff Survey 2018

063.

Cardiff University Welcome to Cardiff Survey 2017

Higher Education Sector Documents 064.

Academic Feedback to Taught Students – Policy and Guidance (Office of the Independent Adjudicator for the Higher Education

065.

HEFCW: Annex A External Quality Assurance Review July 2019

066.

QAA Effective Practice in Examining and Assessing in Welsh within Wales

Web Links 067.

Cardiff University Facts and Figures: https:// www.cardiff.ac.uk/about/facts-and-figures 068.

Fee & Access Plan https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/__ data/assets/pdf_file/0017/1250081/fees_and_access_ plan_201920_ENG_V1.pdf 069.

Global Opportunities: https://www.cardiff. ac.uk/study/undergraduate/why-study-with-us/globalopportunities 070.

Cardiff Mentoring scheme https://www.cardiff. ac.uk/study/student-life/student-support/mentor-scheme 071.

Dr Huw Williams, Dean for Welsh Language https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/people/view/99210-williamshuw 072.

Cardiff University Students’ Union Academic Misconduct Page https://www.cardiffstudents.com/ advice/academic/AcademicMisconduct/ 073.

Cardiff University News ‘Refill Scheme’ https:// www.cardiff.ac.uk/news/view/1383012-got-the-bottlecardiff-has!

074.

Cardiff University Employability Statistics https://www.timeshighereducation.com/https%3A//www. timeshighereducation.com/student/best-universities/ graduate-employability-top-universities-uk-rankedemployers 075.

Cardiff University Business School Employability https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/business-school/about-us/ careers-and-employability

Videos 076.

Video One: ‘We listen to the student voice – Centre for Student Life’ https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=jr_9aEbMEGE&feature=emb_logo 077.

Video Two: ‘Speak Week 2019’

https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=J26P7gzQbTc&feature=emb_logo 078.

Video Three: ‘Our Student Charter’

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1z6U_ W1kdk&feature=emb_logo 079.

Video Four: ‘Why do the Cardiff Award’

https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=tzP2N4h0Q2Q&feature=emb_logo