CUSU's Big Cambridge Survey Report 2013/14

THE BIG CAMBRIDGE

SURVEY

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REPORT

CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 1 METHODOLOGY 2 STUDENT LIFE TEACHING & LEARNING 4 STUDENT FINANCE 6 ACCOMODATION & RENT 7 HEALTH & WELFARE 8 SPOTLIGHT: DISABILITY 10 EQUALITY & DIVERSITY 11 STUDENT ACTIVITY REPRESENTATION 13 SPOTLIGHT: RACE 14 VOLUNTEERING & ACTIVISM 15 SPOTLIGHT: GENDER 16 DEMOGRAPHICS 17

INTRODUCTION Welcome to the Big Cambridge Survey Report! This report summarises of the findings of Cambridge University Students’ Union’s (CUSU’s) student experience survey. CUSU exists to represent the views of students and improve university life. We do this by helping students to campaign on issues that are important to them across the spectrum of student experience - from rents to supervision time, mental health support to sports facilities.

This report shows you at a glance what the student experience looks like here in Cambridge. The University of Cambridge is an institution that makes worldwide claims to excellence, and if these claims are not living up to real-life expectation, then it needs to improve. With this data we are able to help you make change a reality. Whether you are part of a JCR or autonomous campaign, or are just a group of students wanting to make change, please get in touch so we can help you take important issues to the University or your college.

The data from our survey has been broken down by demographics and colleges, to assess which areas of the student population are most positively or negatively affected.

Unfortunately it revealed worrying results for some student groups. Across the board female and non-binary students have a worse experience than their male counterparts, and disabled students experience significant inequality. This disadvantage is even greater amongst students with mental illness, and racial inequality is a cause for concern.

This year, CUSU has been using evidence from this report to campaign on reducing these inequalities. The End Week Five Blues campaign has led to the first ever working group in the University on work-related stress, aiming to reduce Cambridge’s negative impact on students’ mental health. We have also, along with dedicated student volunteers, raised the issue of the racial attainment gap to the University’s Teaching and Learning Committee, linking it to evidence collected on racial harassment in Cambridge.

Change happens slowly in Cambridge, but it happens a bit faster when we approach issues with a level head and plenty of evidence. If you want any more information or guidance on using what’s in here to make Cambridge better, get in touch – president@cusu.cam.ac.uk.

Helen Hoogewerf-McComb CUSU President 2014-15

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METHODOLOGY Over 2,000 students responded to the Big Cambridge Survey last year, the survey was completed online and open for all of Lent term. The survey got respondents from every college, demonstrated in the graph below: 30

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of College %% of College Population Population

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5

Wolfson

Trinity Hall

Trinity

St John's

St Edmund's

St Catharine's

Sidney Sussex

Selwyn

Robinson

Queens'

Peterhouse

Pembroke

Newnham

Murray Edwards

Magdalene

Lucy Cavendish

King's

Jesus

Hughes Hall

Gonville and Caius

Homerton

Fitzwilliam

Girton

Emmanuel

Downing

Darwin

Clare Hall

Corpus Christi

Clare

Churchill

Christ's

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Star Ratings The star ratings below have been used to give an indication of the average responses to the survey. Given the reputation for excellence and standing of Cambridge University, CUSU believes that the University and its student body should be aiming to achieve five star ratings across the board. Answers were rated along a 5 point scale and the stars were assigned according to the following bands: Things are great and should keep going as they are!

The situation is good but there is room for improvement.

The situation is OK but needs improvement.

The situation is poor and needs to be improved.

The situation is very poor – urgent action is needed.

4.5-5 average 3.5-4.5 average 3-3.4 average 2.5-3 average 1-2.5 average

The ‘best and worst’ sections identify colleges where students were consistently more positive or negative about their experience than the average. Student reps or university stakeholders wanting a full breakdown of the responses by college should contact CUSU.

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Best and worst colleges

STUDENT

F LI E

Quality 58% of students feel faculty teaching is top quality, and 61% are fully satisfied with college teaching, rising to 70% of undergraduates. Satisfaction with departmental teaching varied dramatically across departments.

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Peer Learning 81% of students learn from interacting with students outside of their academic classes. Postgraduate students frequently mentioned a need for more opportunities for peer learning within and across departments.

Representation Students are less positive about their academic representation. Only 32% of students know who their faculty reps are and are consulted by them regularly.

Sadly, 40% don’t believe they can enact change in their education.

This year the faculty rep elections reached a turnout of 18%

I don’t think it’s fair that some students get taught by the people writing the paper for a year, and the other half have a PhD student who doesn’t even really know what’s going to be on the paper

Many students raised the issue of inconsistency of supervision time and teaching quality across colleges in the same tripos or program. The variation of contact hours within courses is often wider than can be accounted for in the changes of teaching within year groups, pointing to a significant inconsistency across colleges.

Teaching in the following triposes was particularly inconsistent: • • • • •

English AMES Natsci: Biochemistry Natsci: Chemistry Natsci: Zoology

Peterhouse & Hughes Hall

Wolfson

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Ratings

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& LEARNING

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TEACHING

Whilst Cambridge students rate their quality of teaching highly, there are serious concerns about its consistency.

Academic representation is an area to be improved upon, and Postgraduates would like more opportunities to mix with other peers and departments.

2014 saw the highest turn out for Faculty Rep elections! To find out more contact education@cusu.cam.ac.uk

TEACHING & LEARNING

Ratings Satisfaction with academic support In general, students are fairly satisfied with their academic support, with 70% feeling that they know where to go if they have problems with their course .

Most students know where to go if they have problems with their teaching, yet many students reported support being problematic when outside of a direct supervisor/ DoS relationship. Students feel it is unclear where to take grievances with a DoS, and what they should expect from their teaching.

dent Cambridge Stu er ev st fir e th In 2014 dents the wards gave stu A g in h ac Te d Le had made a inate staff who m o n to ity n u e. opport eir academic lif difference to th pervisor, at lecturer or su re g a e av h u u can find If yo 2015 award! Yo a r fo em th e .co.uk. nominat ion at www.cusu more informat April. se Friday 24th o cl s n io at in m No

Departmental Support

Collegiate Support 62% agree or strongly agree that they felt fully supported by college staff – however this varied dramatically across colleges.

U& 0 CUS ed 1 0 2 In found the GU nt Advice ude the St , which has e Servic d hundreds rte suppo tudents of s

When asked what they would like to improve about their educational experience, students emphasised the need for improvement in the feedback system, focussing on the lack of change following expressions of concern by students about the quality of delivery of certain course modules and lecture series.

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58% of students agree or strongly agree that they felt fully supported by faculty or department staff.

A constant feeling within the department that as an undergraduate you are ‘small fry’. Nonjudgmental help can be hard to find, and student feedback (especially on lecturers and course content) does not always seem to be taken seriously.

The Student Advice Service provides free, confidential support to any student - advice@studentadvice.cam.ac.uk

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STUDENT FINANCE

Ratings

Over half of students felt the financial impact of studying at Cambridge, but a larger proportion feel they are getting value for their money. Hidden costs were problematic for some, and worryingly all parttime students feel that financial issues have had a negative impact on their student experience.

In 2014 CUSU got Taught Postgraduates more for their money, and improved college graduate provision!

Financial Impact 54% of students feel that Cambridge has had a negative impact upon their finances.

Worst Hidden Course Costs

Cost of Living

The following were courses and departments in which students were most concerned about additional course-related costs:

57% of students find the cost of living distressing. Postgraduates are more concerned than undergraduates.

Postgraduates:

45% of students are distressed by the prospect of student debt. A similar proportion are concerned by the effect that future government legislation will have on their finances.

• • • • •

Architecture and History of Art Asian and Middle Eastern Studies Business and Management Studies Engineering History Undergraduates:

Value for Money

Hidden Costs 36% find extra costs incurred from their colleges problematic.

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Almost three quarters of students felt their educational experience at Cambridge had been value for money. 15% felt they should get more for their money, this rose to 22% amongst postgraduates.

• • • •

Architecture AMES Archaeology Veterinary Medicine

Christ’s all Hughes H

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Debt

Financial Limitations 50% feel the university is successful in ensuring that financial limitations do not impede students’ academic success; but almost a fifth (19%) feel it is unsuccessful.

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100%

of part-time students feel that financial issues have had a negative impact on their student experience

Worried about the hidden costs on your course? Contact your faculty rep or education officer to start a campaign

ACCOMMODATION

& RENT

Overall students were satisfied with their accommodation, with undergraduates being more satisfied than postgraduates. Affordability is a cause for concern in the private rental market, but the standard of accommodation is reported to be of good quality.

Satisfaction with the quality and affordability of accommodation varied dramatically across colleges revealing a stark inconsistency in this area of the student experience.

Ratings Colleges

The survey revealed a correlation between the undergraduate colleges where satisfaction with accommodation was very low, and greater welfare problems – emphasising the importance of good quality and affordable accommodation to a healthy and positive student experience.

Value for Money As many as 32% of students reported to be not very or not at all satisfied.

Quality

CUSU’s College Database is an invaluable resource for comparing data across colleges. We can also offer support to any affiliated JCR or MCR fighting high rents.

Students living in university or college owned accommodation were mostly satisfied with its quality (76%).

Relationship with Owner 60% of students were satisfied with their relationships on college accommodation matters.

Private Rental Affordability

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h of studentsre Almost a fift a cal disability with a physi ed sfi ti ot at all sa not very or n n o commodati with their ac

Those renting privately were very dissatisfied, with 56% feeling that affordability is problematic.

Relationship with Owner Less than half of students were satisfied with their relationship with their property owner, whilst 17% were not satisfied.

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Corpus Christi Newnham St Edmund’s Lucy Cavendish

Quality Over half of students renting privately were satisfied with the quality of their accommodation (53%).

80% of students feel that living in college has had a positive effect on their student life

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The Impact

Students at Cambridge are positive about their safety and physical health, but the effect of studying at Cambridge on students’ mental health is seen as a cause for concern for many students. Levels of general student confidence varied significantly depending upon colleges and courses.

lf of Almo st ha hat eel t students f tre ss ith s dealing w ecome b s a h y t and anxie in their a problem e student lif

Ratings Physical Health A third of students felt that their student experience at Cambridge had a positive impact on their physical health, a third felt it had a negative impact, and a third felt it had no impact at all.

Mental Health 43% of students felt that studying at Cambridge had a negative impact on their mental health, with almost 10% feeling that this impact was very negative.

Confidence Most students felt that studying at Cambridge had a positive effect on their confidence (54%) whilst under a third felt it had a negative effect (27%).

Disabled Students Welfare The survey revealed that welfare issues were consistently worse for disabled students, especially those suffering from mental illness.

99.5% of students suffering from mental illness felt that stress and anxiety was a problematic or very problematic part of their student experience.

81.5% considered the impact of the educational experience at Cambridge to have further deteriorated their mental health.

This worryingly suggests that for a subset of students, the Cambridge educational experience is actively making them unwell.

57% of students

Safety

said that Cambridge is a healthy an d positive plac e to study

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92% of students agreed that Cambridge is a safe place to live and study. Students felt very safe in their colleges, workplaces and accommodation, but less so in Cambridge City at night. 13% of students surveyed had been victims of or affected by crime whilst studying at Cambridge, however this is below the national average (20%).

Clare Hall

Kings & Newnham

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HEALTH & WELFARE

Need extra support? The Student Advice Service offers confidential help and advice. www.studentadvice.cam.ac.uk

HEALTH & WELFARE The Support

Students are generally more satisfied with academic support at Cambridge than they were with nonacademic support. The survey revealed that disabled and non-binary students feel the educational experience of Cambridge had a significant negative impact on them, and are supported less in their study.

Ratings

The CUSU-GU run Student Advic e Service works with tutors regularly on be half of students; acting as mediator, or by helping students navigate University or College

Tutorial Support Just under half of respondents felt the support they had received from their tutor was OK to Excellent, whilst over 10% felt that tutorial support had been poor or inadequate.

Seeking Support The survey identified key barriers to seeking support:

Academic Support 65% rated DoS support OK to Excellent, but over 10% Poor to Very Poor. Again a significantly higher proportion of students with mental illness felt they had been offered poor support.

fear of being judged as incompetent

Peer Support 22% of students felt college welfare officer support was OK to Excellent, and only 5% felt it was poor. 73% of students felt they had not needed any support from welfare officers.

bureaucracy and waiting lists from the University Counselling Service

bout concerns a lity confidentia

lack of information

infrequent tutor meetings

negative experiences of the welfare system

lack of relationship with welfare provider

University Support

Gonville & Cauis am Kings & Newnh

Over a fi fth of disab students led feel that tutorial support is inadequa te

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Students with physical disabilities and learning disabilities rated the support that they received particularly highly (over 50% OK to Excellent). Students with mental illness rated it significantly lower in comparison (44% Poor to Very Poor).

CUSU is still working on getting tutor training widely used. Want to get involved? Contact welfare@cusu.cam.ac.uk

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Spotlight Disability, physical and mental illness The Big Cambridge Survey revealed worrying results relating to the experience of students with disabilities at the University. Across the board, students suffering from disabilities and especially mental illness indicated a poorer quality of student experience than their peers. With regards to finances for example, students with disabilities found financial issues significantly more problematic than the students without. Disabled students also reported experiencing significantly poorer welfare support in their colleges than other students. An exception should be made in the area of central university support for students with physical disabilities, which students largely experienced as positive - a testament to the good work of the Disability Resource Centre.

When it came to attitudes towards those with disabilities, the results were again not encouraging. Over a third of students with disabilities had occasionally or frequently observed or experienced prejudice against those with disabilities in Cambridge. Students with mental illness had been affected by more prejudice than those with other disabilities, with 43% of students with mental illness having frequently or occasionally observed or been affected by prejudice against those with disabilities.

Looking specifically at prejudice towards those with mental illness the statistics are even more worrying. Over half (53%) of students with disabilities had experienced or observed prejudice towards physical and mental illness, with the number rising to 74% of students actually suffering from mental illness. Of those students with mental illness, almost a third had observed or experienced this frequently.

Generally speaking this prejudice was observed within the student body at Cambridge, rather than among teaching staff. Nevertheless almost a third of disabled students (32%) felt that there was some or a lot of casual prejudice towards disabilities in the education system at Cambridge, rising to 43% of students with mental illness.

All of this indicates that the University still has a long way to go when it comes to making Cambridge a positive working and living environment for students with disabilities.

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This year CUSU re-established the Disabled Students’ Campaign! www.facebook.com/CUSUdisabledstudents

& DIVERSITY

Ratings RacE Over a fifth of students have observed or experienced racial prejudice at Cambridge. 38% of non-white students said they experienced or observed racial prejudice at the University.

Gender & Sexuality 38% of students have observed or experienced prejudice based on gender or sexuality whilst at Cambridge. This rises to 46% of female and 88% of non-binary students.

Whilst the majority of respondents felt that Cambridge is a fair and equal place to study, minority groups disagreed. Prejudice has been experienced by many, and there is a clear need for more campaigning work to be done to tackle equality and access issues.

Over a third of students felt there was casual prejudice towards minorities in the student body, and 18% felt that there was casual prejudice towards minorities in the education system at Cambridge.

Whilst this is lower, it is still a significant issue.

Last year CUSU BME (Black and Minority Ethnic) campaign ran ‘I too am Cambridge’, a Campaign raising awareness around casual racism among students in the University which had a national reach.

o third s

Over tw ents have d u t s k c a l of b d experience r o d e v r e obs at ice whilst d u j e r p l racia .

Cambridge

Diversity & Disability

Equality 53% felt more needed to be done to promote equality and access across the Collegiate University.

Campaigning Despite a high appetite for increased equality and diversity, only 28% are currently committed to promoting equality and access in Cambridge.

Following evidence submitted by CUSU in the 2014 Racial Equality Survey to the University, we have helped establish a working group tack ling racial harassm ent across colleges.

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Over a third of students with disabilities have occasionally or frequently observed or experienced prejudice against those with disabilities, rising to 43% of students suffering from mental illness.

Girton Churchill & Hughes Hall

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EQUALITY

CUSU has 5 Autonomous Campaigns for liberation & equality issues - www.cusu.co.uk/get-involved/campaigns

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STUDENT T AC I V I T Y

Ratings College Students were more confident that they could get their views represented in their college than in the University.

66% feel their views were well represented in college.

Department 45% of students feel they are well represented in their departments.

University Students’ confidence in getting their views represented in the University was split three ways; a third of students not very confident, just under a third confident, and the remainder neither confident nor unconfident.

Education 28% feel well or very well represented on education issues in the University.

Students feel they should have representation in the following areas, in order of importance:

1. Policies on student life, welfare and well-being in the university 2. Measures and policies relating to equality across the university 3. Educational and teaching-related decisions made by the university 4. Ethics of investments and pay policies of the university 5. Accessibility and entrance requirements of the university

There is a strong discrepancy between the number that feel students should have a voice in these areas, and those who feel that students are heard.

should t students a th l e fe al and 78% education in d te n e s de be repre cisions ma e d d te la re teachingersity by the univ

27% of

feel th students at curren students tly hav ea voice in this area

30% of students feel they were not very or not at all well represented on student life issues in the university.

Welfare 39% feel well or very well represented on welfare issues in the University.

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Student Life

Robinson

Gonville & Cauis

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REPRESENTATION

A large number of students were confident in their representation in colleges and departments.

Representation on issues regarding education and welfare could be improved. Many students disagree that the University listens to student views, with more needing to be done to bring more attention to student life issues to the University.

Come to CUSU council to see how we provide a collective voice for students. Go to www.cusu.co.uk for council dates

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Spotlight Race Over a fifth of students (23%) responding to the survey had observed or experienced racial prejudice at Cambridge, indicating that attitudes towards race in Cambridge are a serious cause for concern.

This rose considerably amongst Black & Minority Ethnic (BME) students, with 37.6% of nonwhite students having experienced or observed racial prejudice at the University. Groups that were particularly exposed to this were Chinese or South-East Asian non-British students (42%), South Asian British students (43%), South Asian non-British (38%), and ‘Other’ nonwhite groups.

By far the most exposed to prejudice were black students however. Over half of black students had observed or experienced racial prejudice whilst at Cambridge (black British: 63%, black non-British: 67%), and worryingly over a third of black non-British students had observed or experienced racial prejudice frequently.

BME students also felt that there was more casual prejudice towards minority groups in the student body and the educational system in the University. 45% of non-white students felt there was some or a lot of causal prejudice towards minority groups in the student body at Cambridge (compared to 31% of white students). Again black students were particularly affected by prejudice, with 57% of black British and 78% on black non-British students stating that there is some or a lot of prejudice towards minority groups within the student body at Cambridge.

Generally students felt there was less casual prejudice in the University’s education system than in the student body, but the numbers are still worrying when divided demographically.

While only 17% of white students had observed or experienced casual racial prejudice in the educational system at Cambridge, over half of black students reported having experienced casual racial prejudice in the Cambridge educational system. (Black British: 57%, Black nonBritish: 56%).

Making Cambridge University an inclusive space for BME students therefore needs to be a priority for both the University and it’s students. CUSU’s BME campaign has run awareness raising projects and campaigns to educate students on prejudice and discrimination throughout 2014 and are continuing to do so. Find out more at www.facebook.com/ CambridgeBME.

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FLY is the CUSU network for Black & Minority Ethnic Women. Check out their blog - http://flygirlsofcambridge.com

VOLUNTEERING

& ACTIVISM

Ratings

The majority of students feel that volunteering and campaigning for social change is an important part of student life. Nevertheless, there is a significant discrepancy between those who feel that activism is important and those who actively participate.

CUSU is changing its volunteering structure in Lent 2015 to make it easier for students to get support and help with their campaigning

Commitment

Despite the high number of students feeling that volunteering and activism are important, only 20% are involved in campaigning in the university, and 18.5% outside of the university.

Liberation Campaigning Most students feel there is a discrepancy between how far autonomous campaigns should be representing their interests, and their success.

University support 50% of students feel the university supports societies and clubs well.

College support Colleges are felt to be better at supporting student activities, with 57% of students feeling their college supports societies well.

When viewed alongside the discrepancy between commitment to and participation in campaigning in general, this may be due to a lack of participation in campaign activities by those who would hypothetically like to be represented.

One notable exception to this is among black students. Of those students who self-identify as black, 100% of those wishing to be represented by an autonomous campaign feel this representation was successful – a testament to the engagement and campaign work the CUSU Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Campaign has carried out.

ipate in of students partic A mpaigning for volunteering or ca the University social change in

fifth

ds

ar Murray Edw

, Hughes Hall & Peterhouse Churchill

Want to widen your campaign’s reach? Bring it to CUSU council - chair@cusu.cam.ac.uk

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Participation

The survey revealed discrepancies in the extent to which students who felt they should be supported by Autonomous Campaigns feel this representation is successful.

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52% of students feel activism and volunteering are important to student life, and 66% are committed to making positive change in the world after graduating.

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Spotlight Gender The Big Cambridge Survey revealed gender prejudice to be a cause for concern for many students. Over a third of students had observed or experienced prejudice based on gender or sexuality whilst at Cambridge, and felt that there was casual prejudice based on gender in the student body. Over a quarter felt there was casual gender prejudice in the education system at Cambridge.

The observation or experience of prejudice was worryingly higher among non-binary students, with 88% of non-binary students reporting that there was casual prejudice amongst students, and a quarter feeling there was a lot of prejudice. (Allowance has to be made for the small sample size of non-binary students participating in the survey).

Across the board non-binary students reported significantly greater problems with their university experience than the average. Non-binary students were significantly more likely to face problematic financial pressures, be concerned about debt, and have negative experiences of the welfare system than other students.

The survey also revealed student concerns about casual gender prejudice in the teaching that student’s experience at the University. A third of female students and over a third of non-binary students felt that there was some or a lot of casual gender prejudice in the educational system at Cambridge. These concerns were extended to the wider student experience, as almost two thirds of female and non-binary students felt more needs to be done to promote equality and access in the University. The indication in the survey that gender prejudice is a serious problem for many students at the University demonstrates that Cambridge still has some way to go to become fully inclusive in the area of gender.

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Hundreds of self-defining women attended 2015’s Reclaim the Night march against street harassment

DEMOGRAPHICS 2438 students responded to the Big Cambridge Survey between 20/01/14 and 17/3/14. The survey was promoted by email to student lists, through JCRs and MCRs and social media. Respondents were incentivised by a random prize draw of £200 for a respondent, and an award of £100 for the JCR/MCR with the proportionally highest number of respondents, which is to be awarded to Peterhouse JCR when the data is released. The survey was promoted via CUSU’s social media pages, via JCR/MCR networks and through all-student emails and the CUSU bulletin. JCRs and MCRs can access college-specific data on request by emailing president@cusu.cam.ac.uk.

Respondent demographics:

Status Undergraduate Undergraduate Masters Postgraduate

75% 5% 19%

Total

1,851 122 465 2,438

Type of Study Full time Student Part time Student Mature Student Home Student International Student

98% 0.4% 4% 18% 14%

2,371 9 104 422 338

Gender Male Female Other Prefer not to say

40% 58% 0.4% 1%

970 1,397 9 32

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Many thanks to all the students who took part in the Big Cambridge Survey. If you would like more information about the survey, please contact president@cusu.cam.ac.uk. The purpose of this survey is to help us make your Cambridge experience better - so please fill in the 2015 one here!

Bit.ly/BigCambridgeSurvey

WWW.CUSU.CO.UK