It’s that time of year again, when pressure from university seems to amplify, and doing anything that isn’t completely necessary becomes the unthinkable – even a night at the Raz becomes a luxury rather than a weekly occurrence. So it’s quite understandable that the thought of completing another survey is not your top priority. I’m going to be honest, I thought the same until a couple of weeks ago until I realised just how important the National Student Survey was to not only my own education, but also to the education of future students.
What is the National Student Survey all about?
The National Student Survey asks final year undergrads across the country 27 questions. It gives you the opportunity to honestly and anonymously voice your opinions about your uni experience. The questions range from quality of teaching, academic support available, learning resources, and the facilities on the campus. This feedback is then used by the University to implement change. And this change ends up creating a better experience for students based on real students’ thoughts and feelings.
What does the survey do?
At the University, based on feedback over the past few years, they have introduced lecture capture technology, which if you‘ve ever missed a 9am lecture, then you know how invaluable a resource this is!
They have made printing cheaper, which means more money for the important things, like that Tesco meal deal or my fourth coffee of the day.
They have also employed new support staff to provide mental health support, advice and counselling, and invested in the brand-new facilities which you can constantly see popping up all around the University. And these things wouldn’t be happening if students from years gone by hadn’t filled out the survey.
What’s in it for you?
So, what is in for you as a student at Liverpool, here and now?
Well, the University is pledging £1 to the Guild’s four charities. If you assume that every final year undergraduate filled in this simple survey, then that would mean around £7,000 would be split between the four charities.
· Mowll (Moving On With Life and Learning) is a Liverpool grown organisation that promotes social inclusion of people with disabilities and mental health concerns.
· Sahir House is a charity which has been offering HIV support, prevention, information and training across Merseyside since 1985, and increasing HIV knowledge, reducing stigma and campaigns for HIV positive people’s rights.
· The Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation is the only UK charity to focus solely on lung cancer care. The charity has a dual focus – saving lives and supporting people affected by lung cancer.
· Revitilise is a national charity providing respite care in a holiday setting for disabled people and carers for over 50 years. Revitalise also offers inspirational opportunities for volunteers through one of the largest and most diverse volunteering programmes of any UK charity.
All these charities are doing incredible work and are so deserving of our support, and to have an opportunity to make a difference by simply filling out a survey, is an easy decision to make.
If that isn’t enough to convince you to fill in the National Student Survey, then perhaps the chance to win tickets to the Harry Potter Studio Tour in London, 10 Guild burritos, Dr Dre Beats headphones or an Xbox One X bundle will be enough to entice you. Now personally, I know which prize I would like to win, seeing as I already know which Hogwarts house I am in (Slytherin), what my wand would be (elder with unicorn hair core), and what my patronus is (an aardvark), but I wouldn’t complain at a pair of Beats, or my lunch sorted for the next ten days…
The survey opens at the Uni on Monday, 4 February 2019. To take part, just go to the website and fill in the survey. You could do it at home in your pyjamas, or in between lectures, it really is that easy. How often is it that you get to make so much of a difference with so little effort?