9.0
Conclusion

Students studying at the University of Kent appear overall to be satisfied with the student experience. However, there are some areas which are held in higher regard than others. In this, the final section, conclusions have been made in reference to the four areas which the QAA suggest students’ unions focus on.

1. How accurate is the information that the Institution publishes about itself, such as prospectuses, programme descriptors and advertisements?

• Part-time and postgraduate students have concerns about the accuracy and appropriateness of the information provided regarding social and practical activities and requirements during the induction period.
• Student representatives are satisfied that the information supplied to them by departments is accurate.
• Not all aspects of University life are accurately portrayed in the University of Kent prospectus.

2. Do students know what is expected of them in order to be successful?

• The University of Kent ranks higher than the sector average in relation to assessment and feedback.
• There is disparity across academic departments in their approach to providing students with informative feedback on their assessments. Some departments are not returning feedback promptly enough, which means students do not know what is expected of them in their next assessment. Others are not providing enough information to help students understand how they can improve.
• Students generally appear to be satisfied with the level of communication that academic departments provide them with to ensure that they know what is expected of them. There are examples of good practice including department newsletters and SMS text alerts.

3. What is the student experience as a learner like, including teaching and learning opportunities, support received and access to learning facilities?

• Students would like to see an improvement with the library resources and services. The scores from the NSS highlight that Kent is below average in this area.
• Assessment and feedback mechanisms vary across departments. Methods of assessment and providing students with feedback do not always enhance the learning environment. This is the same in the postgraduate taught community.
• Postgraduate research students are largely pleased with the supervision that they receive.
• There is a great deal of disparity between departments in relation to the Pastoral Academic Support System. Some students are unaware of what their department offers; others are extremely pleased with the service.
• University and Kent Union support services are considered to be extremely helpful, however students reported they can be difficult to access, either due to physical locality or stretched resources.

4. Do students have a voice in the institution and is it listened to?

• There appear to be limited opportunities for students to feedback on their opinions and views of the induction period.
• A large proportion of students believe that the Institution listens to the student voice and are aware of the student representative system.
• More needs to be done to ensure that students know who their representatives are.
• Module evaluation results need to be communicated with students more extensively and students should be made aware of the action plans resulting from them.
• The postgraduate representative system is not as established as the undergraduate model and there are very few elected representatives to represent the postgraduate community.
• Students are not extensively made aware of whether or not their views have been listened to and what action has been taken.