Encouraging students to give their views

Our national surveys are important mechanisms for us to gather and listen to the voices of our students, and this year, we will once again be taking part in the National Student Survey (NSS), UK Engagement Survey (UKES) and Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey (PTES).

Participation is key.

While we’re aspiring to reach 75% participation for the NSS, we need to achieve the minimum of at least 50% to have our results made available to us, and published nationally on the Office for Students and Discover Uni websites which help prospective students make a decision about where to study. We will be aiming to achieve a 25% response rate for UKES (50% for Essex Pathways Department) and 50% for PTES.

I would like to highlight the important role staff in schools and departments can play in raising awareness of the surveys and encouraging all our taught students to take part.

Colleagues are working incredibly hard to support the delivery of feedback mechanisms, and this year we want to make sure any effort put into survey promotion and engagement is as streamlined as possible.

So, in brief, here are some ways you can encourage your students to participate, plus some extra resources for you:

• Reach out to non-final year undergraduates and postgraduates, as well as final year undergraduates. This year we are aiming to elevate UKES and PTES to bring them on equal footing with the NSS. It is our aim to gather feedback from all student cohorts and implement their feedback in a way that benefits everyone.
• Reminding your students that these are important surveys for their school or department, for future students, and for the broader higher education landscape of the UK. Giving their views means they’re a part of something big.
• The NSS, UKES and PTES are anonymous forums for students to have their voices heard. Regardless of what students have to say, we’re here to listen.
• Students’ views inform real improvements. At the University of Essex we believe in putting student success at the heart of everything we do, and the NSS survey, for final year undergraduates – plus the UKES for non-final year UGs and PTES for taught postgraduates give us the opportunity to listen and respond, and to do things better. Student views have resulted in big changes at university level, such as making all their essential reading available online.
• It’s good to connect their participation back to their home school or department. For example, schools and departments value students’ ideas about course offerings, and feedback can underpin shorter or longer-term action plan. Please remind your students of changes in your department which have come from listening to their feedback.

You are warmly encouraged to contact Ryan Grosu, Student Voice Manager, at studentvoice@essex.ac.uk if you need any help, support or guidance.

Ryan and the team are already working closely with schools and departments, and will be conducting briefings with them to inform about current practices, and also provide any additional guidance about available materials and bespoke strategies.

Guidance for your students 

If your students have any questions about the NSS, please direct them to www.thestudentsurvey.com or they can email the student helpline at Ipsos.

Students can also find out more information about UKES and PTES on our Student Directory , or email our Student Voice team.  

Once again, thank you for all your hard work to support these important feedback mechanisms. I very much appreciate any time you can spend promoting the importance of taking part in the surveys to your students.