Continuous monitoring is a process of reflection on the previous academic year and action planning for the coming academic year. This is primarily an activity undertaken by staff from your programme, but they will use lots of different indicators to help them reflect. You can input into this process by making sure you talk to your Student Reps/raise issues at your Staff-Student Liaison Committee as well as completing different surveys such as your Unit Surveys, Student Barometer and the National Student Survey.
A Periodic Review is a process carried out by a panel of staff and students at discipline or School level once every 5-6 years. It considers the discipline/School’s management of its various programmes including the aims and intended learning outcomes, and the quality of the student experience.
You can input to this process in a number of ways including volunteering to be part of a student group to meet with the Review Panel to share your views and experiences. The Students’ Union also provides a representative to the Panel and you can provide your views to them via Student Reps. The upcoming cycle of Periodic Reviews can be found here.
Student Reps are central to getting involved in improving the student experience across all aspects of student life. There are so many opportunities to get involved including programme reps, School or Faculty reps. Reps are invited to take part in many different groups and committees where key decisions are made, such as Staff-Student Liaison Committees, School Boards, Teaching and Learning Committees, etc.
If you’re not a Student Rep and have something to say, find out who your Rep is by talking to your School or UMSU. For more detail of how Reps contribute to quality, visit our website or find out how to get involved and elected here.
These are a key way of providing feedback on your modules and are so important for staff to reflect on how you are experiencing their teaching. They are part of so many other processes connected with quality, your input is vital. Watch out for an email towards the end of each semester with a link to make filling them out easy. The Unit Surveys page has more information about completing surveys and where they’ve made a difference to previous students.
Higher Education review is an external review (carried out by the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA)), once every six years. It covers a wide range of areas including setting and maintaining academic standards; the provision of information; and the enhancement of the quality of students' learning opportunities.
Each review panel (similar to a Periodic Review) comprises staff and students from other higher education providers who produce a report containing judgements and other findings.
The Students’ Union are asked to submit a student submission, drawing from their wide ranging Student Rep network and there are also opportunities for you to meet the Review Team during one of their visits. Currently Manchester does not have its next Review scheduled but you can still get involved by training to become a Student Reviewer for a Review Panel at another higher education provider.
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