Student support
Pre-programme induction, peer support and diverse ways of supporting students.
Student Support (including Student Voice)
Student-Staff Liaison Committee Practice
Examples of good practice in the operation of SSLC meetings such as student led meetings; chairing and taking minutes, School wide and Subject level SSLC meetings.
Contact: Dr Esther Mijers, Director of Undergraduate Studies, School of History, Classics and Archaeology
Director of Undergraduate Studies and a 4th year Student in History, Classics and Archaeology, reflect on how their School’s Student-Staff Liaison Committee (SSLC) facilitates valuable dialogue between staff and students, with the shared aim of improving their School.
SSLC practice: engaging undergraduate students, engaging staff
Induction
Deanery of Clinical Sciences Programme Teams have put in place a pre-programme induction week for online distance learning students across most postgraduate taught programmes. Students in the Deanery value these induction programmes. (Commended by Internal Review)
Contact: School Director of Quality, Deanery of Clinical Sciences
Engineering’s School postgraduate research handbook, issued to students at induction, is an informative example of good practice. (Commended by Internal Review)
Contact: School Director of Quality, School of Engineering
Mentoring
Physics and Astronomy has a Peer Mentoring Scheme where Honours students provide peer advice and support to pre-Honours students. (Commended by Internal Review)
Contact: School Director of Quality, School of Physics and Astronomy
Education uses its alumni as mentors for current students. Alumni help with student experience enhancement in student placements and putting theory into practice. (Commended by Internal Review)
Contact: School Director of Quality, Moray House School of Education
Postgraduate research (PGR) student tutors
QAA Scotland’s Focus On project, postgraduate research student experience looked at support for students who teach.
Focus On: PGR student experience
Virtual learning environment
The School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures (SLLC) have developed a ‘Support for Success in SLLC' virtual learning environment for students. This brings together key information covering all aspects of the student lifecycle, support available in SLLC, and ways to share feedback on learning and teaching.
Contact: School Director of Quality, School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures
Widening Participation
The School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures has an extensive programme of activities with secondary schools in order to support widening participation.
Contact: School Director of Quality, School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures
Maths provide scholarships to students who satisfy one of the University’s eight criteria for widening participation.
Contact: School Director of Quality, School of Mathematics
Employability
To develop employability, the School of Social and Political Science piloted a work shadowing initiative for third year undergraduate students.
Contact: School Director of Quality, School of Social and Political Science
Finances
Accommodation, Catering and Events introduced initiatives on providing clearer financial information and support for students experiencing financial difficulties. (Commended by Student Support Services Annual Review)
Contact: Service Director
Personal Tutoring
The School of Engineering provides peer support training for new Personal Tutors. This includes inviting them to Special Circumstances Committees to develop an understanding of the process to aid support of tutees, and the opportunity to meet with the Deputy Senior Tutor to discuss practice.
Contact: School Director of Quality, Engineering
At the end of their first course, new students in Molecular, Genetic and Population Health Studies are invited to reflect on what they bring to the programme, what they want to get out of it and what support they might need. Personal Tutors have access to reflections to help ensure that meetings are focused, structured and purposeful.
Contact: School Director of Quality, Edinburgh Medical School
Postgraduate Taught advisor
The School of Maths has appointed a Student Learning Advisor (SLA) for postgraduate taught students, following the success of the existing SLA post for undergraduate students.
Contact: School Director of Quality, Mathematics
Transitions In
Chemistry introduced major changes to teaching in first year to address the diverse secondary education syllabi. The changes aim to increase the academic level and ensure there are sufficient support systems, particularly in the first semester.
Contact: School Director of Quality, Chemistry
Student Voice
The Director of Teaching in Physics and Astronomy has a weekly drop-in session to meet with student reps. (Commended by Internal Review)
Contact: School Director of Quality, Physics and Astronomy
English Literature responded to student feedback by making changes to ease students’ transition into first year. The programme introduced more early stage formative assessment and an element of formal assessment related to Autonomous Learning Groups. (Commended by Internal Review)
Contact: School Director of Quality, Literatures Languages and Cultures
Medicine consistently uses student feedback from EvaSys and ACT as a basis for enhancing its modules and quality processes. (Commended by Internal Review)
Contact: School Director of Quality, Edinburgh Medical School
Highlighted in School Annual Quality Reports
For more information contact the School Director of Quality.
- Transitions - support for direct entry students and 2 to 3 year (Chemistry)
- Writing centre offering 1:1 subject-specific writing support to Honours and postgraduate taught students (Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences)
- Anonymised graphs of student performance data made available to postgraduate taught students (Vets)
- New student support webpages (Law)
- Personal Tutor system (Chemistry)
- Online fundamentals course to help transitions (Maths)
- Single online information source for postgraduate research students (Chemistry)
- Research methods fair for postgraduate taught students (Social and Political Science)
- Transitions – spacing out provision of content and information (Informatics)
- BVM&S dashboard - students have quick access to commonly-used tools (Vets)
Student Voice
- Bluepulse pilot – confidential, ongoing feedback from students to course organisers (Business)
- Use of Top Hat during lectures for mid-course feedback (Biological Sciences)
- Weekly student/staff meetings with Director of Teaching (Informatics)
- Closing feedback loop, you said, we did (Health in Social Science and Vets)
- Initiatives to close the feedback loop resulting in improvement in relevant questions on National Student Survey (Economics)