Introduction: Being a Course Rep

Learning objectives

– identify the role of a rep

– jargon busting

– consider ways to get info from coursemates

– how to approach issues

– meeting etiquette

– what’s in it for you

Role of a rep

• what’s the point?

• how do I achieve this?

• what’s in it for me?

What do you think…

task 1

• why do we have course reps? • how will you do this?

• what are you expecting to get from this?

Purpose of course reps

• improve the student academic experience by developing solutions to issues

• represent students in departmental meetings

• providing positive and constructive feedback to the university/department staff

• vital link between the staff, students, and the students’ union

Course reps are change makers

How?

you represent by:

- consulting students

- presenting findings at meetings, and between meetings

- feeding back to students

- developing solutions

Why?

benefits:

• useful skills will be gained

• great on your cv

• creating change for yourself, your coursemates, and future students

Skills:

•communication

•organisation

•diplomacy

•negotiation

•research

•presentation… and much more!

Why does it matter?

studentviews

dialogue with staff

improved learning experience

You are the expert!

Jargon Busting…!Task 2

- quality of teaching and learning

- student experience

- student engagement

- representation

- accountability

• Quality:

A way of describing how well a university facilitates students to achieve an all-round great academic experience

This may be through useful feedback, great teaching, great course structure and content, facilities and so on.

• Student Experience:

Different things to different types of student.

There are many different aspects of university life which affect the experience of students; from quality of teaching, level of academic support and provision of learning and library space to the opportunities for volunteering, sport and other extra-curricular activities, work-based learning and paid work.

• Student Engagement

How students are actively involved in shaping their academic experience

• Representation

Acting and speaking on behalf of someone – you are the student voice.

• Accountability

Responsibility to someone for an action. In this case – you are responsible to your coursemates as their representative.

• National student survey (NSS)

National survey of final-year undergraduates.

Gathering Student Opinion

• Shout outs

• Notice boards

• Talk to people

• Email lists

• Social media – fb, twitter etc.

• Online surveys

• Google docs

Bringing solutionsTask 3

Think about your course.

What sorts of issues might you want to discuss?

Meetings

• You will attend meetings called INSERT and these happen every INSERT. The people you can expect to be there are INSERT

• You may wish to insert terms of reference for the meeting here if you have any

• Before the meeting:

• consult your peers

• agree points to be discussed with other reps and who will take responsibility for each

• prepare any notes and evidence but be respectful of confidentiality

• is the NSS on the agenda? If not, consider adding it. For info on using the NSS see

• read the minutes of the previous meeting to check for any actions that need following up

• contact us/me at INSERT if you need any help or support

• be professional

• work through the chair and respect the agenda

• ensure actions are minuted with responsibility allocated to someone

• seek to create an atmosphere of genuine dialogue

• listen as well as ask

• note down important things to feed back to students

Do

• long preamble or anecdotes to questions

• waste time

• be afraid to question

Don’t

After the meeting:

• ensure you know the key outcomes of the meeting

• feed this all back to your peers

• follow up with persons responsible for actions

What’s in this for you?

• The employability factor – lots of new skills and experiences to add to your CV and talk about in interviews. For tips on using the experience see (weblink to QM site)

• Bringing about positive change (name a win?) and enhancing yours and your mates’ student experience

• Accreditation?

Additional info

• For local support:

• SU CONTACT DETAILS

• Additional training

• Quality matters weblink for…

• Additional training, etc.