I aim to:
· Ensure that as tuition fees rise, the expected increase in teaching and facility standards is delivered, and to lobby for a detailed plan which to clearly sets out where all tuition fees are being spent. It would be naïve to think that York will not be charging a higher amount than many institutions when the 2012 changes come into effect, and I want to make absolutely sure that every penny that the departments are going to receive is going directly to the students – on resources and teaching to benefit YOU! You’re paying for the degree, and you deserve to get value for money! I am the man to ensure this plan is delivered and seen through to its completion.
· Lobby the university to implement online submission for assessments. Ever been stuck in a queue in the library or PC room for 15 minutes or more to print out an essay, only to find out the printer has broken, you have run out of credit or the person in front of you has managed to spend what seems like forever at the terminal? I want to work with the university to develop class-leading software to make assessment submission that much easier. You can just upload it to the software from your PC in the classroom or even in the comfort of your own bed! No printer queues and no submission queues; what a headache that would solve. Also, it’s better for the environment as less paper will be used!
· Lobby the university to improve the university’s online teaching component, by getting more material centrally online with easier access, as many students now use mobile devices to access the web. The VLE is an out-dated piece of software and drastically needs overhauling. I want to work with the university to bring new software into the foray to enable students on netbooks, tablet PCs, and even on smartphones to access learning materials more quickly and easily than ever before, and to be able to access them in the classroom. We’re living in an increasingly digital world, and I want to put York on the map as a leading university for digital connectivity.
· Ensure that as soon as the Library Refurbishment Project is completed, 24-hour library access is delivered. With £20 million being spent on the library in its long-term refurbishment, and the work due to be completed in March 2012, I want to ensure that the library is absolutely what has been promised, and is indeed a world class resource that is the envy of institutions both in the UK and abroad. Before the work is completed however, I want to have regular meetings with both the library committee and one-on-one meetings with the head of the library and refurbishment project to ensure that every stage of work is going smoothly and that any potential problems are resolved before they arise.
· Improve assessment and feedback, by ensuring departments turn work around on time, with appropriate, detailed and personalised feedback to improve your work. This means ensuring departments are returning assessments within the 6 week guideline, a target which some departments still struggle to adhere to; all the while being in constant communication with every department to try and improve on the 6 week guideline and reduce it further.
· Improve the visibility of Course Reps and Faculty Reps and their worth amongst students and within departments and to give them a greater mandate for decision making and consultation within departments. We need to change the mindset of both students and departments for the positive, to show them that these students truly care about how their department is run. The sheer amount of time and hard work that course reps put in to this often underappreciated position, means that they deserve to have a greater say in how and what departments want to change, and whether these changes are truly beneficial for the student body.
· Propose the development of an Academic Handbook. Every student should have easy access (online or otherwise) to an easy to read and comprehensive guide to every resource that the university has to offer. It should contain information as diverse as a listing of all study spaces on campus and how to get to them, a list of how many computers are available in each PC classroom with their printing provisions, all the way to Nightline and the Open Door Service; this handbook should contain all the information a student might need all the way from Freshers’ week up until graduation day and beyond.
· Work with academic societies to hold forums in conjunction with course reps to better represent students on academic issues. Our academic societies are a secret goldmine of information relating to feedback issues or problems with modules that students have not fed back to departments, and I want to work closely with the Student Activities Officer and all academic societies to get this invaluable information fed back to both YUSU and the departments to ensure that any and every potential problem is acted upon and resolved as quickly as possible.
· Promote the York Award, Careers Service, and help develop deliver and extend the University’s Employability Strategy. The York Award is a highly regarded achievement by many employers, however too many students know very little about the York Award, and hence attendance in some of the York Award modules suffer as a result. I want to work more closely with the Careers Service to bring the York Award further into the forefront of students’ minds as it’s a resource we really don’t want to lose.
· Improve the quality and amount of information the university provides to prospective students. Many departments are extremely vague on the information that they supply, and too many students come to the university without a clear idea of exactly the options available to them before they arrive. I want to work with every department to ensure that their information packs, both online on departmental websites and in the university prospectus, contains a comprehensive list of all the compulsory and option modules each department has to offer and a short description of each. This will show prospective students the huge level of diversity in teaching at York and will continue to ensure that we remain one of the top institutions in the country.
· Represent everybody. Whether an international student or part time, I want to ensure that your needs are always met. This university if made up of people from incredibly diverse backgrounds and a one-size-fits-all approach simply will not do. I want to work much more closely with the ISA and with Disability Services, as well as engage with departments that offer part-time courses to ensure your university is doing everything it can to help every individual’s needs.
