Rebecca Would

Make policies (e.g. special cons) understandable for students with flowcharts: Many processes and policies at the university are very confusing for students, with no clear direction on who to contact or what happens next. I have already raised the idea of creating a flowchart for students and staff about suspension and re-entry to study, but I know the same idea would be useful for many other student centred processes at the university, such as special considerations and extensions. 

Assessments step 2 - supporting student wellbeing through assessments: I have spent a lot of time over the last 6 months gathering initial student feedback about timings, weightings, mark schemes, over assessment and everything else students will tell me about assessments. However, assessments aren’t a quick fix, and as the university moves into their ‘major project’ I want to stay fully involved to continue to lobby for students and student mental health and wellbeing throughout improving assessments. 

Enable choice in email communications (while increasing your student voice!): All students know you receive too many emails. I want to help give you a choice about which central emails you receive, and increase the opportunity for you to feedback, influence and improve the areas that matter most to you. 

Postgraduate Research Student Blog on the SUSU Website: Southampton University is a research intensive university, with 8% of our students being PGR students. Providing them a dedicated place on the SUSU website for them to share their research will help our PGR students practise summarising their work, and inspire our undergrad and Masters students by demonstrating the research going on by other students at the university.  

Democracy and elections focus ahead of upcoming General Elections: Continue my focus on increasing engagement in the SUSU elections, after our most successful Autumn Elections ever, and promoting the importance of elections and representation. I will also highlight different government party policies on higher education and inclusion and the potential impacts on our students. I will continue engaging nationally with the Russell Group Students’ Unions to influence and make suggestions to improve national support for higher education, including more support for international students and student accommodation. 

Having been VP EdDem over the last year, I’ve had the fantastic opportunity to represent students’ academic interests at all levels of the university and nationally, through Artificial Intelligence, assessments, digital education, buses, study spaces and more. I have also greatly increased engagement with our reps through the senior rep forums, catch-ups, rep social lunches, rep of the month and the student voice and input to projects, all of which I will continue if elected. Follow my campaign page on instagram to hear more about these (and a couple extra) plans for if I am elected!

I have massively enjoyed every minute of this role so far, and I am keen to provide some continuity to strong student voice across the university and SUSU and to continue representing every student to the best of my ability.