Students praise teaching at the University of York
Posted on 3 October 2007
They also used the 2007 National Student Survey to praise both the organisation and management of their courses, and the learning resources that the University provides.
The NSS offers independent scrutiny and immensely valuable insights into the experience of undergraduate students on their degree courses
Professor Trevor Sheldon
A total of 71 per cent of the University’s 2,200 final year students responded to the survey, substantially above the national average of 60 per cent.
Around 85 per cent of students at York were happy with their courses, the quality of teaching and the availability of learning resources.
Nationally, York was joint first in Chemistry in terms of overall student satisfaction, joint second in Archaeology and third in Psychology.
The survey results show that across the sector as a whole, students have concerns about assessment and feedback. The University is working to provide more effective feedback to students, and has appointed a project leader to work in this area.
Launched in 2005, the NSS is a national initiative across all higher education institutions in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, as well as a number in Scotland, giving final year students the opportunity to comment on their courses. It covers:
- teaching
- assessment and feedback
- academic support
- organisation and management
- learning resources
- personal development
- overall satisfaction
Professor Trevor Sheldon, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Teaching and Learning at York, said: "The NSS offers independent scrutiny and immensely valuable insights into the experience of undergraduate students on their degree courses. We are pleased that this year, the University’s overall results were at least as good as those of 2006, and showed marked improvements in several areas.
"The NSS provides useful guidance on areas in which we need to do more work. But it doesn’t consider many of the excellent opportunities we provide for students to develop skills which help them to perform better in their studies and prepare for life and work after university."
Anne-Marie Canning, President of York Students’ Union (YUSU), added: "The high response rate of York students shows that students welcome the opportunity to enhance the quality of their educational experience. Once again, feedback was highlighted as an area of concern and we hope to see significant gains in this area. The National Student Survey is key to allowing students to identify areas for improvement and YUSU looks forward to working proactively with the university to deliver results."
ENDS