In order to measure the quality of the learning and student experience, the University undertakes a number of national and internal surveys throughout the academic year to identify strengths and areas for improvement.
The Student Experience Projects Team support the administration of a number of surveys including the following:
The National Student Survey (NSS) is a UK-wide official survey giving final year undergraduate students the opportunity to say what they liked about their course and what they think could be improved. The feedback is used to help those considering higher education and results are also reported anonymously to course teams and wider University departments to inform action planning.
The UKES is a nationwide undergraduate survey for Foundation Year, first and second year students, designed to capture how students are supported to engage with their course. It also measures skill development and the effort students put into their learning and other activities, encouraging student reflection on the skills and learning gained and areas of weakness that they may wish to focus on for future development.
The PTES is the only UK HE sector-wide survey designed to gain insight from taught postgraduate students about their learning and teaching experience. It covers all aspects of the student experience and includes questions covering support, teaching and resources; as well as student engagement and skills development.
The survey is one part of the OfS Financial Support Evaluation toolkit and provides a set of survey questions designed to help HE providers understand how students used the financial support offered to them by the University, and the perceived value of the support received. This toolkit is used to provide evidence of how our financial support offer helps to improve student outcomes.
The Begin@Beds survey is an internal survey looking at the students’ introduction into University life, beyond just their experience of Welcome week and covering a broader range of questions around their engagement with the course and tutors. This will be complimented by further surveys looking at Thrive@Beds and Succeed@Beds to provide feedback across the student journey.