Dear Hugh,
On behalf of the Union, we want to give you a warm welcome to Imperial College! We are very excited to work with you closely over the next academic year. Now, we might be biased, but Imperial students really are some of the best in the world – and we are lucky to have a shared responsibility to ensure they have the best possible experience while they are here.
Here are a few things that we would love to work with you on:
Assessment and Feedback
Over the last five years, the message from final-year undergraduates has been consistent and clear: the College is not offering high quality feedback on assessments. Students have said that it is often delayed, unconstructive or subjective, and the right information isn’t always available for students to understand where they are going wrong.
As students ourselves, we have seen first-hand how this can affect our course-mates and our friends. It is also one of the few areas where the College benchmarks significantly lower than the sector. We would love to see the new President make this an area of focus so we see a radical improvement for current and future students.
Mental Health
Although Imperial is a world class university, the pressure that this creates can be overwhelming. High levels of workload, coupled with academic pressure to succeed and the isolating effects of COVID mean that students are in need of support more than ever. We are also concerned about the effects the cost-of-living crisis may have on students, as worries about money and mental health are inextricably linked. As such, we are looking forward to the prospect of reviewing mental health and wellbeing services in collaboration with the College, which could help inform our strategy and funding for these services moving forward.
The College is currently reviewing its disciplinary processes and we have been a key part of that discussion. In our view, disciplinary procedures – both academic and non-academic – need to be more supportive, transparent, and streamlined. This will enable students to move forward and get on with their studies without a process hanging over their heads.
A Sustainable and Ethical Imperial
Imperial students have a strong moral compass, and we believe it is right that the College’s funding model and framework reflects its values. We would like the College to develop a robust divestment policy which includes fossil fuels and companies which contribute to modern slavery. The College is currently considering who it partners with, and we want to continue to support you to get student perspectives on this. There is also more to be done to create a greener Imperial. We are, after all, home to the greatest and greenest minds and tech in the UK – we can go even further to demonstrate that in the ways that we work.
Talk to Students!
There are over 23,000 students studying at Imperial College. We are from all over the world (our Officer Team alone represents at least five different countries!) with unique experiences, perspectives, and ideas. We are also based across London and Surrey, not just South Kensington, are studying at many different levels, and live in halls and homes all over the UK. This is a great opportunity to meet us, find what would make our experience better, and involve us in the decisions that matter to us.
This year, our Officer Team is committed to finding our members’ needs, and we want to help you do the same. We’re looking forward to meeting with you regularly to voice the student opinion and support you to keep them centred in your strategies and operations.
We can’t wait to get started!
Hayley, Nathalie, Jason, Niamh, Dylan