A message from our President and Vice-Chancellor, Duncan Ivison and Vice-President for Teaching, Learning and Students, April McMahon 

Our latest NSS results, which are the views of our final year undergraduates, were released yesterday (9 July). We are pleased to see an upward trajectory across all areas – indeed, a 5% increase in positivity overall which is the biggest rise across Russell Group institutions. Our Student Voice score has also improved significantly, which has been a priority for us.  This reflects the hard work of colleagues across the last years and paves the way for even more progress. 

We want to make sure you have the best possible experience at Manchester and hold ourselves to the highest possible standard in delivering that experience.  

Duncan says: 

“Since my arrival last summer, I’ve seen real commitment and determination from colleagues across the University to improve your student experience, including taking a ‘One University’ approach to our NSS action plan.  We have outstanding teachers, departments, divisions and schools who we have been learning from and who will continue to share their expertise. I know that our Students’ Union officers – your representatives who have worked closely with us this year – will continue to hold us to account on your behalf. 

This year’s results are still not where we want them to be, but they give us more insight into where we need to get better. Improving our student experience will be at the heart of our new Manchester 2035 strategy.” 

April says: 

“Many colleagues, students, and student representatives have been working hard over the last number of years to make improvements across the student experience, particularly in the areas of teaching delivery, assessment and feedback, and student voice. It’s pleasing to see that aspects such as how intellectually stimulating your courses are, plus opportunities to give feedback on your course, are now rated higher than the sector average in this year’s NSS. 

For me, this is my last NSS cycle as I hand over the Vice-President for TL&S baton to Jenn Hallam, from 1 August. I am proud of the journey we have been on thus far and the headway we’ve made – with huge thanks also to Duncan, for turbo-charging our efforts since his arrival. I have no doubt that with Jenn and Duncan at the helm going forwards, we will continue to make great strides.” 

Making things work better is a big part of the improvement plan – data, systems, and processes all need to be modernised to give you (as well as our staff) the seamless and flexible experience you expect – and we’re working on that already.  

We know that many of you love your Manchester experience and the rich learning and development opportunities it brings. But equally, there are areas where we must do better to ensure you feel supported and heard. 

Early in the new academic year, Duncan and Jenn will be asking our Programme Directors to share the learnings from the NSS results in their areas with their final year students – so you can see where we need to be doing better, based on the views of the previous final year’s cohort, as some of you begin your own final year. Duncan will also be running a new series of ‘Ask Me Anything’ meetings from October, where you can share your views directly with him. 

Have a great summer break and see you back in September. 

Duncan and April.