Closing the loop

All can agree that listening to students is important – for fostering a sense of belonging, to catch issues before they become systemic, and to engage students in enhancing their experience. Surveys are the most robust methodological tool available for capturing the full range of insight from student voices. Yet student survey feedback frequently falls short of its promise, with students showing signs of survey fatigue, staff not always clear what to make of the data they see, and action arising from students’ feedback not transparently communicated. Too often, these challenges are tackled in isolation, without a sense of how the pieces fit together.

This year, Wonkhe and evasys have convened a community of institutional leaders working on student feedback to build a new way of thinking about student feedback systems. When resources are tight, all must be confident in the purpose and value of student feedback systems – and that requires intentional design, governance, and engagement from students and institutional staff, underpinned by effective systems for capturing and sharing data. This webinar launched our new framework and diagnostic tool, with insight from colleagues who are working on implementing effective systems – defined as those that are designed with student success in mind.

On the panel

Debbie McVitty

Editor, Wonkhe (chair)

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Nathalia Gjersoe

Associate Pro Vice Chancellor Student Voice, University of Bath

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Bruce Johnson

Managing Director, evasys

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Daniel Robson

Associate Director NSS & PTES Strategy, King’s College London

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David Barrett

Associate Dean Education and Students, University of York

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Matt Kemp

Education Officer, Keele University Students’ Union