Student Quality Reviewers work with UCL to take an in-depth look at different areas of academic practice. They help to improve how the university works by providing detailed feedback and analysis from a student perspective.
What would I do?
As a Student Quality Reviewer, you’ll have a chance to look ‘behind the scenes’ at how different parts of UCL run, develop a new expertise and transferable skills, and work closely with senior UCL staff. And if you meet all the role requirements, you’ll receive a stipend of £150! Student Quality Reviewers will have the opportunity to take part in four different areas of review, depending on your flexibility and what you’re most interested in. In 2020/21 you should expect to carry out the role remotely. Whatever you choose, we’ll train and support you to make sure you have the expertise to get stuck in.
Taking part in the Student Quality Reviewer scheme gives you the opportunity to take a closer look at:
- teaching by acting as a Student Reviewer of Teaching Practice, working with teaching staff to discuss and reflect on their teaching practice.
- new programmes at UCL by acting as a Student Reviewer for the Programme and Module Approval Panel, which scrutinises new programmes before they’re launched.
- an academic department by acting as a Student Reviewer for an Internal Quality Review; a two-day panel review of a department. Each department undergoes one every five years.
- the inclusivity of curricula, by acting as a Student Curriculum Partner, and providing a student view on how teaching can include more diverse perspectives.
What kind of time commitment is involved?
The different areas you can get involved in as a Student Quality Reviewer have differing time commitments. Initially, you will need to complete several hours training to take up the role. The different areas should each involve around 15-20 hours of work overall. In some areas this is spread out over time, and in other areas this may involve fewer, lengthier sessions. In addition, some roles are completed during one term but others are carried out over a longer period in the academic year. There should be a Student Quality Reviewer role to suit everyone's timetable.
Activities part of Student Quality Reviewers:
IQR Reviewers
IQR stands for Internal Quality Review, a UCL process in which a panel of senior members of UCL staff and academic specialists review academic departments every 5 years. The review will be carried out online with meetings held on MS Teams. The panel will examine practice within the department and issue recommendations about how the department could better meet UCL’s policies and procedures and grow areas of excellence. The review takes around a day and a half, and there will be a half-day meeting of the panel before this to agree lines of questioning based on the documents the department will provide you with.
Student Reviewers of Teaching Practice
Students Reviewers of teaching practice have discussions with staff about their teaching, based on a minimum of 3 hour’s worth of teaching observations and review of an assignment brief and a Moodle course. The observation of teaching practice and team discussions will be carried out online, usually through MS Teams and Moodle. These discussions provide a chance for reflection and review about the staff member’s teaching practice and the learning experience of students on the course. Staff benefit from having the perspective of a student, which particularly provides insights into how engaging their teaching is. Students have enjoyed focusing on the process of learning and also valued the opportunity of meeting staff who are genuinely motivated to improving the experience of students. Work takes place in pairs, with two students working with one staff partner, and activities are agreed between the student-staff pairing and then spread out across one term. There is an initial briefing session, online training and full support from the UCL ChangeMakers team throughout.
Assessment Design Student Partner
This role supports and empowers students to take on a role looking at assessment & feedback practices at UCL. This is a varied role that involves participating in assessment design workshops, working to map assessments across a programme and helping us design a new framework to help staff think through assessment co-creation with their own students
Programme Design Student Partner
There are two parts to this role; you will act as a member of PMAP (Programme and Module Approval Panel) meetings, taking an in-depth look at new proposals and looking at whether they are ready to go, or whether more work is required; and you participate in a Programme Design workshop, working with programme design teams as they prepare new programmes.
Inclusive Curriculum Student Partners
Inclusive Curriculum Student Partners will play a key role in enhancing the inclusivity of the curriculum, particularly in relation to race and ethnicity. They'll review curriculum materials, such as course handbooks, module guides and reading lists, using the guidance of a corresponding framework. You will then come together with your fellow Inclusive Curriculum Student Partners to share you findings as a group with programme staff.
How do I sign up?
Expressions of interest for a role are open. Please put your name down to find out more about SQR, we will be in touch to tell you more about each role and help you decide whether SQR is for you. If you would like to be involved please register here.