The student perspective is key to recruitment, retention, and student outcomes. By staying close to their students, universities can anticipate, prioritise, and plan for the future. Yet, institutional and academic leaders have told us that one of their key challenges is keeping up with the rapidly changing student population. In the past ten years, the pace of change has increased, driven by technological and social developments. So how are the disruptions of 2020 impacting students’ concerns? 

One key area has been the introduction of online learning techniques. This began as an emergency tactic, but is now being adopted as a survival strategy for universities wanting a robust offering that can survive the current uncertainty.  

Most universities are planning on providing a blended learning experience – incorporating a limited amount of face-to-face teaching, supported by online learning resources and recorded lectures. This ensures they are flexible enough to rapidly respond to any need for increased social distancing. Feedback from students has been mixed. Some were enthusiastic about the convenience and flexibility of online lectures:

"Having recorded lectures is a game changer. I get distracted easily, but even if I drift off for a few moments I can take a time-stamp and check back afterwards. It really helps me develop good notes."

– Biology Student

However, some students reported poor learning experiences with lecturers trying to simply replicate their in-class experience online without recognising the differences in student experience:

"I had virtual lessons for all my subjects. They were ok, just incredibly dull. We sat in our rooms and listened to a lecture for 3 hours with no interaction and a 15 minute break in the middle."

– Tourism and Hospitality Student

The poor delivery is understandable given the pace at which solutions had to be developed and the lack of pre-existing skills, but for some students it has given them a negative experience of online learning as a passive, un-engaging experience.

The ability to rapidly switch to remote learning is the new normal – it is now a core requirement for higher education providers. In the words of  Brian Schmidt, Vice Chancellor of Australian National University “We don’t expect to ever return to business as usual pre-COVID.’  Some universities also recognise this as an equality of access issue. They aim to continue to provide online learning in parallel to their traditional courses and provide socially distanced ways for students to engage with their learning and with each other. 

• International students, who bring cultural diversity as well as much needed revenue to universities, face travel restrictions and quarantines. For them, online learning may be a way to continue with their course, or even enrol as a first year, rather than interrupting their learning or having to study at a home university. 

• Other students are continuing to shield due to health issues, either their own or those they live with or care for. For them, crowded lecture theatres are not an option. Below, Sam Baldwin, a London student who is high risk, shares his expectations of university life in 2020.

Remote learning will continue to drive student experience and, ultimately, reputation. This means evaluating what is working within your institution and where there are problem areas. You can find this out from your students through anonymous feedback mechanisms, but also through learning analytics that allow you to monitor engagement levels. 

Responding to the feedback may be more difficult. Physical spaces have been a priority as institutions have grown in size. Now the digital infrastructure needs to catch up, along with the related skills sets. Its a long-term investment and it may take time, but it will allow your university to deliver a learning experience that meets your students' expectations, regardless of external circumstances.  

Sam Baldwin is an A Level student at Elthorne Park High School in London, UK.  At the time of interview he was waiting to receive his calculated grades and to find out whether he had a place to study Theoretical Physics at the University of Bristol. 

Since the pandemic started, I’ve been worried that I wouldn’t be able to go to university in person or that the whole thing would be postponed. So, I am excited about it even though it won’t be the full experience. University is something I feel my life has been working up towards, not just academically, but as a personal goal. University for me has always been a goal to achieve, because I really want to learn what they can teach me, and I’m really excited to study my course. 

I think in a normal year, even without the pandemic, I’d have concerns about going to university; living away from home, cooking, washing etc. I’m kind of worried, but those normal worries have been overshadowed by the pandemic. I can take the rough with the smooth when it comes to that kind of stuff. 

I have a heart defect, so staying safe is a fairly major priority for me. I did have to weigh up the pros and cons between going away to university versus studying from home, which I actually think is a viable option. But I decided I am going to attend in person, and I’m looking forward to it. 

In terms of managing safety relating to the virus, I think it is really difficult for universities to enact much. The university experience is all about the freedom of the student. They give you the resources and you do as you will. Both my firm and insurance university have done a pretty good job of communicating their plans. University of Liverpool sent emails updating me on any changes and they’ve done webinars. The University of Bristol has a new section on their website – it’s pretty easy to find. I didn’t really need to look anywhere else.

Learning

I am very pleased about some of the measures they’ve introduced. Cutting down on face-to-face lectures is an important part of it. I am sad to see them go as they were one of the parts of university that I was really looking forward to. I think you can have socially distanced small group tutorials, but gathering in rooms with 400 other people is not a good idea. Instead they’ll be making them available online. I had a very small amount of experience of remote learning as we’d finished the syllabus. However, I am fairly happy with the online learning.

"In terms of online lessons, I like the replayability aspect. In lectures and classes it’s easy to miss stuff, whereas with the video you can go back and watch it again."

It’s especially useful for people like me – I’m pretty bad at note taking! You can watch the lectures in full or just those bits you struggled with. I think it will really help with my learning.

Having a library of books is an important part of university but they have to think about how they use the space. Maybe they should shut down the library for studying, and keep students in their rooms for that.  But we’ll still need to be able to take out books and journals. It’s useful to be able to access them online, for the convenience of having them on your laptop rather than carrying a pile of books to lectures, but I’d like to have access to the physical copies. 

The Physics team at Bristol is keen to establish a social learning experience. There’s a dedicated study space where you can talk through problems with other students or ask a second or third-year student who has been through it before. As a learning approach it sounds great and super useful, but not at this moment. I’m not sure how that can be replicated with online learning. The accessibility factor in technology is a big plus but based on my experience it feels a little impersonal and robotic. It’s harder to work on problems together. In some ways technology isn’t as easy as a piece of paper in front of you, especially for a subject like physics.

Physics labs are another challenge. This is fairly specific to science. I do hope these will continue.

"Getting hands-on practice of the theory you’ve been learning can be important in terms of
understanding the concepts."

You get to experience how they create real life patterns. I don’t want to miss out on that experience in my first year.

Living

With accommodation, I think universities have a responsibility to review what they are offering and to make it as safe and liveable as possible. The pandemic has completely changed my criteria for choosing accommodation. Initially, my preference was for a really social experience. I was looking at the catered options, with a shared bathroom and a large group sharing a kitchen. By the time the accommodation bookings were open my criteria had completely changed as safety was my priority. Having someone else cooking my food seems like a bad idea, so I’ve opted for self-catered, ensuite, and sharing the kitchen with a small group instead. 

In terms of student behaviour outside of learning, I think they have far less control. It is more of a personal task that a student themselves has to take on. You never know who you are going to be living with, and if they will be concerned about safety. It’s important that each university has a process for reporting when there’s something that makes you feel unsafe regarding this deadly virus, and can provide a quick response, but I don’t know how possible it is, particularly if it is behaviour that is going on out outside the campus. The universities I applied for had priority for those designated clinically vulnerable. I am sure they’ll provide routes if you feel unsafe. I expect I could talk to my personal tutor – that would be the first port of call, but it would be useful for universities to let students know how they want us to deal with it.

"At a basic level, universities should review their accommodation for safety, especially where they have large numbers of students together."

Maybe they could put in a one-way system so it's easier to get to your floor and your social bubble without connecting with those students in a different bubble. It might be sensible to stop people from going into each other’s accommodation. I feel really conflicted about that as it is such a big aspect of socialising. You wouldn’t be able to have any parties, which is a shame, but it does seem to be one of the most likely places you’d spread disease. 

Late Nights

I think a lot of the societies will be able to continue. I’m hoping to join the board games society, which gives you discounts at a local shop, and the Chaos society which is for theoretical physics. That will still be a way to enable students in higher years to support first years, but the pub crawls with lecturers probably won’t be possible. I think the main change is to student nightlife, which is quite sad for me. I was hoping that university would be an opportunity for new experiences, like nightclubs and pub crawls. Even if some students are still doing those things, I won’t be able to join them because of safety issues. But there are ways of hanging out with friends that I currently enjoy that won’t be dramatically altered. I may not be able to partake until second year. Socially I am not expecting to go out every night, I just want to make new friends and get together with people – probably outside.

"My main expectations are around learning cool stuff."

There’s so much I really want to improve upon. I will still have a good time, but I do feel a little robbed. 

We're thrilled to say that since being interviewed, Sam received his results, and has been accepted to the University of Bristol!

This piece is part of our Perspectives series. Higher Education is changing fast, moving beyond emergency online teaching to provide a robust and satisfying student experience. As your institution plans to manage the challenges of this uncertain environment, stay aware of how others are responding. Each week we’ll share insights and discussion including student views, research, and interviews with academic leaders. Sign up for the series using the form to the right.