What happens to survey results?

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The university takes student feedback very seriously, and it is integrated into all our planning and decision-making processes.

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National Student Survey (NSS) 2024

The National Student Survey ran between February and April 2024 and was completed by:

662 final year students
...on 94 undergraduate degree and HN courses
...with a 64% response rate

Results at university level showed:

This is a very positive set of results relative to both the sector and our benchmarks.
Overall satisfaction for UHI was 81.2% (+0.36%). This is above our benchmark of 80.7% for this question and above the Scottish sector average of 78.1%.
This again places us 6^th in the ranking for overall satisfaction in Scotland and still well above our historic ranking.
We are above or significantly above our benchmarks in all but 2 questions (libraries and the balance of direct and independent study).
We improved our NSS 2023 results in all question themes apart from Organisation and Management, which was only 0.01% down. Notable improvements include the Students’ Association (+9%), Academic Support (+1.6%) and Teaching on my Course (+1.05%).
We performed above the Scottish sector in all question themes, bar Learning Resources where we were only 0.7% below.
Two programmes and two Academic Partners received 100% overall satisfaction, with strong performances by several others..

All student comments are read, and actions relating to feedback are taken forward by each college, cognate subject area or at university level.

Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey 2024

Results available shortly.

The Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey ran between April and June 2024 and was completed by:

215 students
...on 41 taught postgraduate courses
...from most UHI academic partners

Results at university level showed:

UHI achieved the highest overall satisfaction rate of any Scottish institution for the third consecutive year.
The overall satisfaction rate for the university was 88%. This is lower than last year when our rate was 92%.
UHI was ranked 15^th in the UK for overall satisfaction out of 107 participating institutions. In 2023 we were ranked 3^rd.
The University also achieved the highest satisfaction rate in Scotland in two of the five areas of student experience: Teaching (88%) and Assessment (87%).
In the UK, out of 107 HEIs we ranked 5th for Assessment, 20^th for Teaching, 38^th for Engagement, 42^nd for Organisation and 104^th for Community.
In four question sets were UHI was ranked in the top 25% - Assessment, Teaching, Engagement and Organisation.

All student comments are read, and actions relating to feedback are taken forward by each college, cognate subject area or at university level..

Responses to student feedback in 2023-2024 content

Responses to student feedback in 2023-2024

Below are some of the actions which took place in 2023-24 as a result of student feedback:

You said...	We did...
Easier methods of finding library resources.	The Lean Library browser extension (add-on) has been introduced providing students with quick access to material available through the UHI Library subscriptions, including articles, eBooks, newspapers and databases, as well as access to library guides and help.
Simplify the academic assessor and PAT role within nursing courses to avoid confusion.	In nursing programmes, students are required by their professional body to have an Academic Assessor (AA) to collate and confirm student achievement in the academic environment for each year of the programme. They work with a nominated practice assessor to make recommendations for progression for the student. This person cannot be the same person in consecutive years. Students fed back to us that they were confused with this role and the PAT role and did not always know who to go to. An evaluation was preformed looking at this from a student, practice and UHI perspective and a new model was implemented where the PAT and AA is the same person for year one and three. The PAT remains constant throughout the programme but in year two the AA is an alternative member of staff.
Easier for library service users to get help	Live Chat is now available on the library service webpages allowing students to speak to a member of the library team and help with their enquiries.
Better pre entry support	Greater engagement with applicants pre entry to build levels of preparation for study.
More sports opportunities.	The Sports Development Group are supporting HISA to encourage more sports clubs to set up, and to link students to community sports opportunities.
Better support of student voice reps.	New student voice rep action plan being taken forward. We have also introduced a new rep MS Teams space, allowing easier communication with, and between reps for the first time.

Responses to student feedback in 2022 - 2023 content

Responses to student feedback in 2022 - 2023

Below are some of the actions which took place in 2021-22 as a result of student feedback:

You said...	We did...
reserving print books and ordering inter-site loans is too time consuming.	the new Library Search facility allows students to place requests with a few simple clicks regardless of the book location.
why am I asked to login to library services when I’ve already signed-in elsewhere?	library systems and eResources now use the same single sign-on as other major services such as Brightspace and MyDay.
it would be good to have more opportunities to connect with other students.	programme teams are encouraging classes to make use of the Brightspace forum function, and to connect with class mates in other ways.
it would be good to have a greater range of subject - related student societies.	Staff development sessions have been arranged to provide teaching staff with the skills to support students to set up subject - related student societies.
you would like to engage with the university in more meaningful ways	through the Learning & Teaching Academy, a staff development session provided teaching and support staff with information on changes to student engagement.

Responses to student feedback in 2021-2022 content

Responses to student feedback in 2021-2022

Below are some of the actions which took place in 2021-22 as a result of student feedback:

You said...	We did...
There are WiFi issues in some areas at three academic partners.	The WiFi project improved the network accross the partnership. It was noted that at three partners there were problem areas in some parts of the buildings, so enhanced WiFi was provided.
Not aware of technology to support learning at a distance.	The existing ‘one stop shop’ technologies support area of the website was updated with additional support for studying at home.
Some students did not have suitable technology to study online.	The Digital Poverty group sourced suitable devices and connectivity packages for loan funded by the SFC digital funding allowance. In addition, this scheme was supplemented with additional devices funded by the university to increase the coverage of the loan scheme.
You were often unaware of the online library resources available and how to find and use them to enhance their learning.	Communications on existing and new resources were enhanced. Checklists for staff to ensure student awareness introduced.
A need for help and assistance when using the online library service.	A live chat function was introduced so that users can ask questions and seek help in real time with a member of library staff.
More online events and opportunities to connect with other students during COVID.	HISA worked with the university to provide online events, while existing events such as HISA Con were moved online to allow greater participation.
Better support of class reps during COVID.	Enhanced online and networked (VC) class rep training introduced as well as better identification of reps so that they can be supported by local staff.