Student journey

Supporting our students’ mental health and wellbeing requires both a wider strategic approach and attention to the needs of individual students. Laura Waller shares with us how the Sensory Study Room in the Library at the University of Warwick has managed to create a dedicated and accessible study space.

2018 promises to be an exciting and challenging year for universities and the Higher Education sector. Among the many less than positive news, there are also successful practices that make our universities stand out in the way in which they support their students’ experience, widen access and participation, and support their mental health and wellbeing. The ‘Sticky Campus’ at Abertay University is one such example. As Robertson explains and describes, the concept is simple and yet complex in its operationalisation.

Mapping the customer - or in this case the student - journey is not in itself a new or innovative concept, however a small team at Lancaster University, approached the project in an innovative way. The project’s head, Claire Povah, explains its approach.

Like all service users, students have their stories of where their experience could have been improved. Jean Mutton presents some of the findings from a Jisc study seeking to identify these 'pain points'.

Do you have a Nightline service on your campus? Are you a student who wants the support of people who understand what you are going through, or perhaps want to get involved and support your peer through their difficulties. No one should be ashamed of struggling and there are plenty of organisations that are there to offer support, such as the Samaritans, Studentminds, CALM and the student run association, Nightline. In this blog Sarah Rodway-Swanson talks about Nightline, the service they provide and explains how you can get involved. We all have mental health, it is important that we look after it just as much as we care of the rest of ourselves.

Some universities are attempting to map the student journey in order to better understand the student experience. In this blogpost consultant Jean Mutton explains how service design techniques can help to develop a deeper understanding about what is driving students.

First impressions count, which means welcome communications are among the most important we will send to our students. Based on a recent overhaul at Lancaster University, Luke Davis offers his top tips.

Following the shortlisting of six digital solutions for Jisc funding as part of the Summer of Student Innovation, Rosie Niven catches up with one of the 2013 winners to find out the progress of his project.

Middlesex University has boosted staff confidence, reduced mundane tasks and produced a better student experience, simply by improving their admissions system. Karolin Arvidsson sets out how they did it.

Value for students is a hot topic. In this blog Eric Stoller discusses how enhancing a student’s experience can add value to their investment as a paying customer.