Student Services News

14 January sees the launch of the National Student Survey (NSS) 2013 at The University of Reading. It will give you a  chance to have your say about what you liked and didn’t like about your time at the University of Reading, as well as things that you felt could have been improved.

Click here to take the survey.

18-20 March – Come to the NSS Marquee…

Come to the marquee outside the Carrington Building between 10:00-15:00 to have your say about your time at the University of Reading. We have PCs where you can complete the NSS and there will be goodies available to those who complete the survey.

What is the NSS?

The NSS is an annual survey of final year undergraduates in England, Northern Ireland, Wales and some institutions in Scotland. It is a nationally recognised survey which gives students a way of providing honest feedback on their satisfaction with their course.

Why should I take part?

• The NSS provides you with the opportunity to provide honest feedback on your learning experience
• Your feedback will be used to improve the learning experience at the University of Reading
• The results are taken very seriously and inform the quality assurance system with regards to teaching quality
• Results are used by prospective students to make decisions on what and where to study

What happens with the results?

The NSS results are made publicly available to help prospective students make informed decisions of where and what to study. Institutions and students’ unions also use the data to identify areas of strengths and weaknesses to help bring about change and make improvements for future generations of students

How do I complete it?

During week one eligible students will be sent an invitation email to complete the survey by Ipsos MORI. Later, non-respondents may be contacted by post or ultimately by telephone. You can now complete the NSS online or via your smartphone at www.thestudentsurvey.com. You may opt out of the survey at any point during the fieldwork.

Don’t delay, have your say!

The University is closed for the Christmas break between Saturday 22 December and Tuesday 1 January. In addition to this there will be no access to the Campus on the 27 and 28 December.

Every two years, the University closes off access to its Whiteknights campus to everyone except those authorised to be here. These closure dates are designed to protect the University’s interests and reinforce the fact that there are no public rights on the campus site other than the public footpath route.  

This notice is to advise students that the Whiteknights campus will be closed on 27 and 28 December 2012. Dates during the University Christmas Closure period have been chosen to minimise disruption to students and staff. The closure will not prevent access to their halls of residence for those staying on campus over the holiday period.

For students in halls

The closure does not affect those students staying in halls over the Christmas period. Halls will operate as normal and students will be able to access and leave the campus through the main Shinfield Road or Earley Gate entrances. For students resident in Park Group, the Dunsden Crescent exit onto Upper Redlands Road will remain accessible with a campus card – please check that your card is programmed to do so. Wessex Hall residents will be able to access the hall as usual from Whiteknights Road but there will be no access beyond the hall to the remainder of the campus. Please note, you will need to carry your campus card as ID to prove you are a halls resident.

The public right of way across campus from Chancellor’s Way to Earley Gate will remain open but will not provide any access to campus as it will be fenced along its route. The footpath will only serve for crossing from one side of campus to the other.

Access closed

All vehicle and pedestrian access, with the exception of the public footpath through campus and access as far as the Sports Park car park on Queen’s Drive, will be closed. Emergency access, if needed, can be arranged through Security as usual on those two days. We would ask that no family, guests or visitors should accompany students onto campus on those two days.

There will be no access through the Pepper Lane entrance. Fencing will be in place across vehicle and pedestrian access routes onto campus (except the public footpath which runs from Earley Gate to Chancellor’s Way).

Sports Park

For users of the Sports Park, the Sports Park and its associated car park remains open on these two days as normal between 12:00 and 20:00.

Buses

Reading Buses routes 20 and 21 will not access the campus on these two dates and will go round the outside of the campus along Pepper Lane and Shinfield Road.

Clear signage will be in place at all normal pedestrian and vehicular access points, directing pedestrians to the public footpath.

As usual, access to the campus over the Christmas period is by arrangement with Security. Security control room can be reached on 0118 378 7799. 

Thank you for your co-operation.