Category Archives: Your Uni Your Say

Surveys and opportunities for students to give feedback, should be tagged with ‘Your Uni Your Say’ so it shows on the campaign webpage.

Make a difference! Join our Widening Participation Student Advisory Panel

 Are you passionate about equality of opportunity in higher education? Do you want to ensure that the student voice is at the heart of decisions shaping your university experience? Then the Widening Participation Student Advisory Panel (WPSAP) is the opportunity for you #YourUniYourSay

Applications to become a Widening Participation Student Advisory Panel member open on Monday 29 September and close on Thursday 9 October – don’t miss your chance to apply! Interviews will take place the week commencing 13 October. 

Who can apply? 

Any current student can apply (UG or PG). We are particularly keen to have representation from students who identify with one of the following characteristics:  

  • Mature students (aged 21 or over on starting a current undergraduate degree) 
  • Students from a global majority background (Black, Asian & minority ethnic) 
  • Students currently studying at the Medway campus 
  • Students that are male 
  • Students who are the first in their family to go to university (not including siblings) 
  • Students who are young carers 
  • Students studying without the support of their family 
  • Care leavers or care experienced students 
  • Students who are unaccompanied asylum seekers or refugees 
  • Students from the Gypsy, Traveller, Roma, Showman or Boater communities 
  • Students who are part of a military family 
  • Students in receipt of the Kent Financial Support Package  
  • Students from POLAR or TUNDRA Quintiles 1 or 2 (check your postcode). 

What to expect? 

We will invite successful applicants for a short, informal, interview on the week commencing 13 October. 

Successful candidates will then be invited to attend a training session on the  21 October. The training session will be recorded, so don’t worry if you cannot make it! 

 The WPSAP will meet at least once per term. Meetings are held on the Canterbury Campus (with the option of attending virtually if required) and usually last 2 hours.

2025/26 WPSAP meetings: 

  • 28 October 10:00 – 12:00 
  • 20 Jan 10:00 – 12:00  
  • 28 April 10:00 – 12:00  

Students are remunerated for their time by way of a £10 gift voucher for every hour of attendance at meetings and are eligible for 20 Employability Points throughout the academic year for their involvement on the WPSAP.

Why Apply? 

This is your chance to make a real difference to the student experience at Kent while building skills in teamwork, communication, and leadership. For further information and to apply, please visit: Widening Participation Student Advisory Panel – Schools and Colleges – University of Kent 

International Student Advisory Board group photo

Join an Advisory Board and get rewarded!

Advisory Boards bring together groups of students to discuss and advise on specific topics. Working in collaboration with Kent Students’ Union and University of Kent, students on Advisory Boards help to plan University activities and campaigns, contribute to enhancing University student support and services, and make recommendations to feed into changes to University policies and practices.

Students who join Advisory Boards will earn Employability Points, and will be compensated for their time and active participation.

Joining an Advisory Board is a chance to actively contribute to positive change on topics that interest you, and also provides experience to help you develop your leadership and communication skills.

Current Advisory Boards focus on the following student areas:

  • International Student experience
  • Wellbeing
  • Widening Participation
  • Postgraduate Research

Now recruiting for the International Student Advisory Board! See the webpage for details.

Changes to the academic year

We’ve listened to your feedback through Student Reps, Student Voice Forums, Module Evaluations and more and been hard at work implementing changes based on your feedback.

There are several significant changes for 2025-26 to the academic year, here’s what you need to know.

  • Three 10-week terms for undergrads and four 10-week terms for postgrads
  • You will study 40 credits per term, usually two 20-credit modules
  • Exams will be at the end of each term
  • Key dates for Autumn 2025 term

This means more time to focus on the topics you are studying and assessments while things are still fresh in your mind. Plus it means more evenly spaced deadlines and less pressure to study over Christmas and Easter!

These changes have enabled us to get your timetable to you earlier than ever before, you can find your timetable on KentVision.

You have told us loud and clear that you wanted more regular and timely feedback on how you are doing in your studies. The changes above will help enable this, and we’ve also made a major update to Academic Advising across the University.

Your Academic Advisor will meet with you each term, as scheduled in Presto, to provide a more consistent way for you to access support to succeed in your studies.

Food on Canterbury Campus

You’ll likely notice a lots of changes to food outlets on Canterbury campus. As students asked for better options and more variety, Chartwells have taken over much of the catering since 1 June. You’ll see a couple of outlets have been refurbished over summer and will be offering new as well as familiar menus.

This means some changes to ordering and paying.

Keep an eye out for further updates to menus, offers and future refurbishment plans

My Kent Student Communications

We know students receive lots of emails, which can make it tricky to keep on top of all the important stuff, so we have been working to streamline communications with you.

We will send you one My Kent Weekly email a week during term with all the news you’ll need, reducing the overall number of emails you get.

We’ve also made it easier to filter and find the information that you need on our student news page with a range of categories you can filter by, such as Careers and opportunties, International, and Health and wellbeing.

International Student Advisory Board group photo

Achievements of the International Student Advisory Board 2024/25

As we come to the end of the academic year 2024/25, we wanted to say thank you to all our amazing international students who have given up their time to be a member of our International Student Advisory Board (ISAB). This Board, now in its third year, is a collaboration between Kent Students’ Union and the University, led by the department of Global Learning. Members are made up of a diverse range of countries, academic disciplines and study type.

Following a competitive recruitment round, with over 100 applications for 20 places earlier in the year, our final members got started straightaway.

In the Autumn term, we held a few drop in sessions for members to get to know each other and offered the opportunity for other international students to come along and bring forward any concerns or issues they would like the Board to discuss. Those discussions went on to inform the priorities our members chose to focus on this year. The issues raised are regularly reported at both the Student Experience Committee and Global Engagement Steering Group, involving key stakeholders from across the University.

Cultural food festival with flags of different nationalities

ISAB attended the Cultural Food Festival in November.

 

Having a really engaged and passionate group helped to push some of the key projects forward through the five action areas ISAB focussed on.

Accommodation and cost of living

What we did…

Met with the accommodation team to raise issues and help facilitate better understanding of needs and requirements; included more transparency of costs, clearer information about vacating accommodation over the winter and summer breaks, better pictures of facilities to inform decision making.

What happened…

The accommodation team took the feedback on board and have now created a new accommodation page for International Students to manage expectations and improve understanding.

Buddy schemes

What we did…

Carried out research of existing schemes and surveyed students to find out if students wanted a scheme and what the ideal Buddy Scheme would be.

What happened…

We will be taking recommendations from the survey report forward to next academic year.

Group of students at News Years Festive dinner

ISAB members ,KSU Representatives and International Students at the New Year Festive Dinner

 

Healthcare and nursing services

What we did…

Reviewed current information about how healthcare and nursing services work in the UK and produced a script for a video that could be used to help understanding.  Raised the concern around support for PG students over the summer when facilities on campus close.

What happened…

Working towards launching the video as part of the pre-arrival guide for new international students arriving in September.

Pre-arrival support

What we did…

Investigated what information is required by students, and then reviewed what may be missing from current pages, or needs collating to produce a one stop welcome booklet/guide written by students for students. The aim is to help with things like opening a bank account, registering with a doctor but also where to find their home cuisines or ingredients locally.

What happened…

Working towards a pre-arrival guide in time for new arrivals in September, and with the help with two dedicated ISAB members responsible for content creation to ensure this remains a priority over the summer.

Visa and immigration

What we did…

ISAB worked with Kent Students’ Union Advice Service to explore what they are able to do, and see where the gaps are in what is being identified as missing.

What happened…

This action remains ongoing. ISAB and the Wellbeing Student Advisory Board have agreed to collaborate on this topic focusing on compassionate communications associated with and acknowledging how some communications have an impact on students’ mental health.

In addition to these priority areas, members have also led on activities to support international students staying on campus over the winter and spring breaks. This included a Christmas Craft and Chat event, New Year Festive Dinner and during the Spring break, an Easter themed picnic, and group study sessions.

“We had about 11 people in total join the Easter themed picnic. Some even brought a mat so we could sit on the grass, which added a lovely nature element to the afternoon. Toward the end, the weather really brightened up, and we just sat around chatting. I mentioned ISAB, and they said they’d love to have more events like this, especially ones outside, relaxed and nature focused.” Elorm

Group student picnic

Easter themed group picnic.

 

We are very proud of the members this year for what they have achieved.

Do you want to be a part of ISAB next academic year?

Applications to join ISAB open on 1 September, or you can register your interest by emailing globalopportunities@kent.ac.uk.

This is what ISAB members enjoyed about being a part of the Board:

  • Good community spirit within the board, and lots of creative projects.
  • The meetings are effective and help foster relationships between members.
  • Everyone having a project group gives a sense of belonging and responsibility.
  • Open conversations and group discussions, the diversity of members and a focus on relevant issues.
  • The division into taskforces was synthesized and allowed for multiple goals to be achieved at once.

Calling Black Student Changemakers: A National Opportunity to Influence and Inspire

The Living Black at University Commission is excited to launch recruitment for the Living Black at University Co-Creation Partnership Group, an initiative that brings together Black students from across the UK to help shape national toolkits, guidance, and best practice for improving the experiences of Black students in student accommodation and beyond. Kent has been involved in the project from the outset, developing Living Black at Kent, supporting and working with our Black students.

This paid opportunity offers students the chance to collaborate, co-create published works, and influence change at a national level. Participants will engage in monthly virtual meetings and have the opportunity to attend and speak at in-person sector events.

Applications are open until Friday 27 June – apply here.

Joshua and Linn - 2 of the nss prize winners

NSS 2025 Prize Winners

A huge thank you to all our final-year students who took the time to share their thoughts through the National Student Survey 2025 (NSS). Your feedback helps us improve the student experience for everyone at Kent!

Winners of the cash prizes have been notified via email, and include final year students Joshua and Linn (pictured above).

If you didn’t win this time, we still appreciate your input — every voice matters, and your feedback helps shape the future of learning and life at Kent. See the Your Uni Your Say webpages for more information on giving feedback at Kent.

Stay tuned for more opportunities, events, and prizes coming your way throughout the rest of the academic year.

Thanks again for taking part in the NSS 2025 — and well done to all our winners!

The Kent 2030 Student Advisory Panel

Students from all backgrounds and levels of study have joined the Kent 2030 Student Advisory Panel, working alongside the Kent 2030 Student Experience Working Group. The panel members provide insight, feedback, and ideas that will directly influence student-centric decision-making and co-creation opportunities #YourUniYourSay

Students of all levels of study and from both of our Kent campuses, including those from underrepresented and marginalised communities were encouraged to apply. Their lived experiences and perspectives are invaluable in shaping an inclusive and diverse student experience at Kent.

Further details about the panel, it’s remit, outcomes and discussions in the meetings below will be published shortly.

Planned Meeting Dates:

  • 26/03/25, 12:00 – 14:00 (In-Person & Online)
  • 23/04/25, 13:00 – 15:00 (Online)
  • 20/05/25, 15:00 – 17:00 (In-Person & Online)
  • 12/06/25, 15:00 – 17:00 (In-Person & Online)

International Student Advisory Board priorities for 2025

Your International Student Advisory Board (ISAB) continue to advocate for international students, enhancing your student experience and ensuring that your voice continues to be heard.

Following a successful recruitment round in November, new and existing members held drop in sessions and attended The Big Fair in January to listen to international students and bring forward any concerns they had. These discussions then informed the priorities our members have chosen to focus on this year.

Here’s a summary of what those priorities are (in no particular order), and an update on actions going on right now:

  • Accommodation and Cost of Living – concerns were raised over the transparency of costs with regards to on campus accommodation, and associated cost of living pressures. Board members are planning to discuss this with the Accommodation team to raise issues and help facilitate better understanding of needs and requirements.
  • Buddy Schemes – issues around the need for a buddy scheme have been a recurring issue at ISAB, so members are now currently researching existing schemes and surveying students to find out if there is an appetite for such a scheme and will put together a proposal based on your views on what the ideal Buddy Scheme would be. You can have your say by completing this quick survey.
  • Healthcare and Nursing Services – understanding how healthcare in the UK works and in particular accessing our services has led to the development of producing an explainer video.
  • Pre-arrival / Welcome Support – members continue to help enhance the university’s pre-arrival and welcome information for international students. They have contributed to the development of a new course, Navigating UK Study which new international students can take the week before Welcome Week to help with their transition. Members are now working on the production of a welcome booklet/guide written by students for students, to help with the transition to living in the UK, focusing on an array of practical things that really matter.
  • Visas and Immigration – a complex topic, but members are working with Kent Students’ Union to link up more with their Advice Service, exploring what they are able to do, and see where the gaps are in what is being identified as missing. A helpful guide is in draft to help students navigate this complex area.

How can you have your say?

All students are welcome to submit topics to ISAB for discussion, or to raise any concerns about how we can help to improve the student experience for international students.  Our next meeting will take place on Thursday 20 March, and if you have any areas of concern, you can email these to DeanGlobalLifelong@kent.ac.uk

We have our survey open for you to have your say about Buddy Schemes here at Kent. It is a topic that often comes up as something that can help to support our new students both before they arrive and when they begin their studies. Is this something you would have liked to have, or did you participate in a Buddy Scheme? If you did, then we would love to hear from you. Complete the Buddy Scheme Survey before the end of March.

Find out more about ISAB.