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.

Survey: Have your say on Kent Students’ Union

From Kents Students’ Union (KSU)

We’re working on developing a new strategy (check out our current Strategy here) and need your input to make sure we’re delivering the best service possible for our students!

We’re also going to be working on a new look as part of a rebrand, so want to know how the KSU brand makes you feel. Finally, we are collecting some information about how we can best work with the university to support you in your journey as a Kent student!

Complete the survey now.

By completing the survey, you can also enter to win one of these amazing prizes!

£100 Boom Battle Bar Gift Card
£100 Aldi Gift Card
2x £50 Greggs Gift Card

The survey will close at 10:00 on Friday 15 November 2024.

Free sanitary products available on campus

15.9% of Kent students bought less sanitary products over the past 12 months because they were worried about money, according to the 2023-4 Cost of Living survey results.

Period products are not a luxury, and we want to make it easier for you to access them. Find out where you can pick them up for free on campus:

Canterbury campus

Thanks to the ResLife team and Kents’ Students Union, you can now find free sanitary products in the following locations on campus:

Mandela Student Centre – pick up individual pads or tampons
Campus laundry facilities in each College – pick up individual pads or tampons

The Cost of Living Taskforce are looking at ways we can increase the number of free sanitary products available to students.

Medway campus

At Medway, you can pick up free sanitary products from the following location:

Bathrooms in the Deep End, The Hub – pick up individual pads or tampons

See more cost-of-living initiatives and support.

Join a KSU focus group and earn £20 cash for an hour of your time!

Kent Students’ Union (KSU) want to speak to 300 students about their future and how they work with the university.

Join one of their focus groups and earn £20 cash for 1 hour of your time!

Held in The Venue, you’ll be allocated to a group and asked some questions by friendly KSU staff on what you think about the KSU brand, strategy and how they work to represent you to the university. There are no right or wrong answers, this is all about your opinions!

There will be snacks and drinks available as well, and at the end of the session we’ll give you £20 cash for your time!

Sign up today and help make a better students’ union 🙂

Kent receives its first Race Equality Charter Bronze award

We are proud to announce that the University has achieved its Race Equality Charter (REC) Bronze Award from Advance HE – a major milestone in our work to identify and address the barriers facing our racially minoritised students and staff.

The Race Equality Charter provides an externally recognised framework to help universities improve the representation, progression and success of racially minoritised people in higher education.

To reach this point the University’s REC Self-Assessment Team have been actively listening to and engaging with our racially minoritised students and staff about what it is like for them to work and study at Kent. There has also been the analysis of a large amount of data and benchmarking. This work has highlighted areas for urgent, future and continuous improvement and it has led to recognition and reinforcement for a number of outcomes and initiatives to improve race and intersectional equality across the University. These include our:

Sector-leading Diversity Mark project
Student Success initiatives
Report and Support for students and staff
Living Black at Kent
Anti-Racism Strategy
Inclusive staff training and recruitment

Professor Georgina Randsley de Moura, the University’s Acting Vice-Chancellor and President said: ‘This award is an important reflection of the collective progress made to improve the culture, experience and outcomes for our racially minoritised students and staff. I would like to thank everyone who has made it possible through their commitment to anti racism and determination to help reduce racial inequalities and ensure that Kent is a welcoming and inclusive environment for all. There is much more to do but this achievement is an indication that we are heading in the right direction.’

Kent is hosting this year’s Living Black at University Commission conference on 8 October, the theme of which is ‘Engaging With Equity’. Conference delegates will have access to practical university case studies on actions taken as a result of Living Black at University and the Commission, including a Black student panel, hosted by Student Minds.

Further information on our Bronze Award and the work we are doing to challenge racism can be found on our Challenging Racism webpages. If you would like to get involved please contact equalityanddiversity@kent.ac.uk.

Apply for the Wellbeing Student Advisory Board

Applications for the Wellbeing Student Advisory Board are now open.

The Advisory Board’s purpose is to help guide Kent Students’ Union and the University of Kent in improving our approach to student wellbeing and ensuring our work is impactful and accessible to all students. This will involve discussing current and future plans and offering suggestions based on the board’s shared expertise and experiences. Topics discussed at meetings will include mental health, safety initiatives, the cost of living crisis, sense of community and belonging, as well as anything else that is important to you. You will help shape student wellbeing at Kent.

What are we looking for?

We are looking for 12 students on undergraduate and postgraduate degrees, from a range of courses and years to create a diverse and inclusive panel. Any student who is currently enrolled in an undergraduate or postgraduate degree at the University of Kent can apply to be part of the panel.

No prior experience is required to be a member. All you need is to be passionate about student welfare and helping all students to love their time at Kent.

What to expect

A two-hour meeting will occur three times in the academic year with additional opportunities to get involved in projects and campaigns. Invitations for these meetings will be sent once membership to the board is confirmed.

Students based on the Canterbury campus will receive £20 KentOne credit (or an Amazon £20 Voucher) in exchange for their active participation in the two-hour WSAB meeting. Students who are not based on the Canterbury Campus will be compensated for their time at the same rate through an alternative method. Students will also be able to earn Employability Points throughout the academic year.

How to apply

To apply, please submit either a maximum of a 500-word response or a 2-minute-long video telling us a bit more about you, what skills and experiences you feel you would bring to the role and why you would like to get involved.

The deadline to submit your application is midday on 23 October 2024

Apply now

If you have any questions please email Teslimat Bello (Vice-President Welfare and Community) at Kent Students’ Union, t.bello-650@kent.ac.uk

The meal deal is back with more variety

The popular meal deal in Rutherford Dining Hall will return for another academic year this September.

Your Uni Your Say

You said you wanted a meal deal that is more nutritious, better quality and has more variety. We have made these changes, however, to do this we have had to increase the price by 50p.

New dishes offering better quality, choice and value

From 14 September 2024, for £3.50 you will get a hot main meal with two sides of your choice. New dishes include:

Sweet potato chilli
Cauliflower cheese lasagne
Tandoori sweet potato with lemon pilau rice
New sides include dressed salad niçoise and kimchi fried rice.

There will be two options for you choose from each day, with at least one plant-based option. The meal deal offers vegetarian and vegan options, and Halal sourced meat is used wherever possible. See the menu.

The sandwich meal deal will also be £3.50 from 14 September in Dolche Vita, Gulbenkian Cafe, Sibson Cafe, Mungo’s, and Rutherford Dining Hall.

If you are facing financial hardship, please see our financial support webpages or visit the Cost of Living Support webpage.

My Kent, the new website for students, is now live!

The new My Kent website is designed for current students making it easier for you to find the information you need while studying at Kent.

Let us know what you think by emailing communications@kent.ac.uk or using the feedback button on the new site.

Benefits include: 

🔎 A search bar that only searches services and information for current Kent students 

📚 All your Kent services and systems in one place 

🚀Improved design informed by students and user experience experts 

🌍 Website navigation designed for current students only 

These changes are following student feedback that you find it hard to find the information you need on the current Kent website. 

This is the start of a journey of continuous improvements to the website experience for Kent students. So tell us what you like, and don’t like, so we can continue to improve the student website for you. 

What do I need to do? 

Nothing – you will be automatically redirected to the new website. This change won’t affect Moodle, KentVision, your email or timetable. 

For consistency, the name of the student app has also changed to My Kent Student App.

Time is running out to have your say

Time is running out for final year undergraduates to complete the National Student Survey (NSS) and have your say on what you liked or didn’t like about studying at Kent.

Fill in the NSS now

The NSS: what you need to know
Kent Union President Zaid shares why you should fill in the NSS and why we want your feedback. Watch the video now.

🎓 NSS is mainly open to final year undergraduates.

📣The University and Kent Union value your feedback and the NSS is one of the most powerful ways to have your say.

🔒The survey is completely anonymous and confidential. It is run by Ipsos, an independent research agency.

📧Ipsos will continue to email, text and call you until you complete it.

🕕The survey takes about 10 minutes to complete. However, please take the time to consider your answers and reflect on your whole experience at Kent.

Kent 2030: Student Open Forum on 21 February

Want to hear more about Kent 2030 and ask your questions? Join our Student Open Forum from 15:30 – 16:30 on Wednesday 21 February online via Teams. Register for the forum and submit your questions.

From changes to Kent’s future course offering, to changes to the shape of the academic year, we want to hear from students on your views to help shape our plans.

Richard Reece (DVC Education and Student Experience) and Mica Rose (Head of Student Experience) will be joined with Zaid Mahmood (Kent Union President) to hear your views and answer any questions you might have about Kent 2030.

Can’t make it? The open forum will be recorded and available for you to watch after.

Lead Kent nominations: find out more about the roles

Be a part of something big at Kent Union and nominate yourself to Lead Kent. This is all about students working for students to make their university experience the best it can be as an Elected Full-time Officer.

Based in the Mandela Students’ Centre, the Officer team liaises with leaders in the university and higher education across the UK and Europe to make sure that student voices are being heard.

These are full-time, paid positions. You do not need to be a final-year student to run, you can interrupt your studies. Nominations close on the 21 February at midday.

Officer role descriptions

Students’ Union President

Promotes, extends and defends all student rights.
Acts as the lead student voice to Kent Union and the university.
Leads the Officer team.
Leads on campaigns to improve overall student experience.

See Students’ Union President full role description.

Vice-President Postgraduate & International Experience

Leads on issues of PG and international accommodation, wellbeing, education, training and employment.
Leads on supporting European satellite campuses and internalisation work.

See VP Postgraduate and International Experience full role description.

Vice-President Welfare & Community

Represents students on all welfare matters.
Leads on student housing, well-being and EDI, as well as environmental and sustainability work.
Works with liberation networks.

See VP Welfare and Community full role description.

Vice-President Student Engagement

Leads on sports, societies and volunteering groups.
Leads on employability and alumni engagement.
Represents students on all co-curricular activities.
Supports all student groups and runs campaigns.

See VP Student Engagement full role description.

Vice-President Academic Experience

Represents students on all UG education matters.
Supports and empowers academic communities, including societies and student reps.
Leads on the Kent Union education strategy.

See VP Academic Experience full role description.

You’ll be part of a dedicated team

Being an Officer is great fun and incredibly fulfilling but it’s also a lot of hard work.

There are a host of career staff working behind the scenes supporting the Officer team to help on their campaigns, and work towards making their goals a reality. We also offer training sessions and continued growth and development throughout each Officer’s term.

Nominate yourself to Lead Kent.

Find out more on Kent Union’s Lead Kent webpage.