#your union

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SUARTS Annual Survey Results

Over 1,300 students filled in our annual survey, and I want to thank you for taking the time to let us know your thoughts about life at UAL. It has already helped inform our activities for next year, and having read everything that was submitted I wanted to let you know the main findings:

There is high awareness of the Student Executive – the officers you elect each year

There is a high level of support for campaigns we’ve run on the cost of living, against unpaid internships and making the Colleges fairer

You think we’ve made significant improvements to how we communicate but more can be done

We need to get better at telling you everything we’re doing and achieving

You would like us to continue to offer a greater range of opportunities and more support for living in London 

We need to ensure you have greater access to information about employment and housing

  Over the next year you have asked us to focus campaign work on the cost of studying at UAL and the cost of living in London. You’ve also asked us to ensure that the quality of teaching on your course is improved and that the curriculum is more diverse. As you are the people who elect my colleagues and I, this is precisely what we will prioritise over the next academic year.

And if you were wondering about who randomly won what, a second year student from LCF won the iPad mini, a first year Wimbledon student won the Tate Membership, and the winners of the hoodies were a Foundation student from LCC, a 3rd year student from Camberwell and a Masters student from Central Saint Martins. Congratulations to them!   We are always interested in your thoughts about how life at UAL could be improved and how SUARTS can contribute to that, so please do let me know if you have any other thoughts or views.   In unity, Shelly SUARTS President

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Become a Freshers' Rep!

UAL oldies:

  The time has come again for you to volunteer and sign up as a Freshers’ Rep and ease those callow green Freshers into life at UAL. Just like last year, we promise you just shy of a month’s worth of sports days, movie nights and pub crawls around London. We’ve even thrown in a gardening session for you this year.

  And although this goes without saying you’ll receive the ever fashionable Freshers' Reps hoodies and tees, we'll sort your travel expenses and you get the chance to grab FREE tickets to the end of Freshers' club night at the Bussey. Are we good to you or what?!

  Head here to sign up. Just try to resist*

*Don't actually try to resist. We'd really like your help!

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Freshers: get your discounts!

Right, you're starting at UAL soon: how cool is that?! While typical student life might not start until you kick off lectures and studio time in October, you can start getting student discounts RIGHT NOW! Buy an NUS Extra card and start getting money off in the high street, on your groceries in the Co-op, on your new statement specs in Vision Express, on travel on Megabus and National Express (moving to London, anyone?!), EXTRA discounts in Odeon Cinemas (we mean a student discount on top of a student discount), cheap eats and way more. Find out some more of our favourite discounts over on suarts.org and buy your card here, now!

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Freshers' Fair

YAAAAAY FRESHERS' FAIR! Join us in Chelsea's beautiful Parade Ground on Wednesday 1st October for the Freshers' Fair! Here's the vital info:

When: Wednesday 1st October, 10am - 5pm (come along whenever suits) Where: Parade Ground, Chelsea College of Arts Who will be there: We'll have lots of stalls manned by the Students' Union, clubs and societies, UAL and external companies and organisations that we think you'd like to know more about Who should come: All UAL students from all colleges and all levels of study. Just because this is the Freshers' Fair doesn't mean it's not useful, relevant or just plain FUN for returning students. Just because it's going on in Chelsea doesn't mean you shouldn't come because you study somewhere else. And just because you're not an undergrad doesn't mean you should miss out! What happens: Come along to chat to Students' Union and UAL staff about all there is to offer outside of studying and studio time. We're here to tell you about exra-curricular activities, student services, advice and support and fun things to do at UAL! You can research and join clubs and societies, learn about creative opportunities and meet some new people! We'll also have lots of partner companies and arts organisations there to give you useful information, student discounts and maybe even FREE THINGS!

Any questions? Give us a shout on Twitter or in the Facebook Freshers' Group for more info on this and other great Freshers' activities :)

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Information on Appeals

Receiving assessment results isn’t always the rewarding experience you anticipate and it’s not uncommon for students to be disappointed, upset or even confused when they’re faced with their final grades. It can be difficult to come to terms with a mark that you don’t feel reflects your hard work however, unfortunately, this doesn’t automatically mean you have grounds for appeal.

It can sometimes be helpful to request feedback (if you don’t already have some) or to seek clarification on any comments you disagree with. Whilst this won’t change your mark, it may help you come to a better understanding of why it was given and will put you in a better position to use any criticism constructively.

If you do wish to appeal your mark(s), also known as requesting a review of an Exam Board decision, the University sets out the following grounds on which you can do so:

There was a material administrative error or other material irregularity in the conduct of the assessment (including accommodated assessment/reasonable adjustment for disabled students) or the application of the University’s academic regulations

Extenuating circumstances (such as ill health or bereavement), which for valid reasons, had not been made known to the examination board which had they been referred might have led the examination board to reach a different decision

Any other matter which in all of the circumstances ought properly to be considered by a University Appeals Body in the interests of fairness.

You cannot appeal academic judgment, which means an appeal based on the belief that your work was better than the grade you were given is very unlikely to be successful.

You must submit an appeal on Form A1, which can be found here, to the University Appeals Unit with supporting evidence and a copy of your results letter (if you were given one). The deadline in which to do so is ten working days from the publication of the result(s) in question.

If you would like independent advice on this procedure then please get in touch with our Advice Service, who can guide you through the process and advise you on your individual case.

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Accessing the SUARTS Advice Service

The release of results means that this is a very busy time of year for our Advice Service. They are therefore not always able to respond to enquiries as quickly as they’d like. It’s important that you are mindful of any deadlines when accessing the service, as being unable to book an appointment is unlikely to be seen as a valid reason for submitting a late appeal.

The service runs daily drop-in sessions in our High Holborn office (Monday-Friday, 10-12) and aims to see as many students as possible during these hours. If you do turn up between these times, an adviser should be able to see you for up to twenty minutes (sessions are allocated on a first come first served basis).

The following tips aim to help you get the most out of your contact with the Advice Team:

If you are unable to make a pre-arranged appointment, please let your adviser know so that they can offer it to someone else

If you are coming to the service for advice on appealing, please bring along a copy of your Exam Board results letter if you have one

If you send us an email you will receive an automatic response asking for some details. Responding with these details can enable us to provide more accurate advice based on your own individual situation

Coming to the Advice Service in person (High Holborn) may enable you to speak with an adviser more quickly however please come within drop in hours (10-12), as advisers are unable to deal with drop in sessions outside of these hours.

More information on the SUARTS Advice Service is on suarts.org

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LCC Feedback

Last term we asked students at LCC studying courses in the School of Media to give us their feedback about their time at LCC. I feel that it’s important that when you take the time to give us your feedback, we make sure to tell you what happens with that information. Lots of you completed an online questionnaire, as well as taking part in several face to face focus groups, and the results we found were really fascinating! Ranging from your views on facilities, contact time, the quality of teaching, the curriculum, and the community at LCC, we gathered a whole host of useful information about what you think about your education.

The views we collected then informed the discussions which took place at an internal quality review of the School of Media, and we at the Students’ Union produced a report of recommendations we felt highlighted what students do and don’t like about studying in the School of Media. Some of the things we proposed, based entirely on the feedback you gave us, were:

Making sure students get better information about their course before they enrol.

Ensuring that last minute cancellations and unexpected changes to the timetable are reduced.

Extending opening hours to the library and study zones, including weekends.

Ensuring that students across the School can be guaranteed of a consistent level of feedback on assessed work.

Using the School’s professional networks to give students more industry links.

Working with UAL’s Disability and Dyslexia services to ensure all students know how they can access the help they need.

All of these recommendations came from your views, and we really appreciate you sharing them with us. Your feedback matters, and we will be working with the university to have your views heard.

- Hannah, SUARTS Education Officer

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Evolving Fashion Meet Up

Interested in forward-looking fashion? Join the Evolving Fashion Society in Blueprint Bar, HH this Thursday at 6.30pm for talks and an exhibition on sustainability, innovation and ethics in fashion. It's a great chance to hear about what students, the society and the University are doing in terms of sustainable fashion, as well as an opportunity to meet like-minded people and enjoy a drink!