Giving feedback to staff
You’re not the only one who likes to improve – the College does too. Your feedback about your experience at Imperial is really important to the institution, as it helps us improve and enhance the experience students have here.
We’re keen to make sure our undergraduate students have the best possible experience while studying with us. To do this, we need to know what you think works well and what we could do better.
Giving feedback
How do I give the College feedback?
There are plenty of ways to give feedback about your experience here. For example, you could:
- Complete surveys, such as the Student Online Evaluation (SOLE), the Student Experience Survey (SES), or the National Student Survey (NSS) . You’ll receive emails asking you to complete feedback surveys – make the most of this opportunity and tell us what you think.
- Become an Academic Representative for Imperial College Union. There are many different positions – it’s a great way to enhance your C.V. and make friends as well as contributing to the organisation. If you don’t fancy becoming a Rep yourself, make sure you find out who is the Rep for your course, Department or Year and talk to them about any issues or feedback you have.
- Engage with your Department: lots of Departments run Staff-Student Committees, hold social gatherings, town-hall style meetings and other events which allow you to talk to staff members and get your voice heard.
Does feedback make any difference? Will anything change?
In short – yes. At Imperial we take feedback from students very seriously.
By sharing your opinions and thoughts, both positive and negative, you’ll be helping both current and future generations of students get the best experience possible at the College. Check out Imperial College Union’s “You said, we did” campaign for more details.
The National Student Survey (NSS) gives final year students the opportunity to express their satisfaction with both the College and the Union. The NSS provides valuable feedback and information to the College, which is used to inform changes made across the institution.
Imperial College Union publish a response to the NSS every year with their recommendations on how the College should respond to the results of the survey.
How can I give feedback in a fair and effective way?
Any feedback you provide on your student experience should be both clear and fair. The College is committed to promoting and ensuring a working environment where individuals are treated with respect and courtesy. Personal or offensive comments will not be tolerated, nor do they help to improve your learning experience. Feedback should be clear and employ specific examples, so that any required changes can be recommended and implemented.
To assist with the process of giving feedback, here are some practical examples of poor feedback and how they might be improved.
| Instead of saying | Say |
|---|---|
| I think my lecturer is great | I think my lecturer is great because she takes the time to check we have understood each new concept before moving on. |
| My lecturer is difficult to understand | My lecturer is difficult to understand because he talks very quickly and often stands with his back to us when explaining his slides. |
| I’m too scared to ask my lecturer to clarify things I don’t understand | On one occasion, my lecturer laughed when another student made a mistake. This means I don’t want to ask my lecturer to clarify things I don’t understand. |
| Helpful notes | It was helpful to have the lecture notes available on Blackboard in advance of the lecture. |
It is important that you feel able to give feedback freely throughout your time of the College. As such, while many of the means of giving feedback allow you to remain anonymous, you should be careful to avoid self-identification by referring to personal or other identifying information in your feedback.
Always remember that if you want to talk to someone about any aspect of College life you can talk to your tutor. See Tutors for more information.
